It's been a tough couple of months of mental MUD. Right now this film feels like going through the trials in The Last Crusade... and I just learned that only the penitent man shall pass. That was tough to learn. Ha!
My biggest struggle and what I am seeing as the cause of my problems is that I am not being direct with what I want to do. I will blame the past another day for that, but for now, I am just going to address it at something impeding me from being director of my film. There is much more stress this year to produce something, anything, and I retreat to my tricks to please a certain audience... but... there is no defined audience! Its a film... anyone can see it... so what do I do?
When I did my Pupurun project, I found direction through the limitations of the materials and my time, so I am turning to that method of analyzing to help me forward. When I created the Pupurun character, I also imposed limits on his character, which was not as easy because he is literally an amorphous blob that can turn into anything. But there is a limit to everything (as mortals say).
For my materials, my limits are these:
-it is being shot on a multiplane, so materials are mostly flat.
-it is made from felt, fur, suede, natural materials. Only Fia's head is a 3D object.
-backgrounds are black, or white, and must transition to one another.
-props are never stationary.
-everything is in pieces, and what makes one object can easily make another.
For Fia and the Fox, their limits are these:
Fia:
-Fia is hesitant to act
-Fia cares about nature and the fox, but in observation rather than action
-Fia is a person
Fox:
-the fox can guide Fia, but he cannot do anything for her.
-the fox is an animal, and has the limits of an animal
-the fox does not choose how to live, he just does
Nature:
-Nature grows
-Nature dies
-Nature grows again
Story Limitations:
-The story is based on movement and cycle.
-all items move, shift or transform, unless they don't.
-Fia can choose to act.
Saturday, February 18, 2012
Friday, December 16, 2011
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Back back back back back
I'm going back to some original ideas. I had changed the story and it was getting convoluted and maybe over worked for me to work on.
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Rethinking a few things
I have a meeting tomorrow with Phil Smith, who taught the Dreams on Film class I took this summer. This class was a big inspiration to me in the content I want to address, which affects both the manner of story and the visual aesthetic it is treated with. Now that I am preparing my pitch for him tomorrow it has really come to my attention that I think part of what I wanted to show originally has gotten lost in all of the elements I have been dealing with, so I'm going to try to write it out.
Something that has been important for me to show and that I have wanted to show for a while is the idea of the dreamscape, and the space of the mind made physical. I thought that this idea would assert itself in the narrative I had created because of the non-linear and segmented manner it has been cut into. Now, however, I feel that a more appropriate way to describe it would be to find the dreamspace and allow the narrative to come from that. I think that I feel too rooted in 'making sense' right now, but the core idea, and the atmosphere, and the ambiguity I want to describe does not necessarily make sense - I probably feel stuck because I am contradicting my own vision.
While I enjoyed working with the set I think I really need to let go of some of that technique in order to achieve the aesthetic that I want. At Ottawa one of the panels that really impressed me was Thurop Van Orlen's presentation on the piece he has started pre-production on, Black Forest. He is creating this piece in stop motion, with a flattened sort of look to it.
I really liked the use of lighting and textures in the concept work he showed and it allowed me to consider stop motion again without using a full stand up set. I have seen this in Pjotr Sapegin's work as well - I think I just need to update it for my own personal technique and practical goals.
Something that has been important for me to show and that I have wanted to show for a while is the idea of the dreamscape, and the space of the mind made physical. I thought that this idea would assert itself in the narrative I had created because of the non-linear and segmented manner it has been cut into. Now, however, I feel that a more appropriate way to describe it would be to find the dreamspace and allow the narrative to come from that. I think that I feel too rooted in 'making sense' right now, but the core idea, and the atmosphere, and the ambiguity I want to describe does not necessarily make sense - I probably feel stuck because I am contradicting my own vision.
While I enjoyed working with the set I think I really need to let go of some of that technique in order to achieve the aesthetic that I want. At Ottawa one of the panels that really impressed me was Thurop Van Orlen's presentation on the piece he has started pre-production on, Black Forest. He is creating this piece in stop motion, with a flattened sort of look to it.
I really liked the use of lighting and textures in the concept work he showed and it allowed me to consider stop motion again without using a full stand up set. I have seen this in Pjotr Sapegin's work as well - I think I just need to update it for my own personal technique and practical goals.
Monday, October 10, 2011
Monday, October 3, 2011
Project Proposal
Kristen Campbell
Senior Project Proposal
Oct. 4th 2011
Project Summary
The project i would like to complete over the course of my final year is a 5 minute stop motion animated film. The working title of the film is Swift and it is about a young girl who has grown distant from her older sister.
Synopsis
Finding her home situation dull and her older sister distant, Fia looks for creative solutions to remedy this.
Description
Swift is a character piece that describes the inner dialogue and frustration of an eight year old girl, Fia, who is facing an emotional distance from her older sister. In reaction to this, Fia looks for ways to distract herself and be independent. She ultimately finds that while doing things on her own can be fun, she misses the company of her sister. The atmosphere of the film is light hearted. The film is intended for a general audience and will also be appropriate for children.
Swift is presented in a series of short vignettes that each highlight a personal thought of Fia. It is set in a transient space where props move in and out, and constantly is shifting, similar to theatrical stage design. This method is to describe an introspective look into Fia’s mindspace, and is reminiscent of memory or incomplete thoughts. Swift offers an understanding of a difficult event through the perspective of a child, and a resolution through growth and expressions of caring through gesture and positive actions.
Visual Treatment
The aesthetic of Swift relies on 3D objects in a stop motion set. To emphasize the dreamlike quality of the film, the props are designed in a non-literal fashion, and only imply representation, ie. a tree prop is created by a collage of leaves at the top of a vertical paper frame, but it does not carry the shape of a representational tree. The props will be created with fabric, various textured papers and cardstock, and will be backlit. Fia’s character will be represented with a puppet doll, which will be created with structural foam and fabric.
Sound Treatment
Swift will be narrated minimally by Fia. Each vignette will begin with a personal thought of hers. The film otherwise will be comprised of diegetic sound that will be warped and altered, to enhance the idea of non-literal space.
Production Schedule
Concept Artwork
Senior Project Proposal
Oct. 4th 2011
Project Summary
The project i would like to complete over the course of my final year is a 5 minute stop motion animated film. The working title of the film is Swift and it is about a young girl who has grown distant from her older sister.
Synopsis
Finding her home situation dull and her older sister distant, Fia looks for creative solutions to remedy this.
Description
Swift is a character piece that describes the inner dialogue and frustration of an eight year old girl, Fia, who is facing an emotional distance from her older sister. In reaction to this, Fia looks for ways to distract herself and be independent. She ultimately finds that while doing things on her own can be fun, she misses the company of her sister. The atmosphere of the film is light hearted. The film is intended for a general audience and will also be appropriate for children.
Swift is presented in a series of short vignettes that each highlight a personal thought of Fia. It is set in a transient space where props move in and out, and constantly is shifting, similar to theatrical stage design. This method is to describe an introspective look into Fia’s mindspace, and is reminiscent of memory or incomplete thoughts. Swift offers an understanding of a difficult event through the perspective of a child, and a resolution through growth and expressions of caring through gesture and positive actions.
Visual Treatment
The aesthetic of Swift relies on 3D objects in a stop motion set. To emphasize the dreamlike quality of the film, the props are designed in a non-literal fashion, and only imply representation, ie. a tree prop is created by a collage of leaves at the top of a vertical paper frame, but it does not carry the shape of a representational tree. The props will be created with fabric, various textured papers and cardstock, and will be backlit. Fia’s character will be represented with a puppet doll, which will be created with structural foam and fabric.
Sound Treatment
Swift will be narrated minimally by Fia. Each vignette will begin with a personal thought of hers. The film otherwise will be comprised of diegetic sound that will be warped and altered, to enhance the idea of non-literal space.
Production Schedule
Concept Artwork
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