WWF - Initial Thoughts & Ideas

        Having decided on the WWF brief, Rebecca and I began to jot down our initial ideas. Although we realised that reading the Living Planet report was a vital stage in understanding this brief, these notes and thoughts were made before we read that report. From the scant overview given in the brief, and WWF well known association with endangered animals, we naturally assumed that the main topic of the report would be the impact of human lifestyles on the population levels of thousands of species. The brief also encourages us to consider the importance of biodiversity and iconic species, further fueling our initial impressions that animals are at the centre of the report.

        While animation is very good at literally visualising facts and statistics through graphs, charts and infographics, we thought that in order to inspire change we would have to work at establishing an emotional connection with our target audience. Otherwise we risk creating awareness without action, which the brief specifically wishes to avoid. So, Rebecca and I began to think of visual styles which might fit the brief. We decided that something wholesome, traditional and with a handmade finish might be suitable; something which suggests the fragility and beauty of the planet, and stands apart from the industrialisation ad rapid development which is contributing to its destruction.

        Some of the artists which we referenced were Raymond Briggs, Joanna Quinn, E. H. Shepard, and Peggy Fortnum. Each of these artists has a very soft and appealing style, yet with a transient quality to the line and colour which would perfectly suggest how our planet and its species are endangered.

        However, we are not aiming to produce a hand drawn, 2 minute animation. In our time frame that is both impractical and overly ambitious (the longest animation I have yet produced is 40 seconds). However, Rebecca and I do hope to incorporate a hand drawn aspect by using paper cut out figures and objects. 

Ratatouille's credits have a bold, cut out style.

The Bear & The Hare, an excellent example of mixed media,
and stop motion animated cut outs.

        Consequently we can keep a traditional and wholesome aesthetic, but hopefully work more efficiently, either by using stop motion and Dragonframe, or possibly even scanning in hand made assets and animatig them using After Effects. It had also crossed my mind that we could incorporate an element of pixilation into our film: if we were to use paper models of our planet and its environments and/or species, it may be an interesting visual metaphor to see a pair or human hands cut. tear, fold and crumple these objects, to show how we use, abuse and manipulate our planet's resources.

        While I began to analyse the brief, and dissect the Living Planet Report, Rebecca very helpfully undertook some further research, into both the visual style of cut out animation, but also animations, films and documentaries which have dealt with similar topics of nature and the environment:

        One final thing. The brief is very specific in that it wants our response to inspire action, not just awareness. After all, there have been numerous campaigns and documentaries which highlight similar topics to WWF (Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth, for example presented a devastating argument), and yet so far there has been no great reform or change. So how do we galvanise a new generation? Rebecca and I were both reminded of some First World War recruitment posters, which shamelessly guilt trip the viewer into feeling they should enlist or contribute.

         Somehow, we need to imbue our animation with a similar immediacy. It is not enough for the audience to imagine beautiful animals and far away countries suffering. For WWF's message to be truly heard, we need to emphasise how decreasing wildlife populations and unsustainable use of the planet's resources will affect those in developed and wealthy countries; it will affect the target audience and their lives.