counting goldfish: my thesis film!
when i took a trip to japan in the winter of 2022, i happened to stumble upon an exhibition showcasing objects and the history of a local 祭り (matsuri, or festival). i was instantly hooked, bought a photobook of various matsuris in different regions, and i knew i had to make something out of this.scans of a few of my favorite pages out of the book.
over the course of one semester, i settled on a simple premise: a restless and sleepless night takes a turn when the girl is taken away to a matsuri, unclear if its reality or a dream. after a full night of festivities, she falls asleep soundly.i wanted my focus to be on design and the sensory experience.early early explorations:
it's interesting to see how i was drawn to collage aesthetics from the very beginning.
luminosity that comes with working digitally is something i want to explore both traditionally and digitally. i want to come up with a pipeline that allows me the best of both worlds!
1/23: gearing up
composited shot!
raw, uncomposited footage.
10/10: starting production
first completed test shot! animated the fish and background in clay under a downshooter, animated the character digitally, and composited in after effects.
behind the scenes.
9/12: experiments
with thesis being probably the last opportunity to work on a project entirely driven by my own desires, i really wanted to make sure i had fun.this thought process led me deeper into what i really, really, loved. in the last few weeks, i've really come to embrace my love for texture. not only do i want my art to appeal visually, but also have a tactile experience. from there, i decided that i wanted to incorporate physical material into my film.experimenting with different materials.
i'm taking the next month or so to really experiment and discover my final look and develop a streamlined process.water texture test via clay, wrapping paper, and watercolor.
9/5: building the production
working with my producer last spring to develop my pitch for this thesis showed me the importance of proper scheduling and the wonders of having someone telling me what to do. in fact, i loved good production so much so that i have TWO producers now. thanks jaqi and izzy!this week, i built out a shot list and schedule.
we broke the entire film down into sequences based on location, then broke each sequence down into individual shots. then i broke down the shots into each asset that needed to be made- which is especially important since i want to make some assets with physical material.then, we made a schedule according to class deadlines. trying to work ahead.
i think it's a creative's bad habit to feel that planning and scheduling is creatively stifling or stressful, but i've found that the more planning that's done in the beginning, the less brain space that's taken up later down the line worrying about deadlines and administrative tasks.
卒業制作「金魚は何匹？」
2022年の年末、日本に一時帰国に行きました。その時ふらっと入った祭りの個展に心打たれ、成り行きで祭りの写真集を買って、制作のテーマを祭りにしました。写真集から好きなページ。
ストーリーは簡単です。ある眠れない夜、女の子が夢か現実か分からないまま祭りに連れ去られ、一晩遊んだ後やっと眠りにおちる、という話です。複雑なストーリーよりデザインと遊びに重視します。初期コンセプト
最初からアナログらしいタッチの傾向がありましたね。
祭りの命は「光」。デジタルで可能な鮮やかさ、明るさをどうアナログと合わせて表すか、この制作の大きなチャレンジです。
9/12: 実験
この制作は学生として最後の完全に自分だけの制作として、「楽しみ」を大事にしようと最初から決めてました。自分の「楽しみ」を求めるうち触感の楽しみへたどり着きました。色んな素材で実験。
アナログ作業に慣れるためこの一か月じっくり実験をします。粘土、紙、水性絵具で水の背景テスト。
9/5: プロダクション
今年の春、この制作の提案資料をまとめ始めた時に初めてプロデューサーさんとお仕事をして、作業の細かい計画がどんなに大事か身に染みました。本格的な作業が始まるこの秋、何と二人のプロデューサーさん達とお仕事をしてます。今週はizzy(プロデューサー1)との撮影リストとスケジュール作り。
カット割りをして、各カットに何が必要か全て書き足します。アナログ作業も含めたいので何を何個作るか知るのは特に大事になってきます。出来上がった撮影リストを元に、5月の〆切に間に合うためスケジュールを組んでいきます。
芸術的な事をしてると、計画などがおそろかになる傾向がありますね。でも最初にしっかり計画を立てておくと後がだいぶ楽になって、事務的な作業に追われずに作業に没頭できるようになる事を最近勉強しました。
COUNTING GOLDFISH - TRAILER
ABOUT ME
e-mail: futo.works@gmail.com
resume here!FUTO WADA (they/them) is a visual development and stop motion artist specializing in color and design.
they recently graduated from the university of southern california, studying animation at the school of cinematic arts.they're very drawn to vibrant color and visual tactility inspired by their deep love of clay animation and children's books.they can also be found changing their hair color every few weeks.
和田フウト。シカゴ出身、ロサンゼルス在住の日本人。
主な仕事はアニメーション美術、カラーデザイン。コマ撮りもするよ！
明るい色と絵本と犬が好き。2024 南カリフォルニア大学映画芸術学部アニメーション専攻 卒業
PRESS: SHOUTOUT LA, VoyageLA