Issues of Representation

Issues of Representation

"Issues of Representation" was the title of the chapters we had to read in both texts. These chapters discussed race and gender and how they are present in animation, but both writers had very different opinions on the subjects.

Furniss talked about the different ways culture is present in animation, and how it was grotesquely skewered. Artists chose to group characters in stereotypical categories. Numerous side characters, back in the day, seemed very one-dimensional and crude. Example: Speedy Gonzalez. So race was heavily featured in films back then, but didn't seem to serve a purpose other than to laugh at other races. Gender was handled just as poorly in these films. The men would seem barbaric, while the women would seem ditzy, usually with the purpose of being looked at.

Wells seemed to stress gender more in his writings, discussing characters and how their images help to tell who they are as people. Men were usually presented as average hardworking people, while women were sex symbols. Wells talked about how female characters should be more than that and how they too can be presented as strong female characters.



Prince Mononoke


I recently watched Princess Mononoke again with some friends, and fell in love with it all over again. The animation, the story, and the characters are all rich and complex. Miyazaki (and his team) have done a terrific job of immersing the audience in the world of Gods, Demons, and Man. Within a two hour span, it feels as though you've spent your whole life in the land and know all of it's folklore.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkWWWKKA8jY



Project


The project is going well, as of now I'm constructing the character and sets for my segment of the film. I'm doing cut outs, so I spent the last week researching and now I'm ready to start work.

Chapter 3 - Once Upon a Time: Narrative Strategies

Chapter 3

Raoul Servais once said that "every animated film must have a story", and I fully agree with that statement, because without a proper concept or structure the film would be nothing. It seems so often that many animated films don't properly tell a story, so the viewer's left with nothing but fancy visuals. Sometimes the visuals can tell way more about the characters or concept than any of the writing in the film, and that's what this chapter was about: the different ways to tell a story, visually and in the writing. 

This Chapter had a lot of key terms:

1. Metamorphosis-Ability for an image to literally change into another completely different image; fluid linkage

2. Condensation-Shortening narrational information into a limited period of time

Two processes: 

Elliptical Cut-cuts between events

Comic Elision-Sequence of comic events that form a self-determining process

3. Synecdote-Part of a figure/object represents the whole of a figure/object

4. Symbolism and Metaphor-An item which is consciously/unconsciously placed to develop another depth to the story. Symbol is invested with meaning. A metaphor grows from the symbolism and serves to embody a system of ideas. 

5. Fabrication-A film's alternative version of material existense: meta-reality formed from constructed environments, substances, and art forms

6. Associative Relations-Based on models of suggestion and allusion, which bring together previously unconnected or disconnected images to logic and inform, rather than being a simple surreal effect

7. Sound-Helps to form mood and atmosphere

8. Acting and Performance-Actions created by characters constructed movements, but the voice helps to add personality to the character. Animation and voice acting work together. 

9. Choreography-Importance of the character's movements. Important to see how the character acts and reacts

10. Penetration-A  revelatory tool, used to reveal conditions or principles which are hidden or beyond the comprehension of the viewer

I found these terms to be interesting to read through, especially the idea that a voice actor and animator work together to bring a character to life. These terms also helped me to appreciate how animated films can use visual presentation to tell a story; I knew that before, but didn't know to what extent the importance of the animation was. A simple character's movement can tell you so much about who they are as a person. Rudolf Laban detailed an ingenious process, known as the 16 Basic Movement Themes, in order to help artists tap their character's inner-being. 

To Die By Your Side

A short film I saw recently with friends was Spike Jonze's "To Die By Your Side". It's a whimsical tale about a skeleton trying to get to a mystery woman, and the mishaps of him trying to get to her. What's so great about it is that it's a simple tale, with terrific animation, especially the underwater effects. I also love the sense of movement in the characters. There's little dialogue, but you truly understanding these characters due to their movements, and that fit in with the ideas of Chapter 3. 

http://www.thevine.com.au/entertainment/news/to-die-by-your-side-_-an-animated-short-film-by-spike-jones20111020.aspx

Animation Film Progress

As a group, we haven't officially all met, but certain members have been discussing ideas together. Soon we will meet as a group and write a script that we're all happy with, because right now there's some clashing ideas. I expect the project to go a lot smoother once the script is written.