Today we saw an abbreviated evolution of the concept of character in early animated film, from the changing visages of Blackton's Humorous Phases of Funny Faces, to Cohl's Phantasmagorie, to McCay's mosquito and dinosaur. Additionally, in those same films we went from no background, to minimal background (more graphic than spatial), to a fully realized physical space.
That said, pick a character you know from animation and describe how this character is engaging or unique.
-Or-
Pick a work of animation that has a strong setting (location/time/environment) and describe what makes this setting engaging or unique.
Try and do this in six sentences or less. If you have a hard time keeping it short, try typing your long version, setting it aside, and coming back later to include only what is most important.
And be sure to read the other post from this evening, a little addendum from today.
-Tim Finn
I think Coraline from her self titled movie is a strong character from animation in regards to character acting and understanding the inner workings of the character. She's dynamic in her movement and her actions depict that of a young, preteen girl accurately. Also, in terms of story line, everything she does in that movie is based off of what a girl her age may do or want, giving the viewer an inside look at what it's like to be someone her age.
ReplyDeleteMiyazaki movies are usually rife with excellent, multifaceted and memorable characters. However, the character I’ve always been drawn to the most is the Great Forest Spirit from Princess Mononoke. His design is elegant yet unnerving: a large deer with an almost human face. As the physical embodiment of the forest and the central mythological figure of the film, the Great Forest Spirit has the power to give life and also to take it away. Even the forest floor grows and dies where he walks. Yet despite being a god of life and death he maintains the golden Miyazaki standard of being neither good nor evil. All this he does without a single line of dialogue, his face always a knowing yet mildly creepy smile.
ReplyDelete-Dante Finn
In respects to a unique and engaging character I would have to say Fa Mulan from the Disney animated film Mulan. She is a bold, self-reliant and strong-hearted individual. She is the only Disney princess or princess of honor that wasn’t debilitated by her gender. she didn’t need to be rescued, in-fact she was the rescuer. She is a character that deliberately broke many taboos within her culture. One of the most radical being the fact that she cross dressed, which arguably is the only example of cross dressing in a Disney animated film. She showcased the ability to rise from personal, social and even political restraints and is a perfect example of rising from the ashes.
ReplyDelete-Vincent Coviello
Fascinating and rife with possibilities is the planet Cybertron from the 1984 television series "The Transformers." Painted in saturated gouache with a full palette of lights and darks, the metallic surfaces of this all-metal globe gleam in the flashbacks of their prime years, yet fade to grey murk in the war-torn present. While flashbacks are often shown with a bright daytime-blue sky overhead, the planet is now devoid of an oxygen atmosphere, and is perpetually under cover of night. Curved buildings, raised highways, exposed chasms and lower layers of city abound. Though various cities, regions, or countries are never named, the planet feels like a real place, full of scientific possibility, and danger around any corner.
ReplyDelete-Tim Finn
Students,
ReplyDeleteNotice two things I did in my post:
1) I did not refer to myself. No "I," or "my favorite." The work gets referred to in the third-person ("IT is a cool place/SHE is happy/HE is angry/"), but I am only present in the sense that you know I wrote the post. I'm not IN the post. This is a good direction to go in, writing about the work without mentioning yourself.
2) Referring to a film/character/location in the present tense. Yes, that TV show is 27 years old, but in formal writing it's proper to refer to plot and characters in the present tense. As if the story is happening right now for anyone reading or watching it.
I know this is "just" a blog and it's easy to write informally, but try to nudge your writing in a fancier direction.
-Tim Finn
The village of Berk from "How to Train Your Dragon" is unique and very fun to watch on screen. The village is realistic--with many unique inhabitants, their homes, and the dragons they face in everyday situations. The location of this setting is very logical; a coastal village where ships and fish and plentiful--the villagers look well fed and stocky, and there is even a training arena for the younger vikings to learn the fighting skills they need to protect the village from the onslaughts of the dragons.
ReplyDelete-Danielle DiFalco
Stewart Gilligan "Stewie" Griffin spends his nights plotting the death of his mother Lois. At the age of one year old, this main character from the animated series “Family Guy” has the ability to build everything and anything from mind control machines, robot copies of him and the family dog and a device to take him though time, and yet he still cannot master the art of potty training. Stewie shows no mercy to anyone in his crusade world domination, except maybe his teddy bear Rupert. With a bright palette of color and simplistic style of animation, Stewie and the other characters of “Family Guy” take no prisoners as they crucify the failures of pop culture. Being stuck in the middle America town of Quahog, Rhode Island and having the physical limitations of a one year old will not stop Stewie’s quest on being the future ruler of the Universe, not even being canceled twice on basic cable.
ReplyDelete-Maura Karpenko
The world created in the 1998 animation Blue Sub 6 is easy to get immersed in. It takes place in the near future after sea-level has risen leaving the majority of the earth flooded. The cities that are left are constantly under attack by half-animal creatures created by a scientist named Zorndyke. The "hybrids" help to create a really rich and engaging environment where life is evolving to adapt to their new surroundings. The war between the hybrids and humans captivates you because both sides are desperately fighting for survival of their species.
ReplyDelete-Rachael Brennskag
While the sort of archetype he fits under may not be the most unique or uncommon, Prince Zuko from the TV series "Avatar: The Last Airbender" is a very interesting character. In fact, he probably undergoes the most drastic change in terms of character development out of every other character on that particular show, in a way that's almost unheard of in a lot of other cartoons that are on the air currently. As the series begins he starts out as your typical angsty teen antagonist, with a tragic backstory to boot. But as the show progresses over the course of its three running seasons, we see him struggle with an internal battle over what he really wants out of life. Does he really want to take away the last hope the world has and capture the Avatar, just to regain his honor? Or does he want to do what's right and become his own person, away from the influence of his father? The way in which he grapples with this problem is very interesting to watch, indeed.
ReplyDelete-Anna Bohrer
Milo James Thatch is a simple linguist whose dream of proving the existence of the fabled city of Atlantis is not stifled by his humdrum job of managing a boiler room in Washington DC. He is presented with the opportunity of a lifetime; to be a crew member on a voyage to Atlantis, where he is faced with more adventure than he could have ever expected. At first, Milo appears to be the familiar archetype of the nerdy professor, a geek who is incapable of any physical action, but as his story progresses, he shows himself to be far more complex. As an average looking man with no great physical prowess, and extreme social awkwardness, Milo isn't your average Disney male protagonist. He is relatable on a level that few other heroic characters are, and shows flaws that many people can see in themselves, and thus can overcome just as Milo does.
ReplyDelete-Rue Hartsell
A movie with a very strong sense of setting and used it well was the movie "Treasure Planet". It was a movie that pretty much completely copied the story of Treasure Island, but put it in a steam punk setting. It was the same time period of Treasure Island, but there were robots and aliens everywhere as citizens and the ship flied but everyone dressed and all the rooms were constructed in this old way, but yet had gadgets everywhere. It was very aware of what it was trying to pull and made it work. You want to learn more about this world and it always makes a very good deal to show it as most of the settings were in 3D merged with the 2D hand drawn cast.
ReplyDelete-Mimi Alves
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ReplyDeleteOne animated character that has always been unique is Daria Morgendorffer from the television series "Daria". She stands out because of her complexity as a relatable character. She is relatable because many teenagers are trying to find a balance between being themselves and being part of the greater population. Daria is opinionated, intelligent, cynical, sarcastic and comfortable in her own skin. However, she is also sometimes insecure, or frustrated at attempts to deal with anyone other than her best friend Jane. Overall she is unafraid to be who she is and although "Daria" first aired over a decade ago, it's still rare to see a female (animated or otherwise) in the mainstream media who is so strong in personality and consciously fighting societal expectations for females to be attractive, vulnerable, or a sidekick/love-interest to a male character with more depth.
ReplyDelete-Rachel Meza
"Paprika" may at first seem like typical yet equally breath-taking Japanese animated films, but what is rich and unique about the setting isn't simply the background layout. "Paprika" is a science fiction film that takes place in the near future, but only what goes on in the film displays elements of futuristic developments and the positive and negative consequences of them. So basically, everything looks the same in Japan, but technology is revolutionary. Such technological advances are what play with a viewer's perspective psychologically. It makes them ask themselves, "What [setting] is reality and what is a dream?" This manipulation doesn't just affect the setting but the characters as well.
ReplyDelete-Katherine C.
Megamind, from the 2010 film of the same name, is a unique character in that he is driven to become evil due to the triumphs of his super-powered classmate (both are from different planets far from Earth) and upbringing in a jailhouse, yet ultimately he is not a villain at heart. He enjoys being the best bad guy in Metrocity and is indeed good at what he does, with a swagger and inability to take adversity seriously. This lasts until he gets what he thinks he wants: dominion over the city. It is when he achieves this goal that he finds what he truly wants is to be with Roxanne, a reporter he has repeatedly kidnapped in the past. He disguises himself as a good guy so he can spend time with her, and by the climax of the film it seems as though he is putting more effort into keeping up appearances as a villain than actually being one. In the end, Megamind finds that despite the circumstances that led to his villainy, it was possible for him to escape the life he thought he was meant to lead and find his own greatness.
ReplyDelete-Meaghan
Woody form the Toy Story series of movies is a very complex character. An old pull-string cowboy doll, and the favorite of a young boy named Andy, he gets replaced, lost, and found again, all while desperately trying, and occasionally failing, to lead a group of other toys who believe in him. One of the best parts about his character is his faults. He is an incredibly believable and relatable character for adults and kids alike, even though he is only a toy. In the first film, he opens as a generally nice guy, until we realize it is because of his comfort and trust that he will always be by Andy’s side, proven false when the new spaceman toy Buzz Lightyear shows up and slowly gains Andy’s attention. Woody is shown to be jealous, condescending, and even malicious as he attempts to get rid of Buzz and reestablish his role as surrogate father to the young Andy. He eventually has a change of heart about Buzz in a very believable, empathetic way when he realizes that Buzz has his own issues he has to deal with. Woody shows his true self and true leadership qualities when he gives Buzz a pep talk and saves him, allowing Buzz to become the hero he wishes to be. In the second film, Woody finds out about his past, realizing he was a character on a television show and that he has a whole other life he never knew about. As a result, he must choose between the two, wavering and having trouble deciding (until the true villain reveals himself that is). In the third, he begins to have trouble coping with the near loss of his boy Andy. As Andy grows older and readies himself to go to college, he begins leaving his old toys behind, and once again, Woody must play the leader, only this time, over a much smaller, much more melancholy and nervous group. Woody as a character goes through so many powerful and relatable changes and decisions throughout the film series. Not merely a wholesome good guy, he is capable of genuine fault, emotion, and kindness. Even though he is a toy, Woody is one of the most human characters to exist in modern animation.
ReplyDelete-Ryan Biggins
The environment in the Wallace and Gromit adventures has a very strong environment. It has really unique details that are specific to the characters. What at first seems like an ordinary english home is full of wacky contraptions that are constantly malfunctioning. Each day when Wallace wakes up his bed tilts up, he slides out into a trap door on the floor, falling into his pants, his sleeves are stuffed on by a mechanical hand, and a robot stuffs him into his same green vest. This environment in particularly engaging because it is so detailed, everywhere you look is full of charmingly sculpted objects. The house has a very specific look, almost like it is someone’s grandmothers house, but it is unique and funny because of the contraptions, contraptions that tend to cause problems. The quaint setting and “cracking contraptions” match Wallace’s humble goals, usually involving cheese and crackers or simple household chores, but also his absentmindedness.
ReplyDeleteJake the Dog, from Adventure Time with Finn and Jake, is an interesting character for a kids show. He is essentially a 20 something year old man from the way he speaks to the way he thinks and acts. He has moments that make him seem very wise (usually giving advice) and also moments of regret and even some adult relationship problems. It's interesting to see an adult like character that is in the form of a dog, on a children's show. I wonder if this helps kids relate to him in anyway as a figure to listen to (like a mom, or dad, or older sibling). For me, I feel like his adult humor is relatable and subtle, a lot like the way one may make a joke around small children. I also find his magical powers entertaining because I'm sure some adults and young adults wish they could have magic powers to make an arm longer or even grow larger as to travel faster. We all have that sort of interest in being able to accomplish more as quickly and efficiently as possible.
ReplyDelete-Connie
"The Adventures of Aladár Mézga" is an Hungarian animation series, which already became cult in Germany, featuring 13 episodes made from 1968-1978.
ReplyDeleteIn every episode the main character Aladár, a young boy and his talking dog Blöki, use their inflatable spaceship to visit other planets. Reflecting what had just happened or had been discussed in the Mézga family household, the inhabitants of those planets are usually very exaggerated in a certain direction. On the "Rapid planet" everything moves, lives and dies in rapid movement while on the "Two dimensional planet", the inhabitants not only live on a disk as two-dimensional beings but also display a rather limited world view.
The whole series uses puns thorough and due to it's often satirical character towards social behaviour, two episodes were forbidden in communist Czechoslovakia.
One character from animation that really engages it's audience is SpongeBob SquarePants. From his quirky dialogue to his extreme facial expressions to his square shirt and pants combo, SpongeBob's animators really know how to make people laugh. He is virtually indestructible due to being a sponge, except when he's exposed to air, and he is almost always an upbeat character. SpongeBob has many friends in Bikini Bottom and has failed his boat driving test many times. His neighbor, Squidward, is always bothered by SpongeBob and his antics. SpongeBob and his best friend Patrick are always up to trouble in Bikini Bottom. In one episode, SpongeBob and Patrick find a magic pencil. When someone draws with that pencil, the drawing comes to life. The irony of an animation drawing it's own animation is a clue to how brilliant the writers of the show really are.
ReplyDelete