I rarely get this excited about a film, but Ryan Woodward's short Thought Of You is a gigantic revelation to me, I'm so freaking excited and happy to have found it online.
Watch it, now, it's something you do not want to miss:
Thought of You from Ryan Woodward on Vimeo.
Normally, I just tweet a link, ad an adjective or two, and let it go, but I had to write a bit more about this piece. What truly captures me is how animation works as an extension to dance, they don't just complement each other, they explode in synergy, they add to each other in a Gestalt madness where the whole is not just more than the sum of it's parts, it's value increases exponentially.
Lines are a big part of dance, but for most it's a bit of an abstract concept to grasp. In this film, lines are taken beyond just a literal interpretation, they flow out of the figures and they become wings, they pull down with weight, they are sticky, explosive, seductive, lingering, they imbue themselves with all sorts of qualities that push the story and characters further.
The concepts on this film remind me of Chris Landreth's films (Ryan, Bingo, The Spine), where a state of mind can be taken out of the brain and become the world, you become your own fears, your emotions, and you move and act and breathe and live accordingly.
And to add to it all, Thought Of You is simply, astonishingly beautiful, a pleasure to watch.
Matthew Brown's editing and camera work
Matthew Brown just posted his last video, a collection of images from a trip to Portugal. Check it out, this guy was already good but he keeps getting better and better.
Look Up at the Stars, Portugal! from Matthew Brown.
He adds so much complexity that it's hard to figure out how it can all be created from rational choices, but the complexity is not overbearing, it's captivating. For me, having a background in animation makes it even harder to figure out how to build something like this, since we tend to over-plan things and never use unnecessary cuts or ambiguity when we design our shots. We have a lot to learn from this type of editing and use of camera. His choices for music and voice are also incredible, inspiring and purposeful.
While you are at it, check out the re-edit of his amazing video GAY=SIN:
GAY=SIN (re-edit) from Matthew Brown.
He has a lot of other pieces worth checking out, see it all here: Matthew Brown on Vimeo
Look Up at the Stars, Portugal! from Matthew Brown.
He adds so much complexity that it's hard to figure out how it can all be created from rational choices, but the complexity is not overbearing, it's captivating. For me, having a background in animation makes it even harder to figure out how to build something like this, since we tend to over-plan things and never use unnecessary cuts or ambiguity when we design our shots. We have a lot to learn from this type of editing and use of camera. His choices for music and voice are also incredible, inspiring and purposeful.
While you are at it, check out the re-edit of his amazing video GAY=SIN:
GAY=SIN (re-edit) from Matthew Brown.
He has a lot of other pieces worth checking out, see it all here: Matthew Brown on Vimeo
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