MetaFilter posts tagged with animation and video

Goo

mhjb — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 19:57:40 -0800

Amorphous blob robot takes first steps (SLYT)

Have A Raver Flashback Today

The Whelk — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 07:56:28 -0800

VECTORTRONIC An abstract long-exposure animation drawn and photographed by a Lego robot set to music by Gil Trythall [via mefi projects]

Fumiko's Confession

flatluigi — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 08:18:22 -0800

Fumiko's Confession - a short film animated completely by one person. (via)

COMBO - a collaborative animation

Matthias Rascher — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 14:17:32 -0800

COMBO - a collaborative animation by Blu and David Ellis. Made at Fame Festival 2009.

Google Street View

Matthias Rascher — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 09:15:30 -0800

Google Street View is currently taking pictures in and around my home village. Google Japan has released a rather cute animated video explaining how the whole process works. Its main aim seems to be to respond to all the criticism regarding privacy issues. It's still cute, though.

The Little Mac Classic That Could

ignignokt — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 07:46:28 -0800

A Mac Classic shows bullies what's for in "3½ inches is enough" by Unreal Voodoo. This demo (actually written to run on a Mac Classic) was presented at ASSEMBLY, Finland's largest computer festival. More highlights from ASSEMBLY are available at GameSetWatch. The demos are mostly trippy and impressive hand-coded animations as one might expect, but there's also a live action short featuring a Rube Goldberg machine.

IT'S ALL PIPES!!!

Sys Rq — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 07:35:56 -0800

Brazil's new water conservation campaign: Xixi no Banho! (slyt)

Cyriak's Animation Mix

Plutor — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 11:09:31 -0800

Cyriak's Animation Mix is the work of a quite talented yet somewhat twisted mind.

Kodename: Wolfenstein

Artw — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 16:17:54 -0800

Wolfenstein 3D, the animated graphic novel.

NEW HAT!

blasdelf — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 20:17:43 -0800

Pug Fight — An animated short that explores the unbelievably cruel but really adorable world of underground pug fighting.

I saw a cool video so I thought I'd Post-It.

goodnewsfortheinsane — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 11:32:04 -0800

A nice stop motion video with sticky notes.

Giles Timms

serazin — Mon, 04 May 2009 22:57:20 -0800

Animator Giles Timms is doing interesting work (that has apparently already been discovered by laughing squid and boing boing but is still worth checking out.)

Silence!

dersins — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 11:45:24 -0800

And when it's done there's one more thing
A simple little task, it's:
Put the fucking lotion in the basket!
A lego-animated number from "Silence! The Musical". Music and Lyrics by Jon and Al Kaplan.

watch the american housing market spiral out of control

uncle harold — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 12:41:17 -0800

subprime. Beautiful animation about the US housing market.

Grandmas are calorie-dense foods

knave — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 13:30:49 -0800

Little Red Riding Hood, creatively animated and retold. [3 min video]

The Giving Tree

the_bone — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 22:21:11 -0800

The Giving Tree (1973), animated short based on Shel Silverstein's 1964 children's story and narrated by the author. Once you're done crying, here are a few related links: The Giving Tree: A Symposium (a collection of thoughts on the story by some American religion scholars.) The Misgiving Tree (a parody) A couple of parody videos: "The Really, Really Giving Tree" and "The Taking Boy"

festival-quality short films collection

taz — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 05:46:17 -0800

The Oscar-nominated "Mysterious Explorations of Jasper Morello" is an "adventurous tale of a navigator’s journey to save his ailing wife set in a beautiful world of Victorian science-fiction" and one the many fine film shorts and videos available to watch at shortof theweek.com - a site dedicated to "finding those few [video] gems amongst the enormous heap of garbage they're buried in..." You can browse the archives by genre, topic and style. Some of these you will have seen before, while some, I hope, will be new to you. A few personal favorites of both sorts: Solar, City Paradise, Comedy, Balance, Muto, Rabbit, The Pearce sisters.

Prochaine Station: Gotham's Soul Breakdance Battle

zenzizi — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 20:04:50 -0800

BBOY JOKER (single link interactive youtube game) - Patrick Boivin (from visual wizards Phylactère Cola [wiki]) strikes again with a new stop animation game following his success with YouTube Street Fighter.

A sweet little video for an Oren Lavie song

serazin — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 21:48:33 -0800

A sweet little stop-motion SLYT, found on Lauging Squid.

Classic Animation Remixed

Rhaomi — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 09:50:06 -0800

While Adult Swim is generally regarded as the pioneer of irreverent short-form animation -- especially for 'toons that reimagine past hits -- it wasn't always the king. In fact, the late-night programming block arguably found its birth in a series of short toons and interstitials that ran in the heyday of its daytime alter ego, the venerable Cartoon Network. The brainchild of C.N. Creative Director Michael Ouweleen and Hanna-Barbera chief Fred Seibert, these cartoons reinterpreted the network's properties through stock footage, indie music, and original animation in a wide variety of styles, as well as introducing prototypes of characters that would become some of the most famous in the history of American animation. (warning: monster post inside) PART 1: The Early Days The groundwork for the following projects was arguably laid by two cartoons: The Moxy and Flea Show (the network's first original series) and Space Ghost Coast to Coast. Though little is remembered of the short-lived Moxy, which starred mo-capped entertainers Penn Jillette and Bobcat Goldthwait as a 3D animal duo, Space Ghost hit a chord and ran for years in the night block as a cult series -- its bizarre, incoherent "interviews" and repurposed 1960s characters set the stage for Adult Swim in later years. PART 2: Cartoons That Never Made It Crafted by the aforementioned-Ouweleen in the mid-90s, "Cartoons That Never Made It" was a brief series of four "bumps" -- short cartoons that play before commercial breaks or split up longer programs. The four shorts acted as promos for various fictional cartoons, all rejected for obvious reasons. Surprisingly twisted for the network's early, more staid days, the popularity of the bumps inspired Ouweleen to expand his ambitions in projects to come.

Salt n' Slug - Rupert the Grouper - Frothy Dawg - Heidi and the Yodelers

PART 3: The Groovies "Groovies" was the term for a new series of shorts which took the form of music videos. Each one was based on a property in the Cartoon Network stable, from Betty Boop to Dexter's Lab. Old clips and in some cases fresh animation work was mixed with original music from well-known artists like Devo, The Apples in Stereo, and will.i.am, resulting in amusing and surprising tributes that respected the classic animation while showing it in a whole new light.

The Flintstones - "Meet the Flintstones" by Joe Boyd Vigil, "Walk Around in Circles" by Soul Coughing The Jetsons - "24th Century Mecha Mix" by Michael Kohler Quick Draw McGraw - "El Kabong Rides Again" by Calexico Atom Ant - "We Must All Get Ready Now" by Michael Kohler Betty Boop - "Rolling" by Soul Coughing Superfriends - "That Time is Now" by Michael Kohler Porky Pig - "Pork Jam" by Michael Kohler Elmer Fudd - "Wascally Wemix" by Todd Eaton Bugs Bunny/Marvin the Martian - "Mars Forever" by Fantastic Plastic Machine Magilla Gorilla - "Gorilla 4 Sale" by Michael Ungar Yogi Bear - "Yogi Bear" by High School Jim Jabberjaw - "Jabberjaw" by Pain Josie and the Pussycats - "Music Evolution" by Michael Kohler Powerpuff Girls - "Signal in the Sky" by The Apples in Stereo, "Go Monkey Go" by Devo, "Chemical X" by Cherish Courage the Cowardly Dog - "Courage the Cowardly Dog" by They Might Be Giants Ed, Edd n Eddy - "The Incredible Shrinking Day" by Stuart Hill, "My Best Friend Plank" by Steve Patrick Dexter's Laboratory - "Secrets" by will.i.am, "Back to the Lab" by Prince Paul, "Dexter (What's His Name)" by Coolio, "Dee Dee and Dexter" by They Might Be Giants Johnny Bravo - "Hey, Johnny Bravo" by The Reverend Horton Heat

PART 4: The Shorties Following the success of the Groovies, Ouweleen acted a little more adventurously by introducing the Shorties. Shorties were similar to Groovies in that they repurposed older properties broadcast by the network, but they did so in longer-form shorts sans music, and more often with a new visual style. The shorts were often more sarcastic in tone than their inspirations, and acted along with Space Ghost as the sources for later programs like Sealab 2021 and Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law.

Pixie and Dixie and Mr. Jinks: "Harasscat" Pixie and Dixie sue Mr. Jinx for stalking them. Huckleberry Hound: "Sound Hound" An exasperated Huckleberry tries to silence a noisy soundscape collage. Birdman: "Birdman Coffee Break" Birdman shows Falcon-7 just how trained his companion Avenger is. Superfriends: "Whiners Can Be Losers" The Legion of Doom runs into a few issues at its biweekly meeting. Johnny Quest: "Time is Running Out" Using sound bites and music from the original series, gamepiece versions of Johnny, Hadji, Race, and Bandit fly over a gameboard outrunning their various opponents. Hillbilly Bears: "Miss Understanding" The Hillbilly Bears appear on a Jerry Springer-like show to air out their problems. Quick Draw McGraw: "City E-Scape" Quick Draw and Baba Louie, drawn as real horses, travel to New York City to wipe out crime. Droopy: "Thanks a Latte" Droopy, a coffeehouse barista, haunts a caffeinated businesswolf who refuses to tip. Yogi Bear: "When Animals Nap" Yogi and Boo-Boo try to hibernate despite the efforts of a TV crew working to get footage of a ferocious bear attack. Wally Gator: "Alligator Liberation" A cool 3D plastic doll-like version of Wally Gator is "liberated" from the confines of the city zoo by a group of concerned citizens.

PART 5: World Premiere Toons Known variously over the years as World Premiere Toons, The What a Cartoon! Show, and The Cartoon-Cartoon Show, this program was the magnum opus of Ren and Stimpy creator John Kricfalusi and cartooning workhorse Fred Seibert, the original creative director of MTV and Nickelodeon and the one-time president of Hanna-Barbera. Seibert, who would later go on to found Frederator Studios, intended to recreate the atmosphere of the 1950s animation industry by returning creative control to the animators. The cartoons introduced by the show ranged from the quaint to the grotesque, from the traditional to the bizarre. Many were popular enough to become full-fledged series -- these characters, referred to as the "Cartoon-Cartoons", would serve as the network's programming backbone for years to come. First, the one-off shorts that never got picked up by the network. (NOTE: Only some of these videos have made their way online. To save space, I've excluded all the episodes I couldn't track down. If you want to look for yourself, there's a full episode list here. If you manage to find any more, feel free to post 'em here!)

"Help?" - Bruno Bozzetto A cat that pricks his finger while sewing asks for help at the hospital, but the ruthless personnel there offer nothing but pain. "Boid 'n' Woim" - C. Miles Thompson A gangly worm hitchhikes through the California desert with a Bird that secretly wants to eat him. "Kitchen Casanova" - John McIntyre A first-time cook is preparing dinner for his date, but trouble arises when the wind flips the pages from his cookbook. "Rat in a Hot Tin Can" - Jerry Reynolds, Russ Harris A rat and his fly companion try to find a place to stay for the night during winter in the city. "Tales of Worm Paranoia" - Eddie Fitzgerald Johnny is a peaceful and forgiving worm until a human steps on him repeatedly. As a result, he becomes paranoid and angered at the human race, seeking revenge. "Hillbilly Blue" - Butch Hartman Crawdad Eustace is tired of being treated like food and goes with possum pal Mordechai on a cross-country trip to New Orleans to be "served" in royal fashion. "Gramps" - Butch Hartman Gramps tells his grandchildren about his battle against alien invaders, getting corrected by the children repeatedly. "Larry and Steve" - Seth MacFarlane Steve, a homeless dog, is adopted by dimwitted Larry (the only man that can understand what he's saying), and experiences disaster when Larry takes him shopping. A prototype of MacFarlane's later hit show, Family Guy. "Drip Dry Drips" - Jon McClenahan Brothers Louie and Elmo start a laundry business, expecting to earn some cash. They get a request from the president, but accidentally destroy his suit. "No Tip" - Robert Alvarez A delivery boy must deliver a pizza to Antarctica safe and sound and before time runs out, or he won't get a tip. "Awfully Lucky - Robert Alvarez A valuable yet cursed pearl brings both great luck and disaster to its hapless owner. "Buy One, Get One Free" - Charlie Bean A neurotic cat is afraid when a newcomer trashes his abusive owner's apartment. "School Daze" - Robert Alvarez A Wild West outlaw needs to finish the fourth grade, and deal with his obnoxious class rival Little Timmy. "Lost Control" - Zac Moncrief Two zoo animals lose their prized remote control and must travel to the waterworks to retrieve it. "A Clean Getaway" - Meinert Hansen Captain Buzz Cheeply and his robot sidekick Sly must escape a planet whose inhabitants have abnormally sized foreheads but tiny brains, while also finding a place to do their laundry. "Raw Deal in Rome" - Eugene Mattos A superpowered flea named Flick has a strange vendetta against a local performer, a dog named Shake, in an anachronistic Roman setting. "Mr. Monkeyman" - Van Partible Jealous King Raymond stains Jungle Boy's heroic reputation by impersonating him and causing mayhem. "Hard Luck Duck" - William Hanna Hard Luck Duck, after venturing away from Crocodile Harley's watch, is a hungry fox chef's next target. "Bow-wow Buccaneers" - Mike Milo Bloo and his fellow dogs sneak out of their owner's houses at midnight to set on a pirate adventure in the city. "Ignoramooses" - Mike Milo Two moose believe they're going to be adopted by a rich hunter, and wreak havoc in his mansion.

Next up, the more popular shorts -- ones that made it to two or three episodes, but didn't quite make the cut.

Pfish and Chip - Butch Hartman
"Short Pfuse" (clip) - Pfish and Chip (a carefree shark and a short-tempered lynx) attempt to stop their foe, the Mad Bomber. The only problem is that the chief needs to take his nap and demands quiet. "Blammo the Clown" (clip 1, 2) - The bomb squad face an evil clown, with several gag traps. They also find themselves taking care of the chief's teddy bear while he's at the circus with his mother.

Malcolm and Melvin - Ralph Bakshi
"Malcolm and Melvin" - Melvin is an alienated looser, until he meets Malcolm, a trumpetist cockroach. "Babe, He Calls Me" - Melvin's saga continues, as his partnership with Malcolm is compromised by an urban superhero's intrusion. Meanwhile, Melvin's mother aids a criminal after being unable to meet with her son.

Mina and the Count (5 episodes) - Rob Renzetti

Yuckie Duck - Patrick A. Ventura
"Short Orders" (works, slow) - Yuckie Duck works as a cook and waiter in a dirty restaurant, and delivers unappealing orders to the demanding customers. "I'm On My Way" (unavailable) - Yuckie Duck works as a paramedic, but does more harm than good to his patients.

George and Junior - Patrick A. Ventura (based on the 1940s short "Henpecked Hoboes", in turn based on Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men characters)
"Look Out Below" - A bird crashes a light bulb so it doesn't disturb his sleep and sits in the empty socket. Geroge and Junior, the building's janitors/engineers, are sent to fix it. "George and Junior's Christmas Spectacular" - George and Junior are forced to deliver Santa's presents to the kids, as they fail to deliver one of Santa's letters.

Finally, the shorts that became pilots for successful series.

Dexter's Laboratory - Genndy Tartakovsky
"Changes" - Dee-Dee and Dexter battle turning each other into animals, using Dexter's latest invention. "The Big Sister" (unavailable) - Dexter prevents giant Dee-Dee from attacking the city. "Old Man Dexter" - Dexter uses a machine to age himself and be able to watch a late-night movie, but ends up aging far too much. "Dimwit Dexter" - Dexter's brain shuts down after exhaustive activity, and he becomes the neighborhood's laughing stock.

Cow and Chicken - David Feiss
"No Smoking" - Chicken is saved from damnation of smoking by Super Cow, who is his sister, Cow.

Johnny Bravo - Van Partible
"Johnny Bravo" - Johnny Bravo tries to score with a zookeeper girl by capturing a runaway gorilla. "Johnny Bravo and the Amazon Women" - Johnny Bravo is left stranded in an island filled with beautiful tall women, and their bodyguard elephant.

The Powerpuff Girls - Craig McCracken
"Meat Fuzzy Lumkins" - The Powerpuff Girls fight to stop Fuzzy Lumkins' plot to turn everything into meat. "Crime 101" (unavailable) - The girls aid bumbling Amoeba Boys in becoming able criminals.

Courage the Cowardly Dog - John R. Dilworth
"The Chicken From Outer Space" - A fearful dog tries to stop an alien chicken's plans to invade Earth while in his owners' farm. Oscar-nominated.

PART 6: SPECIAL MUSICAL BONUS!! Most, if not all, of the music used in Cartoon Networks various bumps and interstitials -- including much of the music in the Groovies shorts -- can be found on Bluetube.com, the homepage of Michael Kohler, the chief composer of most of these projects. So if you heard some music you liked while browsing these videos, chances are its on his site, free to listen to and without any distracting sound effects. Just click on "WORK" from the main page and scroll through the list of pieces. PART 7: Random Miscellany Two Yogi Bear shorts, "Boo Boo Runs Wild" and "A Day in the Life of Ranger Smith" (unavailable), directed by , creator of Ren & Stimpy. Not connected to any of the above projects, but just as strange. "All-Star Cast" promo Rap promo Cartoon-Cartoon Fridays intro A smorgasbord of classic promos and bumps (Surreal) intro to "Mr. Spim's Cartoon Theater", a weekly special that broadcast obscure animated films Updated versions of same "Acme Hour" bumps: takeoffs on classic Warner Bros. themes that don't really fit anywhere else.
Invisible Paint - Earthquake Pills - Glass Cutter - The Weight - others

Visual jazz.

progosk — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 06:32:25 -0800

(Follow-upFilter) It's rare that jazz videos venture beyond filming live performances. This makes the exceptions all the more notable. Animation seems the medium of choice: from George Griffin's 1988 paper collage for Charlie Parker's "Ko Ko" to Len Lye's swinging The Lambeth Walk (1939), or (stretching musical definitions just a bit) his 1958 masterpiece "Free Radicals". More recent jazz seems to fit just as well: witness Lung's psychotic piece for Ladyscraper's "Thou Art Fucking Dead". Unofficial jazz videomakers have also picked up on the animation vibe, setting John Zorn's "Caligula" to Robert Breer's 1957 piece "A Man And His Dog Out For Air", creating a fan-film-direct for Pierre Henry's futuristic "Psyche Rock", or even just re-editing Disney's "Elephants on Parade" to Sun Ra's version of the tune. But there are non-animated jazz videos, too: take the Lounge Lizards' "Big Heart", self-directed by John Lurie; or Henry Hills' "Naked City" for John Zorn's "Batman"; Meredith Monk's "Churchyard Entertainment", or even, on a lighter note, Dizzy Gillespie in "A Date with Dizzy" (1956). If these are too short for your visual jazz appetite, you could try long-form works such as Manfred Kirchheimer's beautifully meditative 1979 film "Stations Of The Ele vated with its (counter-)punctuations of Mingus, John Coney's 1972 sci-fi documentary on Sun Ra "Space Is The Place", or Humbert & Penzel's Fred Frith fresco "Step Across The Border" (previously).

The Ramones like you've never seen them before.

Afroblanco — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 21:36:34 -0800

People have made some awesome animated videos for Ramones songs, and have uploaded them to Youtube for our viewing pleasure. I Don't Wanna Go To The Basement is probably my favorite. Commando comes in close second. Ramones as legos playing Spiderman wins on sheer novelty. The papercut animation in this video for Blitzkreig Bop is definitely worth a look. Finally, this snippet of the claymation Ramones playing Judy is a Punk is awesome, if painfully short. See the rest here.

Phonographantasmascope

nthdegx — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 00:38:57 -0800

Record player + video camera = Phonographantasmascope, animator Jim LeFevre's extension of the zoetrope. "It is all live action and works by using the shutter speed of the camera rather than the rather irritating stroboscope methods other 3D Zoetropes use."

The very angry caterpillar

nthdegx — Thu, 15 May 2008 08:24:13 -0800

The very angry caterpillar is a film made by the previously discussed Lichtfaktor for UK children's television programme Blue Peter. It stitches together light paintings using stop-motion (frame-by-frame) techniques.

MUTO

Blazecock Pileon — Tue, 13 May 2008 09:28:05 -0800

MUTO - Seven minutes of wall-painted animated joy by blu (previously)