Studio Brief: The Other Side (Initial Ideas)

My Initial Ideas for the brief were a lot more serious in tone than my previous projects. As the title of the brief is 'The Other Side' I was initially throwing around ideas based around 'the ethereal plane' as well as concepts of the afterlife and purgatory. I have a deep interest in forms of media that delve into these sorts of themes, as I am a particular fan of filmmakers such as David Lynch who applies these sorts of concepts in his films. Films like Jacobs Ladder, another favourite of mine, explore these concepts also, as well as Freudian theories regarding Psychoanalysis and the concept of duality. While I would like to explore these concepts in the future, I feel for a 25-second narrative animation, the ideas may be too grand to explore in any meaningful way.

Another idea I had for 'The Other Side' was exploring political issues regarding social, cultural and political divides. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict immediately came to mind, along with the illustrator Joe Sacco who has produced illustrated books on the subject in the past. The current Refugee Crisis in the Mediterranean was another topic I was wishing to maybe explore, with an array of narrative possibilities. However, after receiving feedback from my tutor I decided against the idea of exploring highly political topics and subject matter in a 25-second animation as I would be unable to convey the true gravitas of the situation or do it justice. 

The idea I decided to move forward with and develop is a rather literal and straightforward interpretation of the brief; the other side of a fence. While this may seem fairly mundane, the idea behind it, I feel, is strong enough to stand on it's own. I intend for the narrative to be a bait and switch which catches the audience off-guard somewhat. Stylistically my influences are that of Don Kenn and Edward Gorey, whose dark, yet child-like aesthetic lend their illustrations a sort of unsettling atmosphere while also coming across as reassuringly innocent at the same time. Narratively I am hoping to successfully blend the quirky innocence of Wes Anderson (particularly his film 'Moonrise Kingdom') with the creature design of the likes of Guillermo Del Toro and the shock horror of a director like John Carpenter.

The Narrative I have planned in my head is that of a young boy, playing football on his own. He kicks his ball over a fence in sorrow over his current situation and is about to walk home when he spots another young girl holding his football on the other side of the fence. Feeling he is about to make a new friend he goes over and the two stare deeply into each others eyes, suggesting this may be a happy ending after all, before the girl is pulled up into the air, revealing she is being used as bait by a demonic, Del-Toro-esque monstrosity much like how an Anglerfish uses it's light as bait for it's prey. I find there is an element of humour in this sort of narrative bait-and-switch, as the friendly aesthetic does not make any suggestion to the conclusion the audience gets.