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Archive for the ‘Animation’ Category

No Halloween?

Posted in Animation, Chapter 5, Directors, tagged , , , , , , on October 31, 2020| Leave a Comment »

Wendell and WildIn the “year without a (real) Halloween,” what more appropriate news could be posted than this “in case you haven’t heard” piece: Henry Selick is director for Wendell and Wild in collaboration with Jordan Peele and Keegan Michael Key, along with composer Bruno Coulais (who scored Selick’s classic Coraline).  Let’s keep hoping for a release date that’s not too far off: we need this one! 

Earlier this year, Selick received a highly deserved Winsor McKay award from the International Animated Film Society.  Check out this link which features Selick’s induction with a moving introduction from animator Jorge Gutierrez.  

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Exploring Acting Through a Different Lens

Posted in Animation, Chapter 8, tagged , , , , , on August 31, 2019| Leave a Comment »

Developing dynamic and moving performances can be one of the greatest challenges for actors and directors working in collaboration.  Let’s add to the mix another set of creators who generate performances in motion pictures: animators.

Here are some interesting resources that highlight the extensive work of animators in developing compelling and well-defined characters through drawn or CG images.  First, there is an excellent article on the work of Pixar animators for a new movie featuring a beloved character: Woody in Toy Story 4.  Along with Tom Hanks’s exceptional voice work, a team of animators led by director Josh Cooley (at least for this fourth installment of the franchise) worked diligently to capture the wide range of emotions and traits seen in Woody and the rest of the Toy Story gang, and this is explored extensively in this piece by journalist Darryn King.

To investigate the ties between acting and animated film, it is critical to explore the creations of the Japanese master director Hayao Miyazaki.  Here are two articles on Miyazaki: an interview from The Telegraph and an overview of his career and the films of Studio Ghibli.

From “Cumo” by Emily Fabrizi

Speaking of performance through animation, here are two films from students of mine.  Cumo is an exceptionally crafted and delightful piece of animation by high school senior Emily Fabrizi that is highly worthwhile to explore for its reliance on performance — and without dialogue!  Another animated movie that weaves a strong character-driven portrait — and once again without any dialogue — is this award-winning college project by my former student Brendan Kirschbaum: Solo.  Both shorts feature many elements worthy of study for nuances in performance, all crafted by animators.

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Communicating the Product: Advertising Media, Part 3

Posted in Animation, Chapter 3, Women Mediamakers, tagged , , , , , , on May 29, 2017| Leave a Comment »

In Chapter 3 of Moving Images and a number of mediateacher.net posts (for example, check out Part 2 from this series or the Kevin Goff interview), we have discussed cutting edge moving image creation designed to produce advertising, public service messages, issue-driven content, and a wide array of visual storytelling.  Here is a very interesting current resource: the TBrandStudio Selects for 2017 from the world of animation.  The chosen mediamakers are: Nice and Serious, Block & Tackle, Bhakti Patel, Mighty Oak, and Pete Levin.

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Trends in Animation

Posted in Animation, tagged , , , , , , , , , on February 25, 2017| Leave a Comment »

screen-shot-2017-02-25-at-10-08-06-amEach year, mediateacher posts pieces that discuss Oscar nominees or winners — often focusing on those under-the-radar treats: animated, live action, and documentary shorts — and today will emphasize a standout category from this year: animated feature film.  The lineup of movies nominated in animation highlights a strikingly diverse quintet of movies, including two foreign selections, the French-language My Life as a Zucchini and non-dialogue The Red Turtle; along with a new stop-motion treasure from Laika studios, Kubo and the Two Strings; and two thought-provoking, delightfully spirited Disney CG offerings, Zootopia (discussed in this earlier post) and Moana. 

Interestingly, of the three movies, a majority are animated using (relatively) old-school techniques — drawn, 2D animation and figure-based stop motion.  Yet again, when it appears that digital advances will steer moviemaking in a particular direction by making things “easier” for craftspeople or “more realistic” for viewers, such as with CG-based animation, filmmakers will return to — and reinvigorate or sometimes reinvent — traditional techniques that help them to communicate the most meaningful and emotionally vibrant expression of their stories.

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Celebrating Shorts and a bit more

Posted in Animation, Chapter 8, Women Mediamakers, tagged , , , , , , , , , on February 29, 2016| 1 Comment »

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Gabriel Osorio and Pato Escala for Bear Story

Want to see those Oscar shorts?  Most of them, including the winners of Live Action Short — Stutterer — and Animated Short Film — Bear Story — are available here.  In fact, Bear Story marks the first time a Chilean film has ever won an Oscar, which was movingly noted by its creators, Gabriel Osorio and Pato Escala.

For the documentaries, it is not possible to go to one single source to watch all of the nominated shorts, but the winner directed by Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness, will be available to HBO subscribers next week since it was produced by the renowned HBO documentary division.

Related to celebrating things, I will add an expression of joy for Emmanuel Lubezki‘s astounding third win in a row for cinematography (after having shot an incredible series of features with  Alfonso Cuarón, particularly Children of Men, Y Tu Mamá También, and A Little Princess) shooting essentially without lights.  And add to that a resounding cry of triumph for the maestro, Ennio Morricone, for such a well-deserved victory and one of the most touching moments of the night.  It was a genuine pleasure to see him up there receiving his award with such a wonderful address and message to his respected peer, John Williams.  What a composer.  Ennio Morricone has scored hundreds of movies, and there are so, so many that are absolute masterpieces.  Here is one you have probably never heard of: Gli Scassinatori.  Check it out and you will see what I mean.  Il maestro, indeed.

Margaret Sixel and George Miller

Margaret Sixel and George Miller

Among the many victories for Mad Max: Fury Road (also so well deserved all around) was Film Editing for Margaret Sixel.  Yes, it was a woman who was in charge of editing that furious voyage of footage!  And did anyone notice how many women were among the winners on stage, and not just in acting categories?  For the big winner at the end, Spotlight, it was two women who were speaking from among the film’s producers, Blye Pagon Faust and Nicole Rocklin.

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