F5 Titles

In April last year, at New York City, there was a 2-day conference involving some of the greatest and most creative minds in motion and interactive design industry. this conference is called "F5". An initiative from Motionographer, speakers from studios such as The Mill, 1stAveMachine, and many others gathered up and shared their insights and creative processes. Its title sequence, created by Dvein, was to "match the eclectic spirit of the conference ... to get the soul of the speakers into the titles in some way." The end result was nothing short of mind-blowing. I really wish I could have attended that conference...

去年四月, 在紐約市, 有一場為期兩天, 名叫 "F5" 的動態媒體設計以及互動藝術的會談. 許多現今最有創意的特效, 動畫和設計公司如 The Mill 及 1stAveMachine 都有參加這場由 Motionographer 主持的會談, 互相分享它們的靈感和創作過程. 這會談的開頭短片是由 Dvein 製作, 為了 "符合這會議多元化的精神. 在這短片不同的片斷裡, 捕捉到這些動態藝術家的靈魂." 短片本身我覺得就像是一件藝術品, 非常的特別. 真希望我也能去參加這會談啊...

Signs

I usually don't post films that don't feature its animation or visual effects. However, this short is way too touching to be passed on. Directed by Patric Hughes, This is a love story about how two people working at neighboring companies met, and ultimately fell in love. Even though it's a love story that relies on the dynamics of its two characters, theres is not a single dialog to be found in this film. Instead, the two lovers communicate in a distance through written signs. Watch the lower res but faster loading version here.

我通常不會介紹和動畫或特效無關的影片, 不過, 這短片實在是太可愛又感人, 讓我覺得不放有點可惜. 由 Patric Hughes 導, 這是個有關兩個在隔壁公司上班的員工初次見面, 而漸漸陷入愛河的愛情故事. 雖然說重點是在這兩人的互動上, 但是本片完全沒有半句對話. 男女兩人的溝通完全是透過在招牌上寫字或畫圖, 但是卻可以從中感到他們對互相的感情. 按這裡看快速下載低畫質版.

French Roast

The 2010 Oscar nomination has recently been announced, and among the nominees for best animated short film, my favorite one has got to be "French Roast", produced by Pumpkin Factory / Bibo Films. The story itself is fun and charming, but it is really the unique cinematography that intrigues me. The whole animation uses a single camera angle, and never switches its view to a different perspective. The camera itself only pans or zooms, but never rotates. With this clever use of camera motion, fade-in and fade-out transitions, and the large mirror at the very back, the film is able to convey the whole story with just a single shot, a very unique story-telling technique indeed. For a list of other animations that got nominated, click here and scroll down to "Short Film (Animated)".

2010 年的奧斯卡提名出爐了, 而在動畫短片的名單中, 我最喜歡的作品是由 Pumpkin Factory / Bibo Films 製作的 "French Roast". (法式烘焙) 雖然故事風趣幽默, 但是這短片真正特別的地方是它的用鏡. 整個動畫就只用一個鏡頭, 從來不換到其他的角度. 攝影機會上下左右移動, 但從來不旋轉. 利用這巧妙的運鏡方式, 淡入淡出的變換畫面, 以及後頭的那面大鏡子, 這短片以相當特別有趣的方法描述了一個故事. 要知道還有哪些動畫短片被提名的話請按這, 然後到 "Short Film (Animated)" 的部分.

Don't Take Chances. Take Charge.

I remember my visual psychology professor back in college once said that, human brains are programmed to recognize faces, even on the most random and irrelevant things. This is why people freak out when they see the face on mars and the Virgin Mary grilled cheese is sold for $28,000 on ebay. While, in fact, they are just a regular rock on mars and a burnt piece of bread. This is also why, this commercial from American Express really caught my eye: they've used this simple concept and created a whole video featuring mundane objects arranged like faces. Suddenly, those objects are not so mundane anymore, and could even convey emotions to us.

我還記得在讀大學時, 我的視覺心理學教授曾跟我們說, 人類的大腦被設定成特別容易識別"臉", 而且對臉的視覺感應比其他事物都來的靈敏, 就算那些"臉"的形狀根本是由無關的東西碰巧形成的. 這也是為什麼當人們看到火星上的人面石會那麼驚訝, 而聖母馬利亞像的烤麵包會在網拍上以$28,000美元的天價賣出. 說穿了那些東西只不過是普通的石頭和烤焦麵包而已. 而美國運通就是利用這特點來打廣告: 廣告裡秀出了一些平淡無奇, 每天都會看到的物品或場景. 但是由於那些東西形成了一張張"臉"的樣貌, 而突然好像沒那麼無聊, 反而好像在對觀眾傳達某種情感.

Salty

Here is a sad story about a little salt bottle guy who got abandoned by his family. Why? Because the family found something healthier than salt, and it's Knorr's Side Kick! If that sounds like an advertisement tag line, that's because it is an advertisement. However, AXYZ's creation is still a cute and soulful clip. Furthermore, who can possibly resist a crying little salt bottle in rain! Here are some other clips involving our little guy Salty: "Dating" and "Brace".

這是悲傷的故事: 一個可憐的小鹽巴罐被他的家人拋棄了. 為什麼呢? 因為他家人找到了更健康的選擇, 那就是 Knorr 的 Side Kick! (一家加拿大公司出產的低鈉鹽) 如果這聽起來像是廣告詞的話, 那是因為這本來就是個廣告. 不過, 這個由 AXYZ 所製作的短片還是相當的可愛又惹人憐啊. 更何況, 誰能忍心看著一個在雨中哭泣的鹽巴罐而不同情的呢? 也看看其他 Salty 的短片吧: "Dating" (約會) 和 "Brace" (支撐).

Moonboy

Do you get a feeling that, sometimes this world is just so messed up, you wish you could just run away from everything? The guys at MoreFrames sure do, and have expressed it through the emotional animation "Moonboy". In this short film of "a boy who wishes for better things", our unibrow hero got so fed up by what he sees on TV, that he eventually went on to the moon to escape from everything.

你會不會有時候覺得, 這個世界這麼的混亂, 讓你很想找個地方逃走, 一走了之? 在 MoreFrames 裡面的導演們似乎也有這種感覺, 所以用 "Moonboy" (月亮男孩) 這有點感傷的短片來表達他們的想法. 在這短片裡, 有個一字眉的小男孩, 受不了在電視上看到的事物, 而學嫦娥奔月去了.

Sundance Openings

Just came back from Sundance Film Festival 2010, and man, I've got to say it was an amazing experience. (It is one of the biggest independent film festival held in Park City, Utah every year in January) I was lucky enough to see a screening of a fun film that parodies the modern day horror film. Yet, the thing that left a stronger impression was actually the opening animation that plays before every Sundance films. These openings, created by Buck, are all stop-motion animations, and all end with the word "Rebel", the theme for the festival this year. There are 4 pieces: "Grow Underground", "Come Together", "Begin Again", and "Tell Your Own Story".

剛從 2010 年日舞影展回來, 說真的這實在是個很棒的體驗. (日舞影展是美國規模最大的獨立電影影展. 每年一月於猶他州舉行) 我很幸運的看到了一部蠻有趣的獨立喜劇, 是有點像是在嘲笑好萊塢恐怖片的電影. 不過, 令我印象最深刻的不是那部電影, 而是在電影放映前的開頭短片. 日舞影展委託一家叫 Buck 的公司為他們製作4個短片為每部電影做開頭. 這些都是逐格動畫, 而且都以 "Rebel" ("叛逆" - 今年的主題) 這個字做結尾. 這4個動畫分別為: "Grow Underground" (地底生長), "Come Together" (集合), "Begin Again" (重新開始), 和 "Tell Your Own Story" (述說自己的故事).