Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Writer's Thoughts: When Men Cry

I wrote before about my desire to encourage more women to get into the arena of animated film. I cannot state that enough. Stories are going untold. Perspectives are going 'un-perspected.'

When the idea of Peppermint Village came to me, I knew it was in line with my passion of oneness, cultures appreciating each other. Also, about how women feel and react to the world around them. In writing, we add our emotions and 'wishes' to our lines of thought. For example, how often do men show emotion? In my previous film clip, Kendall Blair is caught up with emotion. His moment of toughness gives way to the 'reality' of his losing someone he cares about.

How would this scene have been written from a guy's perspective? Perhaps, Kendall Blair would have stormed into Dino Vintalli's office and punched him in the face. Surely, Kendall wanted to do that. But I've seen times when a strong man broke down. It happens, but usually behind closed doors. Notice that Kendall is behind closed doors, and thinks no one is watching....But we see him. We learn that men can be tender-hearted, and that does not make them wimps. I've seen my father's tears and I can't explain why that was such a moving thing....God cried for us....

Sunday, March 21, 2010

Film Clip

In this scene, Donovan is a bit shook up from his near miss by a speeding car. Parker Vintalli is trying to convince him to cut ties with Kendall Blair. Also, Dino Vintalli flexes his gangster-like muscle at a popular music store. Meanwhile, Selena Mercedes struggles to be 'perfect.'

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Battle Dancin'

In this scene Kendall Blair stops by Maybelle's Jazz On Cue barbecue eatery to try to work of some stress. Maybelle challenges him to try to dethrone her from her self-proclaimed "Dancin' Queen" status.

Thursday, March 4, 2010

Writer's Thoughts: Tough Subjects

One of the things I knew from the start of the project was that I would not avoid the deep or tough subjects. But that they would always be handled with tact and taste. In this story, To Chase The Heart, the character Selena is dealing with the pressures of trying to look a certain way, buying into the belief that pencil-thin is beautiful.

As a writer, you look around at the world and certain things prick your heart, even if it's not something that you yourself have dealt with. That's the beauty of being in tune to what is moving you at the moment. Art becomes your platform, at times, to address things that are important to not only yourself, but hopefully others too-Writers Thoughts.

Monday, March 1, 2010

Writer's Thoughts: Character Relationships

What I love about doing a village story is the opportunity to take the snipets of conversations between people in relationships and put them in animation.

One of my favorite relationship stories in To Chase The Heart is that between Kendall Blair and Maybelle Wright. In Maybelle's eyes, she's quite fond of Kendall and often speaks to him like her son, Bobby...Kendall comes by to fill in for Bobby, who helps Maybelle run the Jazz On Cue.

Maybelle, being 'wise' is often guided into 'today's way of thinking' by the progressive Kendall Blair, proving that both young and old can learn from each other. Maybelle plays a vital role as a main character. So often, the aged are rarely placed in important roles.

Which is why I want to encourage new voices to enter animation, especially women. New voices mean new characters and stories that rarely get told. More on character relationships-Writer's Thoughts