Double Negative with Chris McLaughlin

It was no surprise that this was going to be one my must-attend talks for this year, especially after I deeply enjoyed last year's insightful one with Nathan Ortiz (I might have to repost that post... because for some reason it disappeared on my blog?), and ho ho... it looks like the festival director knew of that, saving the best for last...

Chris McLaughlin is the Sequence Supervisor at Double Negative, having joined the studio in 2010. He works in Lighting TD, CG Sequence Lead and CG Sequence Supervisor on such works as "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2", "Paul", "The Bourne Legacy", "Fast and Furious 6" and "Rush". Most recently, Chris completed work on "Hercules" as CG Sequence Supervisor where he was responsible for all environment sequences along with the three-headed Cerberus. He is currently Sequence Supervising on next year's "Terminator: Genisys" (Yay!). But anyway back to the creature production of "Hercules".

The Nemean Lion was one of their proudest works, despite it being one of
the longest to render due to its detailed fur.

While "Hercules" (Featuring Dwayne Johnson, AKA, The Rock) might be one of their least popular works (Which is understandable considering all the other blockbusters that were released around the same time... still, I have read that it was able to beat out "Dawn of the Planet of the Apes" during its third week), clearly a lot of love was put into the designs of the creatures and environments that were assigned to the DNeg crew.

Interestingly enough, the wolf from the "Bourne Legacy" was used as reference during the development of the 3 wolves, which definitely made things a little easier when it came to working on them. Needless to say, reference is incredibly important and any professional will immediately tell you the exact same thing, regardless of what you are working on. So gather as much reference as you can, gather photos, watch documentaries, just don't attempt to create something out of the blue and expect it to be good!

Zbrush sculpts were first sent over to the studio by their clients during the development of the creatures, from there, Chris and his crew begin working on these designs, to not just improve on their design (Making them not just appealing, but fiercer and more intimidating), but to also to adjust the anatomy to be more accurate. Walking/Running cycles were then used to see how realistic their movements are as well physics of their skin and fur (A little more on that later).

Previs (Or Previsualization) comes in all forms depending on what media it is being used for (Eg, storyboards and concept art). 3D animated previsualization has been used in the VFX industry since the 1980s and remains popular to this day. In a way, they resemble game cutscenes that are perfect for figuring out lighting, camera angles, etc.

Challenges involve the creation of hair/fur, water/swamp creature, realistic interaction between the actors and these effects. Several custom shaders and renderers were created even for the water and snow and hilariously a 'baby oil' shader was specially made for Dwayne Johnson himself (Seeing that he applies them throughout the movie). There were just a lot of tool that Chris mentioned during his presentation, and it was pretty hard to catch it all, but needless to say, I was awed but how much went into just the creatures alone.

Hercules had a digital double that was used clearly for more dangerous stunts or considerably impossible scenes (Particularly during the fight with the Erymanthian Boar), or when the real actor's interaction did not match the object it was interacting with (Such as the hands). They also had to keep in consideration about making sure details matched that of the actor himself, such as dirt, wounds, costumes... and babyoil.

While the Lernaean Hydra didn't have fur like the other creatures, other details were considered such as the more realistic stretching of their scaly skin (A volume rig was used for the surface of the body to do so). Not only that, a majority of the setting was also redone, using the blue screen for the environment (Seeing that swamp is mostly green anyway), the water area was actually extended, with extra details such as blood added into it. But that doesn't mean that the live shots are then deemed completely useless, they can of course be referred to when recreating that scene.

Green suited actors are also used as placements for these creatures (I'm sorry, I can't find the one that was shown in the presentation), to give the idea of weight for the actors, as miming won't always work.

And so my respect continues to grow for this studio, not just because they have worked on so many of my favourite movies, but also for the fact that they truly do go all out when it comes to what they do. A part of me wishes to learn more about VFX (To better understand the softwares used for it, especially when it comes to the brushes, shaders and renderers that are used) and perhaps get the chance to work with amazing folks like them someday, but the wiser part of me knows that that probably won't happen for awhile...

Despite their amazing contributions however, the VFX department seems to be the least respected out of all the departments in the film industry (As Mr Paul Wells so states), perhaps still being the youngest and all... 

But Chris McLaughlin also has a point, taking it as the biggest compliment when their visual effects actually go unnoticed by the viewers (Like "Rush", because that totally wowed me), they know they are doing great work, and if it helps, there are folks like us who deeply appreciate their hard work...

Slumberless

"Slumberless" happens to be another animation that attempts to mix 3D computer and stop motion together, only to be a little more successful as compared to "Etoile". The story focuses on a sleep deprived man who also continues to grieve over the loss of a loved one, one night however he is paid a visit by a strange creature.

I always heard that puppets from Mackinnon and Saunders tend to cost an arm and a leg, and so I can't really imagine how much the budget was for this animation short. If I remembered correctly, only the creature's wings were animated in 3D (Or was it the other way round?). Either way, I suppose the mixture of techniques doesn't look as awkward in this animation due to there being lesser 3D effects used, and perhaps even the dark lighting, that can better hide any possible flaws.

The ending was a little odd, I assumed that the creature was in some way a harbinger of death (Or just some scary as frag sleep fairy...), instead of helping the human fall asleep, he pretty much just puts him to rest from what I can see, in the nicest possible way at least (I mean, who doesn't mind turning into a mist of glitter and soft lights when they die?), as a way to repay him for helping him. Though I do believe that much more time and effort would have been needed if the creator had attempted a different ending where the human had lived on (The one that I have been thinking of that is).

Despite the somewhat rushed story, it still was a pretty little animation (Not surprising really especially since he was able to get high quality puppets for it), it had a nice and compelling atmosphere to it, with an effective enough soundtrack. Overall, I enjoyed it.

Etoile

"Etoil" is a 3D computer animation (With photos being used for most of their backgrounds) that follows the title character who lives with her family and her dog Rex in Morocco, Casablanca. During that time, Jewish girls from around the neighbourhood are kidnapped, when the opportunity to leave Morocco arises, Etoil and her family decides to take it.

So, what can I say about the story... Despite the seemingly cheerful music that plays and fairly cute style used for this animation, I know something sad was going to happen (Like most of the animations shown in this festival...). And once I figured out that the dog was going to be an important part of the story... for the rest of the film, I was just dying inside, knowing what would happen, and when it did...

'

Though I suppose it could be worse, it could be like "The Black Dog's Progress" (Created by the same guy who did "The Obvious Child")...

While the backgrounds are most probably stop motion (And sometimes 3D props are added in), I just find the mixture to be a little odd, the 3D characters don't blend in all that well with the backgrounds used. But it isn't really that bad, it was just something I found myself noticing as I watched, some interactions just aren't that believable, it really didn't look like the character was placing her foot down onto the step when she did. 

Still, it was a good attempt (This is coming from someone that only started learning about 3D animation), the character models looked alright I suppose, with the dog easily being my favourite (NOT because I'm bias, but his design looked the least awkward too compared to the humans), the main character's design could have been a little better.

It was interesting however to see others trying to mix  these different techniques together, and I can see that it is a lot more challenging than it looks, not many have been incredibly successful when it comes to executing it, but really, this was pretty good aside from a few flaws here and there.

Interview

Interview from The Animation Workshop on Vimeo.

"Interview" is a Danish 3D computer animation directed by Mikkel Okholm as Bachelor film project as part of the Animation Workshop, the short focuses on a young man who is interviewing for the most important job of all time... without even knowing what is it.

I just realised that I haven't really gotten the chance to talk about many 3D animations, and looking back on my past posts, so far it has mainly been 2D or stop motion ones. In all honesty, all the 3D and stop motion works were fantastic in this screening, or were at least far more enjoyable as compared to the 2D/traditionally animated ones... But yes going back to this wonderful animation...

If you haven't already watched the video provided in the very beginning, then do so now. This was well animated, well voice acted, and is overall a well written little piece of comedy (The pacing is just perfect, especially for each joke), and I couldn't help but enjoy it even more when I rewatched it (Especially when you are able to connect what happens in the beginning now that you know what happens in the end).

Every aspect of this animation was simply wonderful, even the details (Especially at the ending), lighting and camera angles (That especially makes things hilariously dramatic at times) were so well done.

100 Things Every Game Student should Know with Kaye Elling

I liked the fact that she mentioned she was a cosplayer.

Kaye Elling is a Lecturer in Computer Games at the University of Bradford and is the Course Leader for BA Graphics for Games, where she teaches observational drawing, digital sculpting and many other creative subjects. Kaye's background is in game development where she spent some 13 years working as a Character Artist and Art Manager for companies including Infogrames, Sony and Blitz Game Studios. She has created 3D graphics, and lead teams of artists and animators, on titles including the Premier Manager series, the Bratz series and the Encleverment Experiment on XBLA.

It was unfortunate that this was the only game development talk I was able to attend during my entire week there, but I was glad that it was this one as my friend and I were laughing throughout it. It was funny, frank and rather insightful talk into the video game industry. Kaye Elling was just such a joy to listen to, and it felt like time flew by so fast as we did.

Aside from how video game students should think and act during their time at university (Pretty obvious stuff to be honest, it still saddens me how hubristic most students can be...), we were reminded on how it is that we should present ourselves when we later on have to go out there. You need to earn the respects of the professionals, so commute with skill and integrity, be passionate, and of course, show that you actually know what you are talking about (Terminologies are pretty damn important).

Roles in the industry once again comes into discussion during this talk, clearly to make that decision on what it is you wish to specialise in, you have to make sure that you are absolutely passionate about it. Anyone can have ideas, but during recent times, you need some skills to back it up, don't be the one that talks and not do. To get a better chance at being hired, it of course also helps to pick up some other skills to show some flexibility.

And when working as part of the video game industry, do not make that mistake of thinking like a consumer (A mistake many of us clearly make), think like a developer. Read industry press, not consumer press, "Gamergate" is a consumer revolt, and not a developer one.

It was hilarious to see how this talk had intimidated quite a few of the attendants, because seriously, what'd you expect? Everything she said made absolute sense, and if you have the passion for it, there is no need at all to be afraid of the truths that she had laid out. And as usual, we were encouraged to focus on our portfolios, something I am really intent on working on, hopefully during the Easter holidays next year.

Seeing that Kaye Elling had to compress this list for this talk, the entire list can be found here, for those who are interested in reading further.

BAF 2014 Lifetime Achievement Award with Claire Jennings

Claire Jennings is one of the world's leading animation producers, having produced Aardman's "Wallace & Gromit in The Curse of The Were-Rabbit" in 2005, and worked together with Willem Thyseen to produce "Father and Daughter" in 2001. Claire Jennings first began her career in 1989, working for John Coates at TVC London, during her five year tenure, she worked on such productions as "Father Christmas" and "The World of Peter Rabbit and Friends". Subsequently, she embarked on her productions in the UK, producing Academy Award-nominated animated shorts "Jolly Roger" and  "The Canterbury Tales", which were nominated for and won BAFTA Awards, respectively.

Honestly though, she has a pretty darn impressive filmography (It was especially a pleasant surprise to learn that she had been a producer for "The Big Knights").

It was a pity that I couldn't stay all the way until the end (Especially when she was to finally receive her award), but I am glad I was able to catch whatever I could while I was there. I suppose there's still so much that I need to know when it comes to being a producer or director, both of them are so important, but have to uptake such different tasks from one another. I suppose one of the tasks that stood out the most to me when taking on the role of a producer is being the one to put together to team and to keep a fairly peaceful working environment (If there were to be any conflicts, she would see to getting it settled promptly). 

It was humorously stated that during the making of "Wallace & Gromit in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit", Claire practically felt like a punching bag when settling matters between Aardman and Dreamworks studios. At times she had to aggressively convince Dreamworks to give them more time, it only makes sense for such issues to occur when two studios with completely different cultures attempt to collaborate with one another, and Claire Jennings did a fine job keeping them together while also making sure a quality animation came out of it all.

"Stressed Eric" was an idea brought forth by Scottish comedian Peter Baikie, while he has written for several live-action comedy shows, this was going to be his first animated project, and so Claire Jennings was hired to aid him in that area.

As mentioned in another post, Laika was clearly struggling a little when they started on their first ever animated feature film "Coraline", with the schedule and budget just not working out for the entire crew and progress coming along very slowly, Henry Selick decided that it was time to seek out the assistance of Claire Jennings. An experienced hand was simply needed as most of the crew for this film, despite how talented they were, had little experience in handling such a big project.

Being a producer, Claire's hard work is not as celebrated as it should be, due to always getting things done behind the scenes (We have already seen how much trouble the film "Coraline" was actually in, despite how seemingly magical and fun the Laika crew had made it sound in one of their making-of videos). But thankfully, since her return to the UK, Claire remains highly recognised by many people in the industry, and so most of them end up going to her instead of the other way round.

"It was creativity with a gun held to your head."

Laika's Behind the Scenes of the Boxtrolls Mark Shapiro

No studio has ever gotten me to appreciate stop-motion like Laika did (Shh shh, I love you too, Aardman), while it is still a considerably new animation studio compared to so many others, for some reason Laika continues to win me over with each feature film they have been releasing over the last few years. And whilst have already caught "The Boxtrolls" back at home during the summer, I know this was going to be a real treat for me.

In the late 1990s, Will Vinton Studios sought funds for more feature-length fils and brought in outside investors such as Nike, Ink owner, Phil Knight. It was in 1998 that Knight made his initial investment and his son Travis started working at the studio as an animator. In 2002, Phil acquired the financially struggling studio to pursue feature-length productions, and during the following year, Henry Selick, director of The Nightmare Before Christmas, joined the studio as a supervising director. It was by July 2005 where Laika became the successor to Will Vinton Studios.

Mark Shapiro had joined the studio in 2007, where he manages brand strategies, including the marketing efforts for Laika's corporate identity as well as the company's feature films. Before then, Shapiro's diverse marketing and communications career had taken him across the US, working in brand development, advertising, public relations, film production and writing for companies including Nike, Town & Country Magazine and Upper Deck.

I don't want to talk too much about this film and its behind the scenes (Honestly I would like to save it for future blog posts that I can use for other modules), so I will just try to talk about the bits that interested me the most (Which was nearly everything, ugh). 

Green and blue screens were used throughout the film, particularly for the more action based scenes, it is just exhausting wondering how many times they have to switch between real settings and blue/green screens. Even if a more action based sequence was to take place in a proper setting, blue/green props have to be used for when they are animating a character jumping off a railing (And of course they have to make it look believable).

Compositing was also used for crowd scenes to save time, and frankly, it is really well done, especially since you will have to squint real hard to notice that the characters all the way at the back aren't actually moving.

It was just so amazing getting to know the techniques that were used to create the certain effects in this film, especially when it comes to the water and fire (Because at times, they really do look real). For the water in the sewers, rotating lights were simply placed under a textured shower glass, creating the illusion of light reflecting off water. Unlike past films, the fire couldn't be done in the same way (Where a more cartoony fire was actually 3D printed in "Coraline"), and a more realistic look had to be achieved, to do so, a mini ipad fire app was specially built, that would later on be placed into the little compartment of where the fire should be (Such as behind the grill of the machine used by Snatcher), and is after that enhanced ever so slightly with CGI.

I think we all know by now how much effort is put into every single one of their stop-motion puppets (Dozens of copies are even made of each of the characters), there are actually separate departments that specialise in areas such as clothing and hair (I wouldn't be too surprised if there was a little one for applying make up too, hehe). It was also interesting to know that these folks came from different backgrounds, for the hair department, the ladies that comprised of it actually came from a jewellery making background instead (Really makes you think).

And while the costumes were made from scratch with real fabric, wires were still placed under them so that they could be properly posed during the animating process, which must have been incredibly challenging, especially when attempting to achieve the realistic movement of flowing fabric.

As I mentioned before, I continue to remain astounded by how much love Laika puts into each of their films, and another aspect that also stands out about them is how they are more than happy to show us their process in whatever way they can, be it in trailers, behind-the-scenes, and even in the films themselves. It's a wonderful way to give better insight into the world of stop motion. They might have struggled a little in the beginning with "Coraline", but they clearly have come a long way since then.

Airy Me

This feels like a really sad animation to end on for "Girls on the Run", but nonetheless, I just knew I had to include this one, while the 'wired rabbit' that smiles as it lights up an otherwise pitch black room isn't all that disturbing compared to what we have already seen, it already gave us a hint on what will soon unfold further in. The cutesy anime expression is just both incredibly creepy and heartbreaking to look at, especially when they are later on seen on some weird creatures that go after the main female lead.

Yoko Kuno had taken two years to work on this animation as her graduation assignment when she was still in university, with the animation consisting of 3000 hand-drawn frames. Perhaps it would be easier to understand the meaning behind this animation if the english translation of the lyrics were available somewhere... I don't necessarily want to immediately assume that the female lead has been horribly abused in some way (Enough with the sexual abuse). It seems to me that she is struggling more with the fear of losing those that she is trying so hard to save, such as the patient that she dutifully takes care of each day.

While I felt that I had seen enough gory and disturbing animations for one day, I could still appreciate the amazing amount of effort put into this piece, with all the outstanding camera angles that had been traditionally drawn in instead of digitally animated, to know that every single frame was drawn by hand, just utterly amazes me (And humorously enough, I believe Yoko Kuno had actually put the rest of her classmates to shame during its showcase).

Usawaltz

This is abstract and conceptual as any animation can get, and there's honestly nothing really disturbing in it to boot (I kinda felt that the aim of most of these animations is to get people to think by pushing disturbing visuals right into their faces, haha).

It is cute and charming, but other than that, I can't really understand what this has to do with the "josei" theme, what are these little rabbit creatures meant to represent, and why are all these creatures flowing peacefully through a black abyss? All that was said in her summary on youtube is: 

"In the black and white world with so many animals relaxing, there are small rabbits called 'usa' dancing in their world."

And don't bother, usa is pretty much a short version of usagi, the japanese word for rabbit. The closest thing I can think of is that it has something to do with fertility...  But really, while I couldn't understand this one or make any theories out of it, it really was a lovely piece of animation, and I suppose there's nothing wrong with that, right? Maybe it wasn't really meant to mean anything..

"- doesn't really mean anything." ~ E, Blackadder

YA-NE-SEN a Go Go

Finally moving onto animations done by women... "YA-NE-SEN a Go Go" is rather simplistic in its set up as compared to previous works, which is fine and honestly a nice change of page! I really did like the retro feel to this one, and it just got to show how appealing rotoscoping can still be if done right. You just can't help but smile at the jubilance that is practically emitting from most of Yamazaki's works, they are all just bursting with joy and energy that you don't really see often in other works. Honestly the vintage look and song choice for this animation just reminds me of those really old karaoke music videos my mother sings to (Even to this day), and those are really fond memories...

It's really interesting that the animator and director decided to use herself as the main subject for nearly all of her works, and that's just awesome and and pretty darn admirable and inspiring, seeing how she is able to go all out when acting her reference out, whether she is in a private or public setting.

Interestingly enough, Shishi Yamazaki worked alongside "Transfer's" Fantasista Utamaro on a music video for Pharrell Williams' "It Girl", try guessing which parts of the video they were in charge of directing of!

Chisato Started

There were actually only three animations showcased in this programme that were directed by men, the last one being this one, and I have to say that this might be my favourite one out of the three of them.

I felt a strange sense of melancholy watching this piece, but at the same time I couldn't help but admire the fluidity of the animation (Were parts of it done in Flash? It felt that way when the in between frames are looked closer upon), and in truth, the overall contemporary style actually appealed to me. The colour palette is absolutely gorgeous, matching the abstractness of a seemingly dark representation of escapism.

From what I have managed to gather online, Wataru Uekusa seems to focus a lot on young, socially awkward girls who desire to escape from reality (No matter how violent), before eventually coming to terms with reality. On a brighter note, there weren't any unnecessary panty shots in this one like "Transfer".

What is notable is how the girl's hair continues to grow in length throughout the animation. The helicopter seems to be an important element throughout the animation as the girl finds herself back in a hospital room every time she hears or sees it... it could possibly suggest that she has been in a coma throughout the majority of the animation and only truly awakens near the end. This theory seems to be supported by the fact that no one actually seems to notice her when she's around, save for the bespectacled girl, who might be her closest friend, and it is also the same girl who seems to happily welcome her friend back. 

And so throughout the animation, the helicopter is the thing that manages to awaken her from her coma, the only sound that is able to pull her away from a world that she had actually believed to be real.

Since finding out about Wataru Uekusa, I think one of my favourite works by him is "The Tender March", but I believe it's just as violent and seems to focus on similar themes as mentioned earlier, and honestly it all still looks really pretty.

Agitated Screams of Maggots

Warning: NSFW, lots of over the top gore, violence and sexual content.

As someone who has already exposed herself to enough guro in her young life, I wasn't as horrified as I thought I would be by this one, but more amused by how hard the song and animation had tried to disturb its audience, which I believe it was somewhat successful in doing so (I do pity the parent that accidentally brought in her child at that exact moment this video started playing...).

Keita Kurosaka graduated from the Musashino Art University in 1979 where he majored in figure and still life painting. He later spent two years in France at the Ecole Nationale Superier des Beauz-Arts a Paris under the tutorship of J. Yankel majoring in oil painting. According to Kurosaka, these two years of study in Paris opened up his "sensibilities and feelings" to textures and surfaces. Kurosaka has been exhibiting his works since the early 80s, having spent 13 years on the animation film "Midori-Ko", having made 30000 drawings completed by himself for this hand-drawn animation. His style is not surprisingly described by critics as "very painterly, grotesque and surreal".

Having read that brief bio about him, it was no surprise that this animated music video was really well drawn, the animation is also alright especially when you consider how much detail was put into everything (Seeing that he probably drew every single frame by hand without any sort of digital editting). While I think I understood most of what this animation was trying to represent, I didn't really get why a cat-like creature was formed from the parasite that the mother had cut in half, while the other was clearly a male humanoid.

The little girl's rather calm demeanour throughout most of the video definitely implied that there was more to her than she let on, in the end, she was shown to be something akin to the angel of death (Or... just some fairy thing) that efficiently and mercilessly vanquishes the foul creature that had taken over her mother's body.

Transfer

The introduction to this programme seemed incredibly promising, it is no surprise that male and female animators tend to present female characters quite differently from one another in their works, and it is in this program where we get the chance to watch a variety of different works from Japan, known for their huge animation industry, I was intrigued to be given the opportunity to see their indie works that are of course overshadowed by mainstream animes.

"Transfer" was created by director/designer Fantasista Utamaro, co-director Kazuma Ikeda and cel-animation director and character designer Kubotabee in 2012. Utamaro graduated from Tama Art University in Textile Studies, and is currently on of the most innovative manga artists in Japan, he is also an animation director and a member of Mashcomix creators' union. Being known for his fashion and graphic design-related works, his contemporary art style and unique choice in colours is most notable in this animation.

I suppose I shouldn't look too deeply into this music video (Because I know I am going get some serious hate from anime fans), it probably seems fine if it is simply left to play in the background of a clothing store or anime themed dance club, but when we are made to watch it so intently in our seats for the whole six minutes, we can't help but think about the hidden messages this animation...

I hate to say it, but despite how brightly coloured, prettily designed and decently animated (And of course how cheerful the song is) this piece was, I was getting a lot of negative vibes as I watched on, especially when the unnecessary panty shots commenced less than a minute into the video, the same scene is then repeated over and over through different settings... which is absolutely draining to watch when you are ACTUALLY made to really watch it, instead of allowing it to play in the background as I mentioned earlier.

This awful side of me (That I keep wanting to apologise for) begins to feel that they are simply focusing on the anime stereotype of the magical schoolgirl. The repetition of that one scene with the girl running, jumping and flying seems to also imply that the archetype is used so incredibly often that no matter what setting the character is in, she never changes.

It just feels like a really bad start to the program as it seems to present male animators in a somewhat negative light when it comes to the portrayal of female characters (Which we know isn't true...).

Peter Lord

After a sour turn of events during my first day of Bradford Animation Festival, I just want to thank this hilarious, incredibly humble and down-to-earth man for brightening up my evening during his screen talk.

This man doesn't really need an introduction, but I will do it anyway. Peter Lord is a British film producer, director and co-founder of the renowned Aardman Animations studio alongside David Sproxton, best known for their clay-animated films ad shorts, particularly those featuring plasticine duo Wallace & Gromit. The studio has had ten Oscar nominations and has won four.

Peter was pretty quick to admit that he and David Sproxton started out as amateurs (Though frankly, who doesn't? You would have to be a real arrogant piece of... dickweed to actually think otherwise of yourself) during the start of their animation career, and frankly it all came down to luck, seeing as they didn't have the most competitive prices as compared to other animation companies at the time, but it was as simple as it sounded apparently, and the reason they were able to get their clients was simply because their works were of the utmost quality.

I was pleased that "Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists!" was one of the more discussed works during this talk, seeing that it still remains one of my most favourite Aardman works to date. It is no surprise that this film involved the working team thus far out of all the Aardman feature films, especially when so many new things were tried with it, such as combining digital effects with their beloved traditional stop-motion methods. It was also from there that we learnt that the studio is divided into at least 5 important areas that comprises of Feature Films, Commercials, TV Series (Such as "Shaun the Sheep"), Digital Online Groups (Games and Apps) and of course Rights (Basing around the selling of their TV programs to various channels and of course merchandise).

It is no surprise that Aardman should have a zanier and more playful working environment as compared to companies such as Pixar (So says Mister Lord, but I am pretty curious about the working environment of other animation companies now), seeing how stop-motion requires quite a bit of both footwork and handwork (I mean I suppose you can sit down while adjusting those plasticine models frame by frame, but that doesn't sound like a good idea)... and like any proper animation company, acting reference is required before they actually begin animating scenes.

A notable bit of news about Peter Lord is his recent return to 'hands on' animation after 18 years, along with the return of Morph (Created way back in 1977), thanks to a successful Kickstarter. Peter and the other senior members of the studio were at first a little wary about getting funds through a Kickstarter, worrying that folks would be a little more than antagonistic towards the idea, seeing as they are a "successful studio with already more than enough money in their pockets", but thankfully, not only were they able to raise enough money for 12 1 minute shorts, they were also connect a little more personally with their audience through this site than they initially realised.

It's great to see that this studio is still going strong, and I was glad that I was able to attend this insightful and funny talk, it really does make me appreciate stop-motion animations a whole lot more now and the folks that work on them.

The Elephant and the Bicycle

"The Elephant and the Bicycle" is a French, Belgium cut out animation by Olesya Shchukina, the story follows an elephant who works as a town street cleaner. One day he sees an advertisement for a bicycle and seems to be the right size for a creature of his size, and it is from there on that he goes all out to earn enough money to get his dream bike.

I had initially thought that the story was going to be focusing on the environment, seeing how it starts off with people callously throwing their trash about without a care, and so I suppose I was a tiny bit turned off by that, despite how the title already gave a clear idea on what the storyline actually was. It was however, a really sweet and cute story with a heartwarming ending where the elephant decides to just make others happy despite not being able to get what he had wanted in the end (Oh snap, spoiler there!).

I always did find cut out animations to have a certain sort of charm to them (Much like "The Caterpillar and Hen"), and I think that it especially suits most children animations. If I were to end up doing something stop-motion based (Especially on my own), it would most definitely be done with paper cut outs... I would honestly love create at least one animation in that style, though of course it will depend on how much time I have and how much details I want to put into it.

Anyway, this was a lovely piece of narrative with a sweet story and cute style, and it was an overall just a nice change of pace from all the incredibly abstract and disturbing animations we have seen in the "Professional", "Students", "Short Shorts" and "Panorama" screenings (Not that they were all like that...).

Pik Pik Pik

"Pik Pik Pik" (No, not the shoes) is a russian 2D computer animation created by Dmitry Vysotskiy, in a way, it follows the structure of a "Tom and Jerry" short where two enemies eventually work together to defeat an even bigger foe in a rather comedic fashion. This was a nice change of pace from the other more seriously toned animations before.

What is there to say about the art style other than the fact that the colours used are wonderfully bright and vibrant (Something that I noticed is lacking in quite a few of the past ones), if I remembered correctly, the ants were actually coloured purple instead of black (You can't see it that clearly in the above image though). Its simplified style is also really appealing, much like "Balloon Birds".

What definitely made me giggle like an idiot was how the sound design was done for this animation, during what should have been a violent struggle between the bird, ants and wood-cutter, the sound effects for their attacks were so incredibly and unexpectedly soft and gentle that it was unbelievably hilarious, and it just went so well with the cheerful music that played throughout the animation (No, please, I am the sort that has a tough time finding titles to classical music).

This was an incredibly enjoyable animation, and is probably one of my favourites alongside "Balloon Birds" and "Nain Geant".

Nain Geant

I have been waiting for a quality 2D computer animation such as this for awhile now... "Nain Geant (Dwarf Giant)" is a swiss animation created by Fabienne Giezendanner, the story follows a young inuit who attempts to capture a low flying bird as part of her culture's tradition that will allow her to pass into the world of grown-ups (It's almost like "Brother Bear", minus the obnoxious speaking animals). However on the verge of capturing it, she falls into a mysterious crevice that belongs to that of the giant dwarf, an ogre with the power to change his size just by sneezing, it is then up to the young girl to make it out of there alive.

The character designs are simply splendid for this animation, the giant dwarf especially just stands out from the entire thing, with his sharp features, incredibly expressive eyes (That look incredibly intimidating from one moment and then pitiful the next) and his bright red suit. I suppose I always had a soft spot for the line less (Or at least thin-lined) look, and it just so wonderful to see it being applied to a more classical sort of story. 

This was definitely one of the more engaging stories, and it actually had a longer duration than the "Caterpillar and Hen", so that's saying something about important pacing can be.

Caterpillar and Hen

If you think "Bear's Day" was sleep inducing, then wait till you watch this one. A stop-motion Italian animation created by Michela Donini and Katya Rinaldi, the story follows a caterpillar and hen who happen to be the best best friends, but with nature being the way that it is, soon enough the two will have to part ways in life.

While I will admit that the "Caterpillar and Hen" has a lovely look to it (I can see that so much love and effort was put into the details), with the vibrant coloured wools that are used as well as the cute character designs (... even the caterpillar... though, maybe not the butterfly), the pacing is just so incredibly slow that I don't think any child could really sit through the whole thing unless they had enough food on their laps to keep themselves still. There were some sound effects, but otherwise it was an incredibly quiet animation too, which really doesn't help at all in keeping one's attention.

Some things don't really make sense in the story (EVEN if it's meant for children), while I understand that everyone and anything can be friends with one another in a cartoon, there were just so many things that weren't clearly explained until the very end, such as the hen's motives, and we as the audience weren't necessarily sure about the relationship between the caterpillar and her either (Even then we wouldn't really have known that they were best friends have it not been for the text summary in the festival book). It might have helped if a little text introduction was given in the beginning.

It was a beautifully styled animation, but the storytelling really needs a lot more work, especially if this was targeted mainly at children, no offence.

Bear's Day (The Day of the Bear)

"Bear's Day (The Day of the Bear)" I believe was actually based on a children's storybook (Which makes sense considering its narration style), it was animated by Oksana Kholodova from Russia and was a mixture of 2D computer animation and painting on glass. While the story felt slow and drawn out at times, it was at least still somewhat interesting enough for most to follow (If they were awake enough). 

To most adults, Lisa probably comes of as a rather obnoxious character, even compared to the more antagonistic characters such as the animals that bully her (In a way, she deserves it, really) when she enters the forest in search of food, but I suppose that's how most young characters are portrayed in children books and animations... They are meant to be curious, a little disobedient and daring before they are able learn any sort of lesson in the story (Also, was it coincidence that she sounds like a russian version of Lisa Simpson?).

Art style wise, I suppose it has an appealing enough look, despite how its warm coloured palette made the overall animation rather sleepy and relaxing looking. The paint on glass texture was a pretty nice touch to the otherwise flatly coloured animation, enhancing the nature setting of the story. The character designs could have been a little cuter, especially when it comes to the animals, I honestly thought that this was going to be a "Ren and Stimpy-ish" sort of cartoon when I had first seen the rabbit on the preview page (That thing looks like its on crack).

Balloon Birds

"Balloon Birds" is a 2013 Swiss animated short created by Marjolaine Perreten and produced and distributed by Nicolas Burlet of NADASDY FILM. An incredibly simple and short little piece, this was perhaps one of the audience's favourite and it is no surprise why. With its incredibly cute and simplistic art style, there is some unexpected dark humour that just works so well with audiences of all ages, even the length of the short added to its overall humour with it's seemingly abrupt ending.

The sound design is just as simple as the art style but is so cleverly and effectively done that it enhances the overall cuteness, it is also neat that the sounds these birds emit resemble that of squeaky balloons (Which they pretty much are). There are just all sorts of little details added here and there that made this an absolutely funny little short (Such as their brief, derpy expressions).

It just goes to show you that simpler done animations can just as be entertaining as any overly detailed or story heavy animation, maybe more so if you take into the account the short attention spans of most children.