Forming a Research Question

FORMING A RESEARCH QUESTION

Aside from the omnipresent narrator, what filmic devices and visual development techniques can be employed in animated films to convey a sense of character and a progression of a linear narrative when there is an absence of a visually represented character or protagonist on the screen?

This question aims to place an emphasis on discovering the importance of setting or environment as an alternative to using character in communicating narrative.  This topic is of particular relevance given the dominant acceptance of character animation as a means of communicating narrative and emotion to the viewer in 2D animated films. There seems to be reluctance amongst modern day animators to move away from the central protagonist/s or the omnipresent narrator as a means of telling a story.  This explorative research will serve to ‘fill a gap’ in the knowledge base and current pedagogical practices found in institutions that teach the art of animation; Current animation education trends focus on character animation often at the expense of a thorough investigation in the use of animation backgrounds, layout and other filmic devices as a means of telling a story.

Key Concepts (see appendix 1:1) within this research will include the visual development technique of environmental story telling; the importance of layout and the use of the first person view point camera shot. Environmental storytelling is cornerstone to this research and it is a device that incorporates the other key concepts of research. Environmental storytelling allows narrative subtleties to be revealed through animation layout and background development which in turn can be coupled with the filmic device of the point of view shot or through the use of peripheral incidental unseen or ‘un-named’ ‘characters’ that can progress narrative.  

Although the use of environmental story telling has been used for decades in modern film insert and establishing shots by practitioners such as Alfred Hitchcock (see Appendix 1:2)  who was described by film scholar Paul Duncan (2003, p. 167) as favouring ‘a series of set pieces linked together by plot’ and Orson Wells who masterfully relied on setting to fill in the ‘negative space’ created by an unseen character in ‘The Third Man;’ it is its most current incarnation within the games industry that offers the most interesting potential cross over to the medium of animation. Games practitioner and researcher Dan Pinchbeck from the University of Portsmouth (UK) is the creator of the indie first person point of view game called ‘Dear Esther,’ which closely resembles the experience that this research and project intends to explore in the medium of 2D animation. Pinchbeck states that,  

We (The Chinese Room- his games company) believe the sense of immersion and engagement you get when you are pitched directly into the world is really amazing and powerful. Our games focus on this experience, this sense of being there. We place very heavy emphasis on this immersive experience, rather than mechanics, so story is central to our design. Audio and music is integral to this, as is striving for the highest quality in art and environment design. <http://www.thechineseroom.co.uk/philosophy.html>

Pinchbeck’s ethos in relation to environmental storytelling in games and its unencumbered immersive quality is echoed by the expectations associated with this research exegesis and project and an aspect of 2D animation films that has not, as yet, been explored to the fullest potential. 

The research question and the accompanying project are an appropriate area of inquiry as they are a direct response to recent undergraduate study wherein there was limited opportunity for students to learn the intricacies of background art, layout or the use of environment driven story telling. Both the research and the studio practice will provide an opportunity to learn new skills and push the boundaries of environment driven story telling in 2D animation. 

The project itself will be a 3-4 minute hand drawn 2D animation without ‘characters.’ The linear narrative will be communicated through point of view camera positioning, incidental ‘characters’ and through an absolute focus on the significance of setting, the importance of the environment and the placement of objects that evoke emotion and in turn reveal the story. In contrast to the use of environmental story telling as employed in live action films as a support to a protagonist/s, this project will intend to remove the protagonist and instead place the audience in a direct visual and auditory connection with the environment or setting. 

Bibliography

Duncan, P 2003, Alfred Hitchcock: Architect of Anxiety 1899-1980, Taschen Publishing, Koln.

Pinchbeck, D The Chinese Room, viewed 23 March 2012      <http://www.thechineseroom.co.uk/philosophy.html>

Images

McMinn, R 2009, Continuity Editing 101: Hitchcock’s Rear Window, viewed 21 March 2012 <http://www.slideshare.net/mcmrbt/continuity-editing-101-hitchcocks-rear-window>