FanDominion » animation

Short film ‘No Robots’ a 21st century exploration of intolerance

David Speakman — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 08:36:51 +0000

Created in 2010 by co-directors Kimberly Knoll and YungHan Chang, two students at San Jose State university, the short animated film No Robots (the full video included below) is such high-quality visual storytelling, it’s hard to believe it was made by students.

No Robots

“This is my first animation project,” YungHan Chang said in a blog post. The native of Taiwan is studying film and animation at SJSU.

“We gathered a big group of our friends at San Jose State, and together we made this film happen,” Knoll said on her own blog. “It took 6 months to complete.”

Although a director on this piece, her passion lies in drawing the background settings in animated stories – creating the rooms that are filled by the story. “ Unfortunately as a director, I didn’t have much time to contribute much artwork for the movie,” she said.

The one scene she did create was the scene before the final credits. “This scene was the most difficult to color, because I had to make it warm and inviting while sticking with the overall color scheme of the film, green. I decided to go for the blue-green light of the exterior and split compliment for the interior,” she said.

One of the artists who worked with Knoll on the backgrounds was fellow student, Joe Tirasuwan. “ I had a chance to work on the backgrounds of the film. Pencil and painted by myself,” he said, using colors as decided by Knoll. His work, and others’, is included in the gallery at the bottom of this article.

“I was in charge of color and lighting, and leading the over all look of the animation, along with the production designers Tim Tang and Corwin Herse-Woo,” Knoll said. “This was the first time Corwin (production designer) and I had ever done a color script and it was one of the most challenging aspects of the film.”

Being an artist and coordinating a team of other artists presented unexpected challenges for Knoll.

“We created the rough color guides on the top left, and as production began, we realized that the color guides were not clear enough for the background artists. Since we had a few artists for each act, the color between shots were not congruent,” She said. “To tie all the shots together, I painted over each background to clearly define the pattern of the colors and the light.”

Review of Reviews: Igor’s appeal may be limited

David Speakman — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 08:37:15 +0000

OPENS: September 19, 2008
RATING: PG (Scary scenes, Violence)
GENRE: Fantasy, Animation, Comedy

The Weinstein Company releases its latest entry in animated film with Igor, a French import featuring a top-notch American cast.

A spoof of American horror movie stereotypes, the film follows the exploits of a hunchback who isn’t willing to settle for being a mindless servant to an evil genius.

According to critical reviews, Igor gets points for a winning premise, but most negative criticism is aimed at a script that is supposedly a little too unpolished for what today’s audiences expect in computer animation.

Other critics pointed out that this film seemed a little schizophrenic in that a plot tailor made for an adult audience is awkwardly shoehorned into a kiddie flick movie with mixed results.

Of the positive notes, all t=of the critics point out that the cast is talented – perhaps to the point of being better than the material they are reading.

WATCH THE TRAILER

Script has sharp dialogue
Top-notch cast

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Scary Imagery and Violence unsuitable for young children
Humor too complicated for children

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“Are kids actually supposed to laugh at this? And if they do, should you get them into therapy?” – Liam Lacey

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“While much of the banter between the characters is inventive, the plot turns are predictable – complete with a romantic misunderstanding straight out of “The Karate Kid” (and 20 other films). The movie ends with a big-action sequence that highlights the shortcomings of the animation and seems to go on forever.” – Peter Heartlaub

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“Chatty and dull, a bit too reliant on innuendo for a kids’ film. And the voice actors (Jay Leno rules Malaria) are funnier than their material.” – Roger Moore

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“Igor trudges through its story without a single surprise or unanticipated turn while marginally clever sight gags fill in the dead spaces between the flat jokes. Despite a familiar moral, this is no “Iron Giant,” just a haphazard collection of spare movie parts cobbled together in a pale imitation of better-animated comedies.” – Sean Axmaker

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“ The visual style grows a bit monotonous, but a more serious problem is that the story is undernourished, and the wit erupts only in flashes.” – Stephen Farber

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“Not all the jokes work, but most do, and the overall tenor of Igor is goofily funny – probably a bit sophisticated for kids but certainly good-natured.” – John Anderson

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Trailer: Igor

David Speakman — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 05:21:08 +0000

OPENS: September 19, 2008
RATING: PG (Some scary situations, Minor adult themes)
GENRE: Fantasy, Animation

Starring: (voices of) John Cusak, John Cleese, Steve Buscemi, Sean Hayes, Eddie Izzard, Jennifer Coolidge, Jay Leno, Molly Shannon

Director: Anthony Leondis

Writer: Chris McKenna

Plot: In a land of mad scientists and diabolical inventions, what do you do when you’re born with a hunch on your back? You become an Igor. A hilarious twist on the classic monster movie, “Igor” tells the story of one Igor who’s sick of being a lowly lab assistant with a Yes Master’s degree and dreams of becoming a scientist. When his cruel master kicks the bucket a week before the annual Evil Science Fair, Igor finally gets his chance.

With the help of two of his experimental creations – Brain, a brain in a jar who’s a little light on brains, and Scamper, a cynical bunny brought back from being road kill, Igor embarks on building the most evil invention of all time, a huge, ferocious monster. Unfortunately, instead of turning out evil, the monster turns out as Eva, a giant aspiring actress who wouldn’t hurt a fly.

Just when the load on his back can’t get any heavier, Igor and his band of monstrous misfits uncover an evil plot that threatens their world. Now, they must fight to save it and prove that heroes come in all shapes and sizes.

Review of Reviews: Fly Me to the Moon a so-so historical kiddie flick

David Speakman — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 08:01:12 +0000

OPENS: August 15, 2008
RATING: G (Mild gross-out humor)
GENRE: Space, Children’s Film, Animation, Fantasy, 3-D, Historical Fiction

Almost 40 years ago, the first human walked on the Moon. The new film, Fly Me to the Moon, memorializes this event with an animated 3-D children’s movie.

Reviews have been mixed and split rather evenly down the line with “serious” film critics panning the film for being a bore for grownups and for its less-than state of the art in animation techniques and slightly creepy human character design.

More “fannish”-type critics are noting the limited appeal of this film for children – not adults. Also, they point out the film is a technological breakthrough in its effective use of 3-D technology.

Additionally, the movie contains historically accurate (minus the flies) sounds and dialogue from the actual Apollo 11 mission. And the movie creators use the animated flies as a window to allow young children a window into history.

WATCH THE TRAILER

Child-friendly film
Sunning 3-D effects
Educational in historic re-creation

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Story does not work on multiple levels for adults and children. It’s just a kiddie flick.
This ain’t Disney/Pixar and it shows – in the creepy-looking, slightly disturbing character designs.

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"That premise is the first of countless problems in this 3-D animated movie aimed at very young children." – Rafer Guzman

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“At its heart, the new film Fly Me to the Moon offers immersive 3-D effects that will likely entertain kids with visions of America’s first lunar landing of even if its story falls flat with parents.” – Tariq Malik

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“Fly Me to the Moon is slow and really silly in parts, but it is a kids movie. And any letdowns are more than made up for by the best part of the film – the story of three men making it to the moon.” – Jane Clifford

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{for=”Toronto Star” value=”7″}

“The movie used NASA blueprints for the animation and capsule transcripts for the astronauts’ dialogue. Aldrin lends his own voice and there are real sound clips from the lunar landing, including Armstrong’s historic words upon standing on the moon’s surface.” – Linda Barnard

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“A crummy movie for kids, yet it still holds out the prospect of past wonders and future marvels. It’s one small step for a housefly, one giant leap for 3-D.” – Ty Burr

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{for=”San Francisco Chronicle” value=”6″}

“while the script, by Domonic Paris, will probably pass muster with very young viewers, their parents may grit their teeth at its saccharine quality. ” – Walter Addiego

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Trailer: Fly Me to the Moon

David Speakman — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 20:34:50 +0000

OPENS: August 15, 2008
RATING: G
GENRE: Amination, 3D, Space Fantasy, Family Friendly

Starring: Voices of: Buzz Aldrin, Adrienne Barbeau, Ed Begley Jr., Philip Bolden, Cam Clarke, Tim Curry, Trevor Gagnon, Grant George, David Gore, Steve Kramer, Christopher Lloyd, Mimi Maynard, Scott Menville, Lorraine Nicholson, Robert Patrick, Kelly Ripa, Nicollette Sheridan

Director: Ben Stassen

Writer: Domonic Paris

Plot: Three young houseflies stow away aboard the Apollo 11 flight to the moon.