About The Well
The Well is an animated short film that tells the story of Cal, a troubled young man. Following a tragic accident, Cal flees from his home in a moment of weakness. While running through the forest barefoot and alone, Cal carelessly falls into an abandoned well, sustaining numerous nearly life-threatening injuries.
After awakening at the bottom of the well, Cal, our protagonist, must battle against both his injuries and the elements and climb his way to safety as a torrential rainstorm begins to fill the well. The Well – Capstone Cut will depict a 3-minute portion of the full 12-minute script. This project will use traditional digital 2-D animation, compositing animation, and rotoscoping techniques. The minimal dialogue will allow a greater focus on aesthetic, visual storytelling through environmental changes, facial expressions, and sound design. The visuals of the piece are influenced by both modern western and eastern aesthetics, incorporating a more painterly approach to background and scenery design. The composition of the sound design will be influenced by the design principle of “design by subtraction”. I will implement this principle in the designed soundscape of The Well by juxtaposing the quiet of the well with the wider world beyond it. As such, the sound design will be used to craft intimacy between the viewer and Cal as he struggles with his current predicament.
The animated story of The Well is part of a series of works of the same name, including a concept album, an experimental short film, and an artist book. This animated story is an allegorical depiction of my personal battles with mental illness, “rock bottom” and the agony that comes with both. When I was 18, I found myself in a mental health crisis while struggling to maintain my physical health. During that time in my life was the last time I almost attempted suicide. The resulting paradigm shift I experienced is what would inspire the metaphor and the story that would later become The Well. As such, The Well itself is a physical representation of those ideas and tells a story that parallels my descent to the point of no return and the climb that followed.
I believe the value of this story comes from that it presents heavily emotional and psychological ideas in a way that puts the audience into the position of a bystander to a tangible representation of mental illness. The pervasive struggles of mental illness are ones that people from all over the world have experienced. This animated film aims to do two things. It aims to give voice to that indescribable feeling of turmoil and to connect with those who have experienced such strife and grant them validation, motivation and comfort. It also aims to engage with and evoke empathy from viewers who may be unfamiliar with the struggles of mental illness. Through evoking empathy, I hope that any unafflicted viewers will find the compassion to better support and understand anyone they know who is familiar with daily struggle of mental illness.
After awakening at the bottom of the well, Cal, our protagonist, must battle against both his injuries and the elements and climb his way to safety as a torrential rainstorm begins to fill the well. The Well – Capstone Cut will depict a 3-minute portion of the full 12-minute script. This project will use traditional digital 2-D animation, compositing animation, and rotoscoping techniques. The minimal dialogue will allow a greater focus on aesthetic, visual storytelling through environmental changes, facial expressions, and sound design. The visuals of the piece are influenced by both modern western and eastern aesthetics, incorporating a more painterly approach to background and scenery design. The composition of the sound design will be influenced by the design principle of “design by subtraction”. I will implement this principle in the designed soundscape of The Well by juxtaposing the quiet of the well with the wider world beyond it. As such, the sound design will be used to craft intimacy between the viewer and Cal as he struggles with his current predicament.
The animated story of The Well is part of a series of works of the same name, including a concept album, an experimental short film, and an artist book. This animated story is an allegorical depiction of my personal battles with mental illness, “rock bottom” and the agony that comes with both. When I was 18, I found myself in a mental health crisis while struggling to maintain my physical health. During that time in my life was the last time I almost attempted suicide. The resulting paradigm shift I experienced is what would inspire the metaphor and the story that would later become The Well. As such, The Well itself is a physical representation of those ideas and tells a story that parallels my descent to the point of no return and the climb that followed.
I believe the value of this story comes from that it presents heavily emotional and psychological ideas in a way that puts the audience into the position of a bystander to a tangible representation of mental illness. The pervasive struggles of mental illness are ones that people from all over the world have experienced. This animated film aims to do two things. It aims to give voice to that indescribable feeling of turmoil and to connect with those who have experienced such strife and grant them validation, motivation and comfort. It also aims to engage with and evoke empathy from viewers who may be unfamiliar with the struggles of mental illness. Through evoking empathy, I hope that any unafflicted viewers will find the compassion to better support and understand anyone they know who is familiar with daily struggle of mental illness.
Production Overview of The Well - Capstone Cut
Pre-production for The Well - Capstone cut began very loosely in January of 2022, finally entering into full-swing in February of the same year. Pre-production consisted heavily of layouts, backgrounds, storyboard, animatic, concept art and script revisions in order to get the piece to work within the time constraints of the capstone criteria. Pre-production would last until April, at which point animation began.
Animation for The Well - Capstone Cut began on April 1st, 2022 and ran until the beginning of May. Over the course of the month I spent approximate 170 hours animating and was essentially doing so full-time on top of all my regular coursework and freelance work. For animating I primarily utilized digital 2-D animation, occasionally implementing rotoscoping and compositing animation as well.
The Well - Capstone Cut wrapped production on May 16th, 2022 and is being exhibited at UMBC's Center for Arts, Design and Visual Culture until June 17th. As of May 30th, I have also begun pre-production on the rest of the film with the goal of submitting the complete 12-15 minute piece to film festivals upon its completion.
The Well - Capstone Cut wrapped production on May 16th, 2022 and is being exhibited at UMBC's Center for Arts, Design and Visual Culture until June 17th. As of May 30th, I have also begun pre-production on the rest of the film with the goal of submitting the complete 12-15 minute piece to film festivals upon its completion.