Solipsist Short Film amazing use of green screen

The title of this magnificent video is called Solipsist, meaning that the self is all that can be known to exist. Its a belief anything outside of your own mine is unsure and does not exist. Andrew Huang directed this short film which was honored at the Saatchi & Saatchi New Directors Showcase at Cannes Lions and won Best Experimental Short Film at the Slamdance Film Festival. This film also caught the attention of singer Bjork, who hired him to direct his music video “Mutual Core”. I decided to share this video because of the unique combination of amazing art/costume design with special effects done in post. In the first part, the girls were shot in front of a green screen however their costumes were real and were moved by string during the shoot. Their faces however were done in post, where they created the moving little snakes with CGI and placed them on their faces. The last part with the sand men, was shot in front of a green screen. They filmed actual sand separately going through a hole and replaced their faces with what they shot during post. Although this video is aesthetically pleasing and amazing to watch, the process to make it isn’t as difficult as we think. This film also had amazing audio that made the costumes seem alive and underwater. Hopefully we’ll be learning the basics in green screening and can learn how this is done. Bellow the video is the behind the scenes on how they made it. 

"Address is Approximate" - Stop Motion Short Film

A friend of mine showed me this short stop motion film the other day. It is about a toy robot who wants to explore the world and does so the only way he knows how, through a toy car and google maps. The concept is extremely creative. With today's technology the possibilities are endless when it comes to storytelling. This director took the technology from Google Maps and made a beautiful short film. This is just one example of how a little creativity can go a long way.

Nuit Blanche - Arev Manoukian

A friend of mine showed me this short film the other day, saying it is one of the most beautiful things he has ever seen. I wasn't sure what to expect but he was definitely correct in saying it is beautiful. "Nuit Blanche" is only about 4 minutes long but explores the simple concept of two people sharing a connection and does so in such a unique way. Everything about it is so thought out and so visually stunning. It has a film noir feel to it and as I was watching it, I couldn't help but admire all the lighting and intense contrast. Here is the film:

What's even better is the director, Arev Manoukian, also has a video that shows the making of "Nuit Blanche" in great detail. Practically all of it is animation and it is amazing to see all of the different layers that went into creating this world. It is such a visually complex piece and I have watched it multiple times just to take it all in. I definitely recommend you all check it out!

Here is the "Making Of" video:

Pixar Short Films

Although most people have fallen in love with Pixar's feature films over the years, the short films that screen before the actual movies are equally as enjoyable. When I was on Pixar's website I found it really interesting that there is a short films section of the site that breaks down the story that the short is trying to tell, the characters, and some behind the scenes information.

One of my favorite Pixar shorts is For the Birds



When I read about the behind the scenes of For the Birds I found out that this short won an academy award. Also, it was difficult for animators to get the feathers of the birds to move like they actually do in real life.

Another short that I find the animation to be extremely interesting and realistic in is Partly Cloudy