Juniour Film

Hey Everyone. Although I usually Tumblr (that's a verb now), I've decided to start using Blogger as a better place to talk about my process. It's more private, and I can edit my posts with more freedom. I will still post to Tumblr from moustachefox.tumblr.com, but this is now the main blog.

I've been asked to make a juniour film, and a desire that's been stewing in my head for awhile is being selected to be made. Media that features asexuality or asexual characters is scant on the ground, and rarely is the representation very good. From being treated as medically ill, socially awkward, alien-like, robotic or villanous, asexuals are a quiet minority and it's very difficult for those discovering their orientation to find much to reflect them.

As an asexual myself, I often feel isolated, and have struggled with loneliness and misunderstanding. Even my closest friends and family have difficulty comprehending the concept. While this film isn't only about asexuality, I wanted to create something that included it.

 As it will be a film of only a minute in length, there is only so much I can address. I also wish to work on my 2D animation skills, which I have neglected recently.

Early boards were related to depression, as well as attempting to find a way to represent a problem that you may try to disguise, and accompanies you through your day. While perhaps not a weak idea, and one I may return to, it did not deal with asexuality in a meaningful way.

This was my original beat board. I know depression is a topic well-explored in media, and I believe it has been better dealt with by better artists and people who've had more personal experiences to relate.  I wasn’t particularly creative with it. But I liked the idea of a little monster that accompanied you everywhere,  refused to relinquish you and instead grew and grew. I feel this board is much clearer than my current run. I may return to some of these ideas.

 

Some WIP of current sketches trying to get a feel for a look and style for the film. I tried to focus on loneliness, isolation, and the feeling of being surrounded by imagery and ideas of a culture that finds you odd. I think I focused too much on the ideas and not enough on the character. 

The character is remaining unnamed in the film, and it may be a little on the nose, but I'm going with 'Ace' for the moment, which is also the working title. 

Here is a quick board. I timed it and discovered it's about 1:30. I feel while there are good opportunities for animation here - a better sequence of exploring the hole, for example - it's too long, has too many ideas, not enough chracterization and a failure to once again represent asexuality well. 

 I was trying to represent an idea of loneliness and feeling 'broken' in the view of society, and the idea of doubling - couples pairing, of the need to be with someone to be considered complete. I tried to use shadows to suggest a doubling of the self, and finding contentment within the self to be complete, to reach towards others in friendship and bridge isolation in that way.

In my next attempt, I hope to make the film less 'jumpy' and focus primarily on the character. I feel the ideas I wanted to represent weren't clear and the acting lacked individuality. I've also been writing short prose trying to express the character and emotions with words, which I feel can help this film by making certain ideas clearer and give me something to work with.

If you're asexual or have experiences with it you'd like to share with me, please feel free to contact me.