Music Videos

1986 music video:

This music video for 'Sledge Hammer' by Peter Gabriel is quite well known. Some people who were involved in animating it were 'Brothers Quay' and Aardman Animation, one of the companies who contributed in animating Wallace and Gromit. The video won Best British Video at the 1987 Brit Awards and I think it's one of the best examples of stop animation as it is detailed and consistent for the duration. I like how surreal the video is and how none of the content relates to anything else. I'm intrigued by how the video is made. I think one of the options is that most of it is just one film of him singing, which was then cut up frame by frame when edited. However another option is that it was created using stop animation, by photographing each shot with movement between. I think the reason the animation was so popular is because nothing like it had been created before. The content is quite eccentric and unrealistic although it still reflects the lyrics. The animations fit what is happening in the song which I think makes it flows quite well. There are also a few references in the video, such as 2:26 there is a face created out of fruit, which was originally created by Giuseppe Arcimboldo. There is also quite a lot of different animations used, from photographic to clay, and some irrelevant digitalised/ claymation at the beginning. The animation flows very well, as each seperate animation morphs into something else very fluidly, and I think this is one of the reasons it is such a success. The ending essentially is the same as the beginning, as they both flow from darkness to spotted lights.

Nick Park

Nick Park is one of the better known stop-animators of this generation. His work is known by adults and children alike, and has created works such as the Wallace and Gromit films and series, Creature Comforts, Chicken Run, and Shaun the Sheep. He also helped create the Peter Gabriel music video of 'Sledgehammer', also linked in this blog. I feel Nick Park is a key figure in animation which is why I researched him, as he was one of the first people to make a feature length film through stop animation that was this much of a success. I was also considering doing stop motion animation with material figures just like Nick Park but I think it would require a lot more research, planning and time than doing it photographically.

Quay Brothers

Timothy and Stephen Quay are identical twin brothers known in the stop animation business as 'Brothers Quay' or 'The Quay Brothers'. They are well known English animators and are known for several short films, most of which are made using doll parts, sometimes disassembled, in a 'dark moody atmosphere'. Nearly all of their films have no spoken dialogue at all, as they are highly reliant on their music, usually composed specifically for them.
As the brothers were originally professional illustrators, they already had a lot of artistic talent. I think this shows in their work as they have a very distinct and practiced style that is seen throughout their productions. As well as many animations, they've also created two feature length live action films, and worked on several music videos. In particular they worked along side Nick Park on the 'Peter Gabriel-Sledge Hammer' music video, but they felt their work was too alike to Jan Svankmajer's, a major influence of their.

J. Stuart Blackton

J. Stuart Blackton is known as the 'Father of American animation', as he was one of the first animators to use stop motion and drawn animation. In 1900, Blackton explored the concept of animation, after appearing in and directing several short films, made with a process created by Thomas Edison. He created a video (featured below) named 'The Enchanted Drawing', which was made using stop motion filming, making alterations then continuing filming. This is the general idea I will be using for my project, except I will be using photography.
In his early years he attempted to make money by performing an act with two friends, where Blackton would rapidly draw and narrate a succession of pictures called 'lightning drawing'. After this failed to earn him a living, he became an artist. This would explain why his next logical step was animation, as he already had the art background that would be needed to make it a success.