Objects At Rest

explorations in audio and moving imagery

Category: Characters

Sword of Damocles Production Notes
The Sword of Damocles is a short stop motion animation that was made in response to the StopMoShorts December 2006 contest. The contest provided three words (sword, cave, and fear) to inspire animators. I focused on the sword with the idea of doing something related to the legend of the Sword of Damocles. I would also embed the other two words in some fashion within the film.

When I first learned of the legend I envisioned it in a medieval setting. However, the legend appears to be Greek in origin and much older. The premise I chose would keep a medieval setting while also referencing the legend. By using a referential approach I took the opportunity with this film to explore how it could become a veiled criticism of conventional film formulas (including film techniques, story formulas, three-act structures, etc.).

The list that follows contains the conceptual ideas that I was working with when creating the storyboards, the script, and during filming. The whole process was very much stream of consciousness and experimental to see what I would come up with quickly. I may have succeeded in some places and failed in others. In either case, I did have fun making it quickly and learned several things that I can apply in the Vitruvius production process.
1. What quote by a literary figure is being referenced in the opening tale by the Jester? What is the context and meaning of said quote?
2. At what points do the harp strings sound?
3. Is the Jester ever seen in the same frame as any other character?
4. At what point does the Jester directly address you the viewer?
5. Why was the Jester dismissed by the King?
6. The King and Damocles toast each other? Who is the other party that the Jester is toasting at the end of the film?
7. There are multiple films presented, which one is the real film?
8. There are five characters and each are symbolic of participants in the film making process.
9. The sword is hanging behind the window at the end of the film but the Jester’s words are future tense and speculative.
10. The voice of the sword in the last act says: “I am the Sword of Damocles. Pay no heed to the tale being told by the fool jester. I was recorded by Cicero as being invoked by the King Dionysus to inform Damocles of the perils of being King. I am the one true Sword of Damocles.”
Character and Set Design Photos

The characters are aluminum armature wire with epoxy putty at the hips and chests. The wire is wrapped in jute string and painted. I used thin craft foam for the clothes and hot glue to hold it all together. I painted raw umber acrylic paint on the clothes to dirty them up a bit. The hands and heads are carved from basswood. The arms of the puppets are single strands of wire and the hands have a small hole in them so they are easy to put on and spin around. The feet are epoxy putty with a slot cut through to use tie downs. I also used some epoxy putty for hair. The eyes are wooden beads and the eyelids are Sculpey clay. Eye blinks are made by pressing the clay over the eyes for for one, two, or three frames as needed.

The sets are made out of pink insulation foam and covered with plaster wrap and then painted for texture. The chairs and table props are basswood and epoxy putty.

The film was shot on a Nikon D50 and edited in Sony Vegas. The vocals were recorded and edited in Audacity and the music was made with Sony Acid Loop samples.
2007-01-04
Vitruvius: Building a Prologue, Establishing Authority

The secondary set (aka the Serlio Set) is almost done. Part of this secondary set development includes another minimal set that will be used for my prologue. I want to include some form of introductory segment in the Vitruvius film. The idea for a prologue emerged after listening to comments from people who saw my Man Drawing… film and the need to perhaps begin my films with some cursory information to inform the viewer about the nature of the film they are about to view.

This idea also falls in line with Chuck Palahniuk’s advice on establishing authority in writing. He calls this action the “heart method” or the “head method”.

…Next is the Head Method for establishing authority. This is where you use interesting facts and tidbits of knowledge to impress the reader that your narrator is smart. To do this effectively, you need to do some research. Then, find a way to work this information into your story. Don’t try to impress the reader with mere cleverness. Instead, invite the reader to share in a special world of insider knowledge, with facts that actually move the story forward.
– Source: Chuck Palahniuk’s web site.

I’m leaning toward the head method by introducing historic writers in the field of architecture, specifically Serlio and his work. The photo for this posting is a test shot for introducing the 5 books of architecture by Serlio.

2006-08-05
Vitruvius Character Development

May 2006 was character development month complete with armatures, mask-making, and clothing. The puppets for the Vitruvius project are made of aluminum wire and epoxy putty for âbonesâ? in the arms, torso, pelvis, legs, and feet. Iâm using the Nick Hilligoss T-shaped tie down method for the feet.

The head construction starts with balsa wood and hot glue which bulks out the shape and also provides weight reduction. A thin layer of Super Sculpey is applied and the heads are baked. The eyes are wooden beads with pre-drilled holes and are baked inside the sockets. I sprinkled some talcum power into the eye socket via the pre-drilled hole to help the eyes move around easier (thatâs a tip from Strider I believe).

I use Sculpey flex over the wire armature to bulk out more body shape and then bake the whole armature. The Sculpey flex allows me to create tighter joints while reducing fatigue on the armature wire over time since the edges of the Sculpey near the join are not rigid like regular Sculpey or epoxy putty. Theoretically I will bend my wire joints over time but reduce the possibility of the body mass eating into the wire.

I patch the joints with liquid latex and build up a latex skin over the whole armature. I used polyester fabric and hot glue for the clothing. Some of the edges of the clothes have a strip of aluminum wire hot glued in a seam to allow for positioning. The robes are made of wire-ribbon, purchased at Michaelâs Arts & Crafts, and glued together like an accordion to simulate cloth folds. With the polyester tunics, I was able to run a cigarette lighter quickly across the edges to cauterize the fabricâs plastic material and keep the edges from fraying while also keeping the fabric from becoming to bulky. It also eliminated the need for sewing edges.

Here are some photos to illustrate various stages of character development for Vitruvius.

2006-06-28
My First Stop Motion Tests: 2003 – 2004

View Quicktime MOV (approx 4MB)

Prior to 2003 I had been working with Lightwave and 3D computer graphics as my medium for independent film projects. As it turns out those projects never left the pre-production phase because in 2003 I made a wooden ball-and-socket joint to see if it would simulate the function of a metal armature. The results worked well enough for me to develop a full character armature (which is what you in the test video). I had never done stopmotion animation before but found the armature was a pleasure to work with and the results were sufficient. Subsequently, I made the short film “Man Drawing a Reclining Woman” using this method for the two characters in the film.

The wood is basswood, which is stronger than balsa but still very light, and the wooden beads have pre-drilled holes that can hold a section of square basswood or a dowel rod pretty well. For the joints and plates I used the open hole socket method and 4-40 bolts and nuts to sandwich the beads between the plates. Superglue and hot glue were used to hold various non-moving parts together.

2006-06-24
Durer Project: Behind the Scenes

Here is some more production information about the Durer project which is complete and being submitted to various film festivals.

The armatures and puppets are made out of bass wood, wooden beads, and threaded rods. The smallest bolts I could find are used to clamp the wood plates around the wooden beads that make up the character’s joints. It’s very similar to a metal armature but instead of aluminum or brass it is made out of wood. It works pretty well but the puppets have to be handled carefully and if you apply too much tension at the joints the wood plates start to crack. The masks and clothes are made out of craft foam sheets and hot glue. I also used acrylic paint to add shading and color.

I don’t recall having a written script or storyboard sketches for the Durer project but at least I found these sketches of set design ideas.

For the stage and set construction I used a metal shelving unit on wheels and a sheet of MDF board with pre-drilled peg holes for the floor. I made the covering for the floor and the walls out of matt board. The table and props are made out of basswood and matt board. Finally, I used hot glue to join everything and acrylic paint for color, shading, and texture.

2006-06-04