Second talk on the 21st

The talk on the 21st August was more of a lecture presentation. Explaining the processes of the animation production. Sadly it was to another small audience, the set up being such that people I think felt unable to just plonk themselves down to listen as it appeared more formal than it was. On the up side Khun Aime was a terrific translator and the whole thing was videoed and is now on show at the entrance. 

Here are the slides:

tickets please!

Tickets Please!

These are the scanned 'tickets' for the talks about our exhibition on the 8th floor, BACC, Bangkok on August the 4th 12-1pm and August 21st 3-4pm.  Each 'ticket' has a quote, saying, definition or explaination regarding  the exhibition. The overall concept being that of Dialogic, the Art of Dialogues and the point where the art of finding logics meet. So each ticket acts a stimuli for dialogue, a prompt in the search for logic and meaning in the installation on Death. There is no one complete answer to fully see the experience, but a variety of points that can then be discussed, mulled over, accepted or rejected, adapted and discareded as each person makes their own pathway through 'Death'

Dialogic Death - draft final animation

This is the draft for the final screening. I have a few After Effects to add to the edit but this is the basic structure in the order of Screen 1. Screen 2 will start with the Tree sequence, Screen 3 with the sky sequence and four is just the 1st sequence repeated. All will loop continuously.
the audience, the only actual living things,  will view the screens as they pass through the maze. Exiting through the fourth screen...back to life(?)

Dialogic birds sky test

This screen is almost empty, the movement is meant to be very little and it should give a feeling of big sky. A bird flies across (one of the photos accidently has a real bird in it. (I have fixed this ) This test didn't work so well as the clouds judder from one to the other, (I have fixed this). I like the blue tinge. The bird I have softened a little. I think this will be good as a contrast to the caterpillar sequence which is quite busy and the tree which builds in its mood, this one is 'jai yen yen'.

This is a further test for the tree scene. I have added colour. I like the feeling this gives and the idea of sunset coming, the end of the day, the transition moment before the darkness of night. The red in the clouds seems almost blood-like, which seems appropriate and the clouds move in a pulsing way like a slow heart beat. there is a section which has some rain effects where I want to add a bit of CG After effects to enhance the rain.
A few more over night renders and we'll be rocking!

Dialogic Death - animation stills

Stills from the caterpillar metamorphosis animation.

This animation appears in the first and last screen initially. I have been working on the textures of the backgrounds, editing with Final Cut Pro and mixing photographic realism, organic textures of water colour painting under the camera and the animated 'characters'. Through  I have been developing the layered montage look that I wish to give the piece.

The caterpillars journey through a textured landscape - the clouds within the landscape add an etherial quality which I feel helps give the scene an 'other world' appearance. A transition path between this world and the next.

The bridge over the river Styx, where the water darkens and effervesces - the bridge starts as a small japanese garden style but widens (ominously) as the journey progresses and the river rises and a darkens

Using the mirror tool allowed the metamorphosis of the caterpillar to develop into a mouth like gape that seemingly chews the grub up until it finally becomes a cat.

The cat, drawn with a simple ink brush line appears contented and asleep, before awakening and appearing to contemplate the clouds around which it sits. 

Eventually the cat, sat with it's back to us, morphs into a woman, whose form dances and turns into a pulsation of patterns. Playing with forms of multi-armed gods, female genitalia and firey wisps.

 I wanted to avoid images of horror and pain linked with (a particularly western perspective) of the sati ritual of wives walking on, and sometime sacrificing themselves to the fire of their late husbands cremation. I have no experience of this and don't wish to explore the suggested coercion, subjugation and possible exploitation that may well be involved in such practices.
I wanted to concentrate the imagery around the hypnotic euphoria that grief can project onto one at the loss of a loved one. The powerful physical and mental feelings of being torn apart and immersed in love and loss; not dissimilar to the physical and emotional feelings that act of love itself can project, and so it is by no accident that the images have an almost orgasmic pulsation. The sacrificial act of walking through fire acts more as a metaphor of the emotions here and not a commentary on the act. One of the key ideas suggested by Bua that I am working with is that the  theme is around transition and the spaces in between, life and death.

 The empty shell of the woman reflects the loss and emptiness after the grief has lessened.

Memento Mori - Zumbakamera

Here's a great example of a simple concept used to create a good plot....

Have you ever been stuck in a lift?

Memento Mori from Zumbakamera on Vimeo.

Walking exercises

Walking!

Walk cycles are notoriously hard to achieve. The students worked on developing two cycles, one side view one front view. The idea is that they should be the same character and same walk. easier said than done. The basic cycle needs to be planned out, extreme keys, passing position and in-betweens. Once the legs are working, add in the arms and the head motion and any secondary action.

So here are the walk cycles the students have worked on.

The characters bear some familiarity...

Dealing with the depressing and the personal

Animation as a genre is usually associated with humour, childishness or the bizarre fantasy. It can also have the capacity to deal with difficult and dark subject matters. In the Character Design 1 class last week, in an effort to broaden their ideas on what makes a good character I screened two films whose characters deal with difficult to address subject matter. Death, illness and Old Age.

In Grave of the Fireflies (火垂るの墓 Hotaru no Haka) is a 1988

animated film written and directed by Isao Takah. A profoundly human story, in the words of Isao 'a very simple story where the two main

characters die.'

It is the tale of the relationship between two orphaned children, pre-teen Seita (清太) and his young sister Setsuko (節子). It is in terms of commercial cinema expectations a very difficult idea to sell: a cartoon about children dying.

However, despite his initial reservations about the project, which had a release date already set which limited the creative ideas he would like to have adopted for the film, Isao developed the animation and it's characters with deep sensitivity. He concentrated on bringing out the details of the characters mannerisms and environment. Their world, their lives in detail and by adding into the narrative from his own experience of living as a

child after the War.

He gives the Setsuko a prop of the Sakuma drops sweet tin that from the book was only mentioned as the container for her ashes. But by recognizing the significance and preciousness of these particular sweets from that time of rationing, he develops the internal context of the character, so that the tin holds the memories of her playing with it and thus it becomes more than just a contain

er for her ashes but a container of her memory. The film is full of symbolism and signifiers of these childrens plig

ht. The fireflies is deeply significant - symbolic of the short life of the girl.

"Mature fireflies which emit light have extremely short life spans of two to three weeks and are traditionally regarded as a symbol of impermanence, which resonates

with much of classical Japanese tradition (as with cherry blossoms). Fireflies are also symbolic of the human soul (Hitodama), which is depicted as a floating, flickering fireball. Heikebotaru (平家蛍, Luciola lateralis),

a species of firefly that exist in the Western region of Japan, is so-called because people considered their lights, hovering near rivers and lakes, to be the souls of the Heike family, all of whose members perished in a famous historic naval engagement - the Battle of Dan-no-ura.)"* Wikipedia.org

The design of the characters establishes and maintains their purity and innocence in the

circumstance. The Anime style used maintains realistic proportions and movement and the colours used throughout are subdued. They move and play and react in realistic movements. The physical environment of their story unfolds in has a photo realism that sets the tone to be s

erious yet their characters maintain the lightness of a child's view.

As their progressive deterioration of health takes hold, from the affects of the bomb's fall out radiation, their appearances decline, the colours become more subdued. Their expressions take on the somberness of children who have lived through trauma. It is deeply moving to witness their lives, experience their small pleasures and feel their disappointment. The film keeps it personal and in the moment. It is a must see, but only in full dedication mode, not thinking you can watch it and do something else. Total absorption. It is one of the rates antiwar films ever made. Further reading on the Physicality of the Grave of the Fireflies from Bill Mousoulis

In a completely different but equally successful approach to difficult life topics, Harvie Krumpet by Adam Elliot id the Oscar winning story of a very unfortunate ordinary man. The story deals with many issues including refugees, loosing a testical, having a magnetic metal plate in his head, falling in love, infertility, adoption, Thalidamide, loosing one's spouse, death and euthanasia.

The character elicit our interest and sympathy as the ultimate underdog and his lot. His very ordinariness set up against seemingly insurmountable life situations makes his naïve simplicity a delight to watch - no-one can feel bad about their own life after meeting Harvie. Yet he is not morose and even deals with the onset of Alzheimer's with a playful acceptance. He is an extended metaphor for the principals and strength of family values and despite the lack of ambition and opportunity he has in his own way a good

life.

Despite his traumas (including the banning of nudity in his nursing home) he remains hopeful, upbeat, even grateful for his change of mind from his own suicide (which in turn provided the means for euthanasia to his new found friend and her cancerous goiter). Harvie is a treat to watch, he is the ultimate antihero that helps us all feel that life is OK. I am looking forward to seeing Adam Elliot's latest piece Mary and Max.