Eric Anderson

Eric Anderson is the brother of Wes Anderson. Until recently I didn't realise that it was Eric who created a lot of the illustrations that feature in Wes's films.
Eric's work is featured most in the film, The Royal Tenenbaums. He helped visualise the set, and when i was watching the extras on the dvd, I learned that he has illustrated a lot of the wallpaper that was put up in the various rooms in the house! He also illustrated the portraits of Margot Tenenbaum that were created by 'Richie Tenenbaum' in the film.

You can see the wallpaper in this frame:


I am so impressed at the amount of detail in the films. They have gotten me thinking about my film. I really think that little details like this really adds to the character of the film, making it more believable and easier to slip into just accepting it. I think they also help to say a lot about the character, and whilst they may be slight exaggerations, it is after all a film!
Whilst I don't have the money or the time to be doing up my sets, it doesn't mean that I can ignore them. I intend to create pieces to hang on the walls of my characters room, and really take into account what little i can do that will add to the overall feel of the story.

Lightness.

The most important discovery during my research has been that during REM sleep, brain activity (when monitored) seems to mimic that which would have been expected during waking life activity, in comparison, non-REM sleep does not. Perhaps expectedly, it is during REM sleep where most dreaming occurs and during NREM sleep, dreaming is rare. It seems strange therefore, that sleepwalking happens during Non REM sleep, rather than the obvious conclusion that sleepwalkers are 'acting out their dreams'.

I want to work with the idea that sleepwalking is motion, or could be 'living' without thought or decision. When thinking about this idea it seemed to become easily intertwined with some existential theory, the idea of 'nothingness' 'lightness' and the 'juxtaposition of life & death'.
Sleepwalking in this respect would seem to perfectly counterbalance any existential crisis, and unbearable consciousness of your existence and surroundings. Where it is easier to not make decisions that you will be responsible for, you can achieve 'lightness' through your insignificance.

Interruptions

I have decided that I want to break my film up into sections, like chapters of a manual. Other films which have done this, (often those following diaries) include Rushmore, where the film is often broken up by the school picture book.

In the film "the royal tennenbaums" sections of the film are broken up into chapters, interrupted by the 'pages from the story'


This idea follows on from the titles:


Another technique that has been used in this film to break up the flow, includes the visualisation of what is being talked about at the time:




This is another way to quicken the plot. Offering visuals to the explanations also helps you to empathise with the characters. It also offers some back story.

Looking for more inspiration. I think I want to focus more on the narrative to drive the film rather than experimentation. Whilst I think that feature is important, I have never used narrative in such a traditional sense, so I would like to give this ago. With the experimental title, I want to use this mainly in the production, the way the film is structured and the way things move.
I found a film here That follows a basic narrative, but uses nice features at the begining. I like the way things are spotlighted to create the atmosphere and also fragment the body and what we have to look at.

Sleep info..dreams

Waking Life

Waking Life excerpt. Lucid dreams are weird, I trained myself to do it for a project a few years ago and managed once, but the dreams seemed to get drker and darker to draw me back from consciousness.

Synapse

I have been doing some research for my film. I have been trying to find films that reach the certain atmosphere and look that I wish to create. This film explores the moment between 'cause and effect' and upon it's release won an award for best student film. Shot on 16mm I think a certain 'look' is guaranteed, but for me I most appreciate the clever editing, the way the film draws you in then cuts you off and the balance between psuedo-science and memories.

In my film I do want to address the 'science of sleep' but I want to create a more human aspect than the vagueness of many experimental films. In 'Synapse' I think this mix is achieved very well and is something I can only aspire to. I think that this is mostly managed by use of unexpected techniques rather than the cliche, and the stepping off the cupboards makes me think of Gondry's 'Eternal Sunshine'. The mix between surrealism and realism can be emphasised through clever editing techniques, of which also adds to the atmosphere created.