Thirty thousand or so frames: a meditation on animation as a growing medium

With animation’s sheer level of versatility becoming progressively more realized in recent years, its potential as a medium becomes more and more ambitious. A great example of this can be seen in how there seems to be this ongoing transition of animation existing to tell tales of fact and fiction, rather than sticking towards the convention of solely bringing fantasy to life. Works of this classification exhibit a unique sense of passion amongst other nonfiction storytellers. To go the extra mile and bring another’s story to life through animation not only adds to the visual appeal of a work, but also shows that the topic in question is capable of resonating on an emotional level, and for this reason people take the time to animate it.

When filmmaker Nomi Talisman came to Muhlenberg this past week to discuss and exhibit her Emmy award winning documentary, Last Day of Freedom, that aforementioned sense of artistic passion was exhibited loud and clear. Her commitment toward telling the tragic tale of Bill Babbitt, which covers the important topics of mental health, racism and family relations, is truly remarkable, as you really can tell that she sees the film as more than just a creative endeavor but also as a message to be heard by many. To do this, Nomi and the rest of her collaborators went about captivating the public, not only through the heartstrings–people tear up because of the narrative of the film–but with the imagery used to present the story as well. Using an animation style consisting of tracing over live footage while utilizing color sparingly, Last Day of Freedom has a look that pops off the screen. Out of curiosity, I attended the animation workshop earlier this week. The opportunity to see a hands-on presentation of this unique style of filmmaking was undoubtedly a worthwhile experience.

While the workshop was indeed an interesting and fun experience, a newfound sense of amazement was what probably stuck with me to the greatest degree. While I know that animation is tough work by default, putting the whole film’s creation process into a hands-on understanding really does show the overwhelming level of dedication that one must have towards their craft and the subject of their work. To put forth an example, Nomi informed us that the entire documentary consisted of tens of thousands of frames that made up the half hour-long film. That basically means that each of these thirty thousand or so frames had to be completely traced over and stylized with the utmost care. In my time demoing the technique used by Nomi and her crew, I only got 2 frames completed, and despite that low amount, they both turned out rather crude and without a doubt destined for the cutting room floor if it were to be made for an actual film. That level of expertise and tolerance, in a certain way, is almost supernatural. However, the message of Last Day of Freedom goes to show that the people behind it put that insane effort into their work because they cared, not just for their creation but also for those they represented in their work, which is truly an admirable accomplishment in my eyes.

The thing that always remains true in animation is the incredible amount of effort and commitment it takes to bring a finished work to life. When you break down the process of animation piece by piece, it becomes apparent that in order to create a moving picture, an unimaginable amount of effort and ambition must be undertaken by those behind the work. Each and every frame is a trial of an artist’s or an entire team’s expertise and passion for their craft.