ANIMATED FRAMES - Vol.03: THE DOODLERS
Presented in partnership with TING Comic & Graphic Arts Festival, this selection of meticulously crafted 16mm works unfurl a unique glimpse into the vibrant imaginations of nine independent animators whose distinct artistic styles offer innovative approaches to visual storytelling. From offbeat characters meandering though surreal landscapes to the unbound abstractions of material manipulation, these memorable films colour well outside the lines of the conventional cartoon drawing.
PROGRAM
A MAN & HIS DOG OUT FOR AIR
Robert Breer | 1957 | USA | 2 minutes
SAUSAGE CITY
Adam Beckett | 1974 | USA | 5 minutes
THE DOODLERS
Kathy Rose | 1975 | USA | 5 minutes
HEAD
George Griffin | 1975 | USA | 10 minutes
LOOPS
Norman McLaren | 1949 | Canada | 3 minutes
ROTE MOVIE
Dirk de Bruyn | 1994 | Australia / Canada | 11 minutes
WALK FOR WALK
Amy Lockhart | 2005 | Canada | 11 minutes
THE PRESENTATION THEME
Jim Trainor | 2008 | USA | 14 minutes
FACE DANCE
Robert Dvorak | 1974 | USA | 3 minutes
Artist Bios
A graduate of CalArt's inaugural program for Experimental Animation, Adam Beckett (1950 - 1979) developed a unique aesthetic combining looping images with rigorous optical printing. After a series of independent projects, Beckett found success in the commercial industry, most notably as the head of Rotoscoping & Animation on Star Wars (1977).
A seminal figure in the New York avant garde art scene of the 1950's onward, Robert Breer (1926 - 2011) was an influential experimental filmmaker, painter, and kinetic sculptor. He made dozens of animated shorts in a career that spanned more than half a century.
Dirk de Bruyn has been practicing, writing and curating in the area of experimental film and animation for over 35 years. He is currently teaching Animation and Digital Culture at Deakin University in Melbourne, Australia.
Robert Dvorak has had an illustrious career as an artist, filmmaker, author, designer, sailor and professional speaker for business seminars. The majority of his animated films were completed in the 1960's & 70's.
With an ever evolving graphic style, New York-based DIY filmmaker George Griffin is a well recognized luminary in the independent animation community. His quirky and unconventional comedic shorts often experiment with tactile items, hand-drawn flip books or optical toys.
Amy Lockhart is an independent animator and artist. Amy has educated herself through attending the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, completing an artist residency at the Quickdraw Animation Society and completing a fellowship at the National Film Board. She has received international acclaim, speaking and exhibiting her work at various art institutions including The California Institute of the Arts, where she completed an artist residency.
Scottish born artist Norman McLaren (1914 - 1987) began filmmaking in the UK before settling in Canada where he worked for the National Film Board from 1941 to 1985. Perhaps this country's most recognized animator, McLaren influenced generations through his innovative visual techniques, as well as his pioneering explorations of synthetic sound on film.
Kathy Rose’s work has evolved from her early hand-drawn animated films of the 1970’s, through her unique, pioneering performance art, combining dance with film in the 1980-90’s, to her current surreal performance video spectacles and installations, with influence from symbolist art and the Japanese Noh theater.
Jim Trainor teaches animation at The School of The Art Institute of Chicago. His work gravitates toward tales of morality, transgression, angst, and guilt, and explores the grim and realistic habits of animals in their natural habitats to illustrate the divide between bestial instinct and human emotion and logic. He also writes poems.