ANIMATION BREAKDOWNS

ANIMATION BREAKDOWN. 18.02.20.
STATE OF THE NATION…… Animators dealing with contemporary issues.

Before I start, I want to push my views on the videos we have seen but for some I will talk more about their messages, animation techniques or things I agreed or disagreed with their messaging.

Marcus Armitage – My Dad

Armitage’s work within this animation is chaotic and vibrant with colour. The use of sound within these scenes gives life to the world he is creating, music being played, people chatting, cars beeping. He creates this world full of life and people together. Then he flips back and forth when he talks about his dad, every time he talks about his dad or something his dad has said to him, you see nothing but black or white. He talks about immigrants and jobs being taken. This to me is trying to show that the views of the dad are black and white, very right way or the wrong way. And the use of the newspaper ripping apart all the colour from the kids’ point of view is a representation of the kid starting to believe what his dad was talking about and making him just as negative about the world as his dad is. I really enjoyed the use of colour and sound within these scenes. I believe these were of a representation of how if we cut out groups of people or cultures that are not our own, we lose more of that colour and sound we could be experiencing. And the use of it slowly disappearing when more and more newspapers keep making things black and white creates a cold and colourless world to live in.

Lisa LaBracio – The Opposites Game

While the animation is basically just doing exactly what the story is talking about, I feel that it takes that and makes it as creative as possible. Reason I say this is how they use stop motion for the book while they use hand drawn animation for everything else. The use of cutting the paper, rolling them up into balls to represent kids fighting, puppetry. The full amount of uses the book could give is being used to its advantage. The story I feel is an interesting take on how people view things differently. What is the opposite of a gun? No matter what answers they gave, each one could be right, but due to others believing in something differently they call those answers stupid. Each one thinking they were right results in them separating and going into their own groups, they become an echo chamber to themselves, never being able to discuss or conclude together. Reminds me of other topic where it becomes a laughable shouting match between people thinking there right and fighting anyone who would disagree with them. Religion, politics, personal interests and ideals each one could be used as an example of the message this animation is trying to show.

Donato Sansone – Journal Anime

The use of colouring on a news paper reminds me so much of school and my childhood. Anytime we had a lesson with books we’d turn to a page and see graffiti all over the school owned books. funny messages added extras that didn’t make sense. Random drawing that mean nothing and was only there because the drawer liked it. Sansone’s work reminds me of Marcus Armitage’s Previously talked about animation, My Dad.
The use of creativity while this person is bored drawing random things that don’t make sense for the scene like tentacles on a building or the Simpsons being put in a burnt down house. Its sporadic in nature due to how crazy this guys mind works, the more he see’s the more you see his mind goes to when he sees those images. Sometimes you’ll notice these small moments where when he does care about those topics its dark and scary imagery being shown, from people in balaclavas holding a knife, politicians with big stacks of money and Hitler becoming a millennial teen. While we see when he’s not interested it reverts to something silly such as ghosts being arrested, and astronauts being eaten by the moon. We’re essentially looking into the mind of this man; we can agree and disagree with if his views are right or wrong and if he should care more about certain topics more than others, its his opinions, and I feel the way Donato Sansone showed us the way a mind would work to be exactly how id imagen a mind coming to conclusions or just random thoughts.

Beth David and Esteban Bravo – In A Heartbeat

Now this animation is very reminiscing of Pixar level quality within its animation. For a short college film this is exceptional. From the lighting and colour schemes being bright and vibrant in pinks and purples compliment this short very well. Even the character designs are simple but are easily recognisable from each other.
But in my opinion the story feels done to death. A character loves another but can’t find the will power to do it. Then something happens that brings those characters together (this being the boy’s heart) and then by the end those feeling are resolved. Does this make the animation bad? No not at all, but the story does feel like its been done before.
Now what the film does have that changes things a bit would be the inclusion of the main characters being gay. This was a big draw for many people who watched it. Getting it wide acclaim and recognition from millions of people. But I don’t agree that just by adding an LGBT character immediately warrants praise. It’s important that representation is shown, but the idea that a film is only good solely on that representation I feel is shallow. That to me isn’t the films fault. This could possibly be due to, at the time, how uncommon gay characters where shown in animated films. For me I feel that having a character who is LGBT shouldn’t be taken as highly praised as it should, if you want people to have LGBT characters in films become normal and treated the same as every other relationship, don’t treat it like a spectacle when it is shown. Otherwise it won’t become normalised. But again, that’s not the films fault, it’s the people who look to deeply into this type of issue.

Animation Breakdown. 25/02/20

Manivald. Chintis Lundgren. 2017.

I really enjoyed this animation. If I had to pinpoint, why I liked this animation compared to the others that were shown. it would have to be due to the use of awkward silence. Throughout the animation we’d be met with these perfectly timed awkward silences. Normally these silences would be used sparingly and mostly used only at the most awkward moments. Manivald however uses the act of awkward silence throughout.
The reason for this I believe is because of the Mother and Manivald. It is shown early on that she is shown to be very possessive of Manivald, thus making Manivald more introverted as well as unable to stand up for himself. This is shown near the beginning when Manivald is playing on his piano and sees a parade playing. He then copies them before immediately stopping once his mother stops him, showing a clear fear and influence his mother has on him.
I noticed a clear use of music was very prominent as a distinguishing factor with this animation.
Whenever its just him and his mother its silent and quiet, leading to the awkward silences. But once he’s alone or with someone other than his mother, suddenly there’s music. This is especially shown twice within the animation. Once with the Plummer while they’re in Manivald’s room away from his mother and the second time is when he’s left her and starts playing happily with the Parade band. On another note, when he is playing with the Parade band he first starts playing the song his Mother wanted him to play, so its starts off sad and upsetting, before he suddenly switches into a more joyous version of the song, showing he is now free and on his own away from his mother. While the last time we see his mother she is alone, without music and has an awkward silence with a moose. Showing how She is now miserable without Manivald.