Week 7_Response_William

    For this response, I have chosen "Printmaking Animation" by casey babb.

    This was quite a bizarre set. With the exception of the Imagine Dragons video, it seems like the goal here was to integrate a bunch of different mediums into the commentary. 

    For me I think this worked, since the Printmaking Animation stuck with me. This video was essentially three simple animation loops, each being executed with a different technique. 

    Since this is an anthology, giving each segment its own critique space seemes appropriate.

   

    First up is Aka Manto, using the Monotype technique on Stonehenge paper.        

    A fitting little loop for Japan's favorite toilet ghost, Aka Manto has this wonderful brushwork to support the animation. It very much reminds me of sumi-e style art, basically Japanese watercolor works. There isn't a background to demonstrate the coloring, but the brush strokes feel familiar. If you want a different example, the videogame Okami is a great modern rendition of such styles. 

    The actual movement is pretty by the numbers here. The man is asked for a color, he makes the wrong choice, he gets taken away. Simple enough. But as a demonstration of how a great style can work with analogue animation, Aka Manto fulfills that request.

    Next up is Let's Rock, using the Drypoint technique on plexiglass.

    This one is likely the shortest of the three in terms of frames. It is pretty much just a simple dance loop for the man on the left, while the giant on the right sits still and watches. 

    For all of these works, every frame is quite distinct because of the creation process, but it is most obvious here. Line thickness varies rapidly, creating a type of boiling line effect. Some animations do this deliberately, such as Ed, Edd n Eddy. For this loop in particular, the boiling lines and smooth movement of the dance make it feel recognizable.

    I could see this loop being used as a bumper for an animation tv block, or something to that effect.

    Lastly is Mendelbaum II, using the Linocut technique on Rives BFK.

    For this loop, the face on the chracter steadily morphes left until a second indentical face replaces it from the right, and the cycle repeats.

    This one moves the best, hands down. With only one color, one face, and a slightly changing backdrop, all the movements feel deliberate within the loop. The transition back to the beginning of the loop is flawness, and the result is a slight unease at the thought that the transition you are witnessing will never truly end for this person. 

    The lines look dirty, yet they are not erroneous either. It hits everything in just the right spot.

    That's it for the segments. Overall, a delightful little compilation that does not take long to go through, but brings up a few interesting ideas for how ideas can be visualized through non-traditional means via animation. I recommend giving it a look over at least.