This scholar animation captures the agony of a sleepless night time
“The idea came from a crowded city in southern China,” says the animator Yuanqing Cai. "And TThe story is very simple. One night a man wants to sleep, but his roommates keep making noise. All. The. Time."
The animation, titled Coffin, was created by Cai Nathan Crabot, Houzhi Huang, Mikolaj Janiw, Mandimby Lebon and Théo Tran Ngoc make up the graduation film of the group from the Paris animation school Gobelins. "In the beginning it was just the three of us, Mikolaj, Nathan and me. In the beginning, we had the idea of not deliberately pursuing a big story or big philosophical thing because we only had a few minutes, ”explains Cai. "It wasn't realistic and we couldn't really shock everyone with an epic story. So we preferred to focus on the abstract emotions of the characters."
With the simple plot centered on a man trying to sleep in a crowded room, it was easy for Cai and the team to imagine all kinds of noises that would keep the protagonist awake. The key was to amplify these noises and visually show how annoying the seemingly harmless hustle and bustle was.
“The noise from the television and the toilet or just the general noise in the apartment are a disaster for this man! For him, the soccer player on TV seems to be playing in his room, when the toilet is flushed the sound is like a tsunami, ”says Cai. “After a whole night of torture, the only way to find peace seems to be to have the protagonist die in his sleep. He finally falls asleep and another agonizing day begins to repeat itself. "
Cai was responsible for the background design, storyboard and color script. Huang did some of the animation and background design. Janiw was responsible for the 3D modeling and layout, as well as post-processing and technical issues. Lebon, Crabot, and Ngoc all worked on the animation. "It was both painful and happy," says Cai of the work process. "When we worked together, we argued every day, but the film went quite smoothly in the later stages and it was still very fulfilling to watch the finished film."
The animator is honest about the difficulty of making a movie with a team of people, especially the fact that you have to listen to everyone's opinion and usually everyone can express something. "Sometimes it turns out that we're all right when we present our respective points of view, just in different directions," reflects Cai. "And it is often very difficult to give up your own point of view and directly accept someone else's point of view. Therefore, arguments often arose. In fact, the greatest challenge was the slow progress caused by disputes."
Despite the tension, the team is happy with how the film captures the feeling of being trapped in your own house and how big the impact small noises can have when you live in a tight space. As a viewer, bringing the lockdown experience in particular, it feels exceptionally dependable and the dark aesthetics and clever sound design only add to the claustrophobia that caused it.
“What I value more than anything else is the storytelling style,” says Cai. “Like Masaaki Yuasa, who is my greatest influence, we try to tell stories with detailed animation. I want to keep showing the difference between animation and live action and hope to keep looking for ways to make my own short films. "
Although the graduates are now working on separate projects, Cai hopes they will get back together. "I'm sure we would still work together if the opportunity presents itself," he says. "They are all such great animators."
gobelins-school.com; @ Yuanqing