Film Analysis

Film: Horton Hears A Who
Scene: Introduction to WhoVille, but more specifically the Mayor's office.

Shot Types:
Initial shots are low and wide, putting emphasis on scale; how tall the trees/mountains are, how large Horton is. The majority of the shots in the 'Jungle of Nool' remain low, again to maintain a sense of scale. They are also dominantly mid to long shots in the beginning, helping to establish character and environment.

In WhoVille, the shots are most commonly either at the same level as the Whos or higher shots looking down on them, making them appear smaller. In the Mayor's office however they are mostly low, establishing his position of power and also isolation in this situation, being the only one who believes in Horton.

Colour Palette:
All colour in this film is softened by the light, with subtle smudging at the edges of some parts of the environment, e.g. edges of leaves, soil. In the jungle, the colours are earthy yet somehow bright/luminescent, which I think is a result of the lighting. Blue, green and red (including variation to brown) are the dominant colours in the beginning, a continuation from the original Dr Seuss books where blue, red and white were dominant. The lighting here is all natural, primarily sunlight, casting a lot of shadows on the jungle floor which enhance the idea of foliage, or a 'canopy above our heads'.

In WhoVille, there is a very strong and consistent colour palette of the primary colours; blue, red and yellow. They are like pastel shades at high saturation, appearing bright but not classic. The mayor's office consists of these colours in crimson, mustard and royal blue shades, giving it a wealthy/important feel.
The grass in this environment is quite a bright shade of green, especially under the rather harsh sunlight. However virtually the only other colour here (other than sky blue) is white. All of the buildings are white with a different accent/edging colour, in various shades of the primary colours.

Environment:
The Jungle of Nool is actually quite realistic, in a fantastical, dreamlike sort of way. There are lots of open spaces/clearings/walkways between the trees, ponds, bushes etc.
In classic Dr Seuss style, nothing in this environment is straight. The tree trunks are all twisted, and everything is off kilter; it's as if the whole environment has been wind blown in one direction. Trees vary from big thick tree trunks covered in roots to skinny tall ones with little foliage.

Because there are so many buildings in WhoVille, there are some lines which are close to straight, but are never at 90degree angles or fully straight/parallel to any other line. The environment here gets quite crazy; rounded roofs, extravagant stairs mounted on columns, pools in quirky places, high wires used for riding unicycles, small decks attached to peaks/towers in buildings; it goes on. Small details like wrinkles/creases in bends of materials are reminiscent of Dr Seuss' original drawing style. Even details such as stripes of darker/lighter colour in the grass, and irregular paving stones are considered.

Interiors
The Mayor's family home is fairly typical. The kitchen is scattered with appliances like a toaster, jug, fridge etc, large expanse of cupboards, and a uniquely quirky dining table with some sort of mechanism which rotates all of the dining chairs around it. The hall of ancestors is another example of the vast open spaces contained within these buildings, with a blue coloured wash and brown accents; tables, stairs etc.
The Mayor's office is a fairly typical example of an office. It's a large, rounded room, containing just a desk, chair, sofa, and accents such as framed portraits, a suit of armour, bookcase, flag etc. Desk has quirky bits and pieces; clock, pen holder etc. The reception area has the same colour scheme, and the entrance has a sort of air-propulsion chute which appears to be the way in and out.
The doors and frames are all rounded off balance/centre.

Surfaces
Surfaces appear smooth from far away, but close ups reveal textures which are mostly realistic, e.g. surfaces of leaves, tree trunk bark, moss on trees, dirt/dust, stucco, stones, wood, metal... Etc. The grass looks smooth/soft, like fur.

Camera Movement
The introduction to the movie doesn't have a lot of camera movement, it's mostly the environment/objects moving past/around the camera. It moves faster as more environment is revealed and the narrative picks up pace. The camera is mostly an 'observer'; when a scene is actually active there is virtually no movement.

WhoVille is introduced with a birds eye view and very fast movement. The movement through the town is like a roller coaster, and more dynamic than in the jungle. The camera here goes over buildings, around buildings, through buildings, under bridges and staircases etc. Runs smoothly, not so fast that it's jerky. The camera mostly follows the character here.

Observations during chosen animated movies

The Incredibles;

• Realistic lighting + environments; urban city, domestic home, suburbs, cubicle office - develop place where Bob works?
• Very obvious/effective shadow
• Jungle is 'typical' of movie jungles - almost totally green in colour and lighting, palm trees, bushes, shrubs etc. Isn't overly detailed in this... Large open spaces. Canyons, mountains, cliffs, echo animal sounds.
• Misty/foggy
• Gets more radical closer to Syndrome's lair, volcanoes, underwater cave, train systems
• Syndrome's lair; futuristic, minimal decor, lots of metal/stone (grey), dark, neon/artificial lighting where there is any - other than when surrounded by lava, red light, romantic.
• Edna's house; huge, airy, light, modern, futuristic, minimal

Monsters Inc;

• Sully + Mike's apartment; quite regular actually. All American apartment. Small monsterly touches; monster soft toy, large arm chair for Sully, small egg chair for Mike.
  
• Mostly natural light; inside is artificial lamps, restaurant lights, very bright in factory.
• Monstropolis; again quite regular looking American city. The characters are what bring it out of the ordinary. Although it also has subtle details, small doors in walls for small monsters etc. Monster shops, monster newspapers.
  
• The factory. Introduction to; reception desk, entrance chamber large, echo-ey and busy. Mostly natural light in the entrance chamber from skylights. Outside of building looks like observatory/science lab. Lockers are dark, feel a bit seedy. Artificial light again, but not very strong. Deeper into the factory the light gets more harsh (not necessarily brighter) and feels quite office-y.
  
• 'Scaring floor' - natural light, mechanical system for door ordering and distribution. Large screen, reminiscent of sporting score board, displaying scarers and number of scares. 'Cafe'/staff room/coffee area, dark, covered, warm.
• Harry Hausens - dark, romantic lighting, Japanese decor. Large, modern, almost looks like a museum on the exterior. Spotlights at front door.
  
• Boo's room - dark, girly, moon light, toy-strewn.
  
• Downstairs scream chamber. Dark, sickly artificial light, mechanical. Feels cold, eerie, sterile.
• Scare simulator - theater lighting, warm, large, cinema-like.
• Cave Mike and Sully are banished to. Cold, icy, full of supplies - Abominable Snowman's home. Little village nearby looks cozy, picturesque.
  
• Door storage chamber; HUGE. Enormous cavern, naturally lit, busy, maze-like, reminiscent of a library. Deeper = darker.

Alice in Wonderland;

• Dim lighting in 'real' world; looks cold, damp, dreary.
• Family-in-law's property - large fields, trees + bushes, large classical home, wealthy. Feels open, airy, but cold; bluish tint/photo filter.
• Tunnel + room w/ table + key to wonderland. Warm, dark, quiet. Old royal.
• Intro to Wo/Underland - dark, quiet, busy, cold; forest like. Twisted fairytale, toadstools + flowers etc. Cross between garden/forest/jungle.
• Wasteland; dark, dreary, dead trees, dry, canyons, cloudy; colour mostly washed out red/brown - outside of the forest, where it is blue/green, dark + misty.
  
• Red Queen's castle; LARGE. Like her head, likes large things. Colour mostly red, black and white. Heart patterns as decoration. Stone. Sky is red/smoky.
• Mad Tea Party; shabby, cluttered, misty, careless. Dark, dirty.
• Forest path; orange and blue. Almost straight split. Sun + shadow. Autumn. Cold. Dead trees.
  
• Old Wonderland; green and merry.
  
• River; dark + eerie.
• Dusty, almost desert like.
• Moat around castle full of dead bodies; very morbid, threatening, creepy. Gag inducing.
  
• White Queen's castle - all big airy chambers, echoes, white + grey colouring. Waterfalls. Open balconies.
  
• Execution court - Romanesque. Stone.
  

First Thoughts

Introduction of Assignment 2: Modeling - A Sense of Place

I'm interested in the films 'Alice in Wonderland', 'Nightmare Before Christmas', 'Horton Hears A Who' and 'Monsters Inc'.

I'm immediately drawn to these films because I think they have a lot of potential in terms of crazy and interesting scenes. The scenery in these films is already quite creative and dynamic, so I immediately feel inclined to create one which (while keeping with the style of the rest of the movie of course) is quite 'out there' so to speak.

In terms of which scenes to add, I'm thinking...

Alice in Wonderland- either Alice's arrival in wonderland or the Mad Tea Party. Either can be taken quite close to the extreme, I think, and have a lot of space for creativity/personalisation.

Nightmare Before Christmas- I like Oogie Boogie's lair; the lighting and colours are quite cool, and I think there is also space to make it very different.

Horton Hears A Who- I love Dr Seuss, and the scene where Whoville is introduced is very cool. Very Dr Seuss inspired (in terms of visual style) and I think also has a very cohesive style, so would be fun to develop yet also easy (ish) to stay consistent.

Monsters Inc- The concept of Monsters Inc and the travelling through wardrobe doors in itself gives quite a bit of space for creativity. However I would probably choose the scene where Sully and Mike are banished to a mountain top; room for development/change while keeping with the concept.