The Art Of Animation: How Animation Is Creating A Better Film Industry, Judah Cooper

Senior Honors Theses

With the progression of streaming services in recent years, the art form of animation has gained traction, continuing to develop into exceedingly creative forms through the work of talented artists. Animation has developed alongside the film industry, achieving great success in the process. This thesis will define animation and its place within visual effects, critically analyze categories of character design, theme, and story while demonstrating their relationship with animation, and contrast animation with live action films to understand its strengths and differentiations. The research concludes that animation has great benefits to offer the film industry and should be continued to …

Nightmares And Hand Grenades: Dreams As A Storytelling Tool, Olivia Felber

All Theses

Dreams and nightmares feature prominently in art, story, and religious practice and tradition throughout history. In this paper I will discuss their prominence throughout these facets in daily life, and the various ways that we, as humans, have tried to elucidate meaning from them. I will study the nature and definition of dreams and nightmares through a scientific, cultural, and historical approach. I will also discuss folklore and the interpretation of nightmarish imagery in the context of an otherworldly adventure through a nightmare. These topics and themes will be shown, explained, and discussed through the methodology of my project- a …

菠蘿包(Pineapple Bun): Exploring Memory And Language Through Animation, Elaine Yang

Scripps Senior Theses

菠蘿包(Pineapple Bun) explores the themes of reconstruction, evocation, and memory through my childhood in Taiwan. Inspired by other Asian American animators, I aim to tell a simple story of connection through my grandfather and I's daily swimming ritual. The film is a 3-minute animated short film following our language barrier and how we engage with each other's differing backgrounds.

Culture In Disney Films: A Comparative Analysis Of Color, Composition And Rhythm, Megan Paul

Interior Design Undergraduate Honors Theses

As a student of design, I take inspiration from everything around me. The media I consume, the places I visit, and the people I meet.By choice or not, I and my generation are subject to the various forms of pop culture, film is one of them. Film is one of few art forms which combines several methods and elements of design to produce a cohesive result, as opposed to a singular medium. This forms the connection to design thinking and is the foundation for the study.

Another critical component to pop culture is the ability to reach the masses. Due …

Afrofuturism In Animation: Self Identity Of African Americans In Cinematic Storytelling, Dana Barnes

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-

My work addresses the importance of self-identity within the Black culture of the United States of America through the depiction of an African American boy who must look into himself to overcome a difficult bullying situation. Animation as a medium is an ideal tool for interrogating the Western perspective of identity through cinematic storytelling. Using established animation methods, I created a visual narrative to portray the impact self-identity has on an individual's actions in certain social conditions. The film expands the medium of animation to subvert the narrative expectations of bullying and presents the idea of identity as a nonconforming …

Alexander: A Dive Into Identity, Inspiration, And Release Of The Creative Self, Alyssa Garoogian

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-

Alexander is a story of overcoming the fear of personal artistic expression. Alexander is the son of an affluent family who was found to have musical talent at a young age. Alex grows to enjoy music, but rote exercises alone begin to disillusion the promising musician. Regardless, Alexander dutifully practices piano exercises daily, bored by the lack of creative stimulation but afraid to openly admit it. After an accidental music note sparks his imagination, Alexander escapes into fantasy: a colorful visualization of the original music he creates. Within this fantasy, a warm, supportive community leads Alexander to his most significant …

Seeds Of Doubt, Amber Hilson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-

Seeds of Doubt is a two-dimensional (2D) animated film that explores how anxiety can stifle personal growth. The film demonstrates how accepting and coping with this anxiety can help you return to a place of calm and allow you to blossom. Roma, a young witch, struggles to use her magic to successfully make her crops grow. Her lack of confidence leaves her stuck inside the greenhouse until she is ready to move on to the tomato fields outside. She must first re-center herself and overcome her self-doubt before it consumes her completely. This idea is sourced largely from my own …

Ouroboros: The Evolution From Industrialized Mass Production To Auteurism In American Animation, Heather Knott

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-

The evolution of animation in the United States and its resulting classification varies significantly from its global counterparts. Through a convergence of complex cultural, regulatory, and entrepreneurial influences, the medium's experimental artistic principals have remained firmly rooted in the mass-production style studio pipeline codified by Hollywood. Through the advent of academically centered animation education, the development of the internet, self-distribution, and the growing affordability of industry level hardware and software, the industry has expanded beyond the traditional narrow scope. This re-globalization of entertainment in the United States encourages an auteur approach to animated filmmaking that is challenging the strict association …

Mdocs Poster-Fall 2018, Course Offerings, Jesse Wakeman

MDOCS Publications

Fall 2018 Course Offerings:

Documentary Fundamentals:

• Documentary Storytelling
• Intro to Audio Documentary
• Documentary and Narrative Screenwriting

• Storytelling: Video
• Storytelling: Game Development
• Storytelling: Mapping

• The Artist Interview
• Festival Curation

Mdocs Poster-2018-04-02, Palestinian Voices: Lyd In Exile, Jesse Wakeman

MDOCS Publications

April 2, 6pm

Free and open to the public

Location: Somers Room

The Palestinian Voices series is organized and co-sponsored by the John B. Moore Documentary Studies Collaborative (MDOCS), the Environmental Studies and Sciences Program, International Affairs, Media and Film Studies, Art History, History, Hayat, and the Skidmore College Dean’s Office

Join us for a talk by Rami Younis and Sarah Friedland, and a screening of their work-in-progress documentary Lyd In Exile. Younis and Friedland have spent over three years researching and filming Lyd In Exile, and are in post-production. They will screen clips from their film and …

Mdocs Poster-Spring 2018, Course List, Jesse Wakeman, Jordana Dym

MDOCS Publications

Spring 2018 Classes Documentary Studies

Production Fundamentals

• DS 116A - Storytelling: Map Design and Spatial Visualization (1 cr)
• DS 116B - 360 Degree Audio Video and Photogrammetry (2 cr) -- NEW!!

Documentary Studies

• DS 201 - Principles of Documentary (3 cr)
• DS 251D - Documentary Film Production: Form and Content (4 cr)
• DS 251C - Documenting Makers:Writing and Filming Artist Profiles (3 cr)
• DS 251C - Participatory Documentary, Socially Engaged Art and Community Media (3 cr) -- NEW!!
• DS 302D - From Story to Screen: Crew-Based Film Doc and Narrative Production (4 cr)
• DS 351B - Documentary Practice in Photography …

Mdocs Poster-2018-04-01, Zines Workshop, Jesse Wakeman

MDOCS Publications

April 4, 12pm

Location:BerhardAtrium

Free and open to the public

On Wednesday, April 4, from 12:00 – 5:00 pm, join Evelyn Wang '19, Museum Store Associate, and Sean Fuller, Store and Publications Manager, for a zine making workshop focusing on the history of zines. Participants will learn two zine making methods: a simple one-page zine and a fold and staple pamphlet style. All materials will be provided.

This event is part of a series of drop-in zine making workshops occurring every Wednesday in April from 12:00 – 5:00 pm. The workshops will be held in the exhibition to be with …

Mdocs Poster-2018-03-27, Jason Houston, Jesse Wakeman

MDOCS Publications

Tuesday, March 27, 2018 5:30 PM - 7:30 PM (ET) Palamountain Hall Davis Auditorium

"Exploring how we live on the planet”

Photographer Jason Houston has spent over 20 years photographing community, culture, and how we live on the planet for editorial and NGO clients and personal projects. His engaged, long-term approach to complex issues captures informed, authentic narratives that help educate the public and guide social and environmental change. Recent projects include a global survey of conservation enterprises and a campaign for the protection of 10 million hectares in the Amazon for indigenous people in isolation and initial contact. He …

Mdocs Poster-2018-03-22, No Mas Bebes, Jesse Wakeman

MDOCS Publications

No Más Bebés tells the story of a little-known but landmark event in reproductive justice, when a small group of Mexican immigrant women sued county doctors, the state, and the U.S. government after they were sterilized while giving birth at Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center during the late 1960s and early 1970s.

Marginalized and fearful, many of these mothers spoke no English, and charged that they had been coerced into tubal ligation — having their tubes tied — by doctors during the late stages of labor. Often the procedure was performed after asking the mothers under duress.

The mothers’ cause …

Mdocs Poster-2018-03-21, Free To Rock, Jesse Wakeman

MDOCS Publications

Wednesday, March 21, 2018 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM (ET) PALMTN Davis Auditorium

FREE TO ROCK is a documentary film directed by 4-time Emmy winning filmmaker Jim Brown and narrated by Kiefer Sutherland. Rock & Roll spread like an uncontrollable virus across Eastern Europe despite Communist attempts to outlaw it. Thousands of underground bands and millions of young fans who yearned for Western freedoms and embraced this music as the Sound of Freedom, helped fuel the nonviolent implosion of the Soviet regime. Free to Rock features Presidents, diplomats, spies and rock stars from the West and the Soviet Union …

Mdocs Poster-2018-03-02, Oral History For Social Justice With Amy Starecheski, Jesse Wakeman

MDOCS Publications

TALK: Curating Oral History for the 21st Century: Listening Out Loud, Listening with the Eyes and the Body
Thursday, March 1, 3:40 pm – 5:00 pm
Skidmore College, Filene Hall, Room 119

The talk will highlight the dilemmas and the potential of curating oral history for a broad contemporary audience, highlighting Columbia University’s Oral History Master’s Program as an example of an application that bridges archival and public use, media and the textual, audio walking tours as a means to return aural/oral history to place and the body, and a few recent short video and documentary projects by OHMA students, …

Mdocs Poster-2018-02-06, Issam Nassar, Jesse Wakeman, Jordana Dym

MDOCS Publications

February 6, 6pm

Location: Payne Room

Free and open to the public.

In conjunction with the exhibition This Place

Part of the Palestinian Voices series, organized and co-sponsored by the John B. Moore Documentary Studies Collaborative (MDOCS), the Environmental Studies and Sciences Program, International Affairs, Media and Film Studies, Art History, History, Hayat, and the Skidmore College Dean’s Office

Join us for a lecture by Issam Nassar on the history of Palestinian photography. Nassar is a historian of the Modern Middle East and of Photography at Illinois State University. His work focuses on the modern Middle East and the history …

Mdocs Poster-2018-02-05, Voice As Documentary Audibility With Pooja Rangan, Jesse Wakeman

MDOCS Publications

Monday, February 5, 2018 6:00 PM - 7:45 PM (ET) PALMTN Emerson Auditorium In the field of documentary, voice, rather than point of view, is the prevailing metaphor for a filmmaker’s unique perspective, signaling the documentary genre’s textual emphasis on spoken words, as well as its social ethic of “giving voice.” Rangan’s talk will unpack the humanitarian resonances of this metaphor, as elaborated in her book Immediations: The Humanitarian Impulse in Documentary (Duke UP 2017), reframing voice as an audibility: a product of auditory forms and practices such as documentary that discipline unspoken norms of speaking and listening. Her talk …

Mdocs Poster-2018 Spring, Photography Workshop With Eric Jenks, Jesse Wakeman

MDOCS Publications

Friday, February 16th, 2018 @ 2-4pm:

Document your world: Learn how to compose a compelling photograph using your own camera

Friday, April 13th, 2018 @ 2-4:30pm:

Photo Editing: Bring 3-5 pictures for an introduction to editing with Photoshop

Join Skidmore alum and photographer Eric Jenks for a hands-on workshop on taking and editing compelling photos with any camera.

No experience required!

These workshops are for anyone planning to study abroad, travel over spring break, or explore or document closer to home, and those who have photos ready to share.

Mdocs Poster- 2017-12-06, Wspn An Alternative History, Jesse Wakeman, Jordana Dym

MDOCS Publications

No abstract provided.

Mdocs Poster-2017-11-12, Pass The Mic, Op Excellence: Stories In Color, Jesse Wakeman, Jordana Dym

MDOCS Publications

Join Pass the Mic as we dedicate a night to celebrate the excellence and talent of documentary storytellers who are also shining members of the Opportunity Program community. In honor of their powerful work as filmmakers and photographers, there will be a screening of their pieces and a discussion afterwards, led by our very own co-hosts, Cristal and Bri. We hope to see you there!

Featured works of the night:

A Black Womyns’ self-esteem is terrorized before she is even made aware that she has one. "The Miseducation of the Black Womyn", directed by Maryam Dewitt '18, is a three-part …

Mdocs Poster-2017-10-24, Hi-Phi Nation With Barry Lam, Jesse Wakeman, Jordana Dym

MDOCS Publications

Philosophy through Sound and Story: Hi-Phi Nation with Barry Lam

Tue, October 24 @ 7pm, Davis Aud

Hi-Phi Nation is the first sound and story-driven show about philosophy, weaving philosophy with narrative storytelling, investigative journalism, and sound design. The first season was produced out of Duke University on the Humanities Writ-Large Fellowship by Barry Lam, associate professor of Philosophy at Vassar College. Now in its second season, Every Hi-Phi Nation episode begins with a story from everyday life, current events, the law, history, science, or the arts, and pulls the big ideas of philosophy out of the story.

Barry Lam …

Mdocs Publication-2017-10-13, Documentary On Human Trafficking Screened At Bow Tie Cinema, Wendy Liberatore

MDOCS Publications

"Documentary on human trafficking to be screened at Bow Tie Criterion"

The Times Union

October 23, 2017

Author: Wendy Liberatore

Mdocs Publication-2017-10-22, Saratoga Springs Conference, Staff Report

MDOCS Publications

"Saratoga Springs conference, film screening to target sex trafficking"

The Saratogian

October 22, 2017

Author: Staff Report

Mdocs Poster-2017-10-19, The Video Interview Workshop, Jesse Wakeman, Jordana Dym

MDOCS Publications

Master Class: The Video Interview

Thu, October 19, 4-6pm, Lib 113

Learn how to set up a video interview. Work with MDOCS instructor Ron Taylor from Skidmore Media Services to learn everything from a three-point lighting set-up to the basics of running a DSLR camera.

This is a hands-on workshop open to anyone in the Skidmore community.

This hands-on training session is a must-have knowledge base for all students planning on creating media work now and in the future Hosted by Media & Film Studies and MDOCS.

Mdocs Postcard-2017-10-18, Networking Night, Jordana Dym, Jesse Wakeman

MDOCS Publications

No abstract provided.

Mdocs Poster-2017-10-13, Poster Design 101 Workshop, Jesse Wakeman, Jordana Dym

MDOCS Publications

Poster Design 101

Li 113

Friday, October 13, 2017

2:00pm-3:00pm

An intro to Adobe InDesign- Learn how to catch more eyes in Case Walkway!

Mdocs Poster-2017-10-10, Untouchable, Jesse Wakeman, Jordana Dym

MDOCS Publications

"Untouchable" Film Screening with Meerkat Media

Tue, October 10 @ 6:30pm, Emerson Aud

Followed by a panel discussion led by Meerkat Media

ABOUT THE FILM:

When the most powerful lobbyist in Florida discovers that the nanny has sexually abused his daughter, he harnesses his extraordinary political power to pass the toughest sex offender laws in the nation. UNTOUCHABLE chronicles his crusade, and its impact on the lives of several of the 800,000 people forced to live under the kinds of laws he has championed.

Mdocs Poster-2017-10-05, States Of Incarceration Poetry Lab, Jordana Dym, Jesse Wakeman

MDOCS Publications

POETRY LAB with Cara Benson, Sean Dalpiaz, and Johnny Perez Thursday, October 5, 7 p.m., Atrium

Join Cara Benson, a Skidmore graduate who offered poetry classes at Mount McGregor for eight years, for an evening of poetry-making and sharing. Former students Sean Dalpiaz and Johnny Perez join her.

Benson earned an MFA in creative writing from Goddard College and teaches creative writing in the graduate program at Prescott College and is program manager for the Millay Colony for the Arts. She has been a visiting writer for the New York State Writers Institute, Rhode Island School of Design, Evergreen College, …

Mdocs Trifold-Fall 2017, Faculty Resources, Jesse Wakeman, Jordana Dym

MDOCS Publications

No abstract provided.