We've decided to start using our Twitter account. twitter.com/asteriskpix
Not exactly sure how yet, since animation is a pretty stationary profession. Probably just "breaking news" like when films screen or shows or broadcast. Maybe some winning one-liners from around the studio such "Stupid kid, there's no such thing as a penguin version of Candyland."
We figure it puts us in position for a profile the next time someone wants to do a media story on social networking.
On Sunday, Kristin Worrall took me to see "Flooding with Love for the Kid" at Anthology Film Archives.
Apart from the sound effects she contributed -usually via email conversations "I need the sound of crawling in bat shit on the floor of a cave." -the entire piece was singlehandedly made by Zachary Oberzan. I guess the men and women who built the equipment and wrote the software helped in their own way too.
And the guys who constructed his 220 square foot apartment.
The film is an adaptation of "First Blood" -the novel which also spawned the Stallone "Rambo" series.
Nina Paley was amongst the first people to whom I recommended the film. The DIYness is analogous to "Sita Sings The Blues", although significantly less polished. She didn't hate it, in fact, she wrote a nice little blog post which reminded me that I wanted to do the same.
Here's a "making of" video:
So in my blogging laziness, the run at Anthology has ended.
Copies are available from Zach himself.
"I like to funny drawings", you say, "What does this guy taping around naked in his apartment have to do with me?!?" Legitimate question.
In the above "interview" -and obvious in the movie itself- he talks about how in his first short films he aimed for slickness. For professional perfection. Here, he says, he was having so much fun that perfection wasn't a goal. The joy is apparent.
In using minimal tools and resources, he make a connection to the character of Rambo who also had no resources beyond his own ingenuity. He created a language of filmmaking to match and elevate the content.
Its a brilliant example of what Richard Williams calls "sophisticated use of the basics".
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Speaking of Nina, she stars in this short documentary on Intellectual Property. Bill Plympton is makes an appearance to briefly give another point of view.
The Revolution Will Be Animated from Marine Lormant Sebag on Vimeo.
I don't hold her militant position, but I do think that American Copyright law needs some serious reform.
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