In this paper I will be focusing on comparing the difference between falling from a waterfall as demonstrated in two different movies, Pocahontas (1995) , and The Hobbit:The Desolation of Smaug (2013).
Pocahontas (1995)
Very stylized feel.
Usage of silhouette and color to focus on the narrative
Slow and float-y timing.
Utilization of the lot of cushioning and unrealistic hair movement
Time is dragged out for visual appeal and effect in the “colors of the wind” sequence.
Sequence was created in traditional 2D manner, and digitally colored.
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)
Extremely realistic timing.
Water flow is lifelike and timing goes accordingly.
Color is very lifelike and not exaggerated
Accurate tragectories and speed
Sequence is a mixture of minimal footage, but mostly laid-in CG and special effects.
Used the layering method: Footage, Base animation, Characters (3D animated), Atmosphere overlay, More tweaks to the sky, and then overall filter for continuity.
Conclusion
Comparing both sequences together was almost comedic. Its funny to think that they are both showing the same basic idea of the characters falling down a waterfall and yet they are in such different situations. Seeing the way that 2D was used in order to stylize the film in Pocahontas made it feel effortlessly timeless. In stark comparison the realisticness of The Hobbit will ultimately lead to the unraveling of this work, because the 3D CG will eventually look outdated and won’t last. The difference in the timing and usage of this effect suited both movies and what they were looking to accomplish though. Ultimately, they both achieved their desired effect whether it was highly stylized and unrealistic, or hyper-realistic and believable.
In the context of movies, we continually have new and innovative ways for the hero or heroine to save the day. One of those incredible moves that leave us pretty much on the edge of our seats is the ‘impossible’ recovery as our hero falls from incredible heights. But is that really impossible? Yes, yes it is. The amount of speed in which characters stop or have a force acted upon them in a fantastical cartoon world would leave them as splattered mush in the real world. Here are a few examples of how our hero’s valiantly try, but if they were within our real-world constraints, the would pretty much hit the fan.
One of the best examples of distorted fiction when the subject comes to mind is the dam scene in Tangled. Our protagonists are in the midst of danger as they run fervently from not one, not two, but three oppository villains. Not only are the odds stacked against them, but the laws of physics are as well. In a dashing feat of strength and agility, Flynn manages to bend the laws of physics to his will as he skates down a water trough that is hundreds of feet in the air, and as it comes crashing down, uses the falling momentum of the structure to jump off of different pieces and barrel roll into a run.
This one swift movement may look possible and practically effortless, but as is the fact with any law of physics, one cannot propel off of another object falling at the same rate as it. You would need an equal or greater opposing force to be able to gain any extra momentum off of it. Simultaneously, his fall from such a great height could not be justified as just a quick redistribution of weight. The initial impact from the fall, no matter how skillfully executed, would leave both of his shins shattered before he is able to redistribute that weight and turn it into momentum for his barrel roll. Our leg bones are only able to withstand 4000 newtons (899lbs) of force at the femur, and 444 newtons (100lbs) of force at the tibia and fibula. If Flynn were around 200-250lbs, we could surmise that a sizable drop even with the correct weight distribution would result in a broken bone or a fracture in the very least. This movement may be graceful and effortless in the movie, but if it were to be reenacted in our world, we would have very different results. In short, do not try this at home kids.
At the beginning of the movie Stitch, formerly known as experiment 626 at this point, is making his first contact with the human inhabited world: Earth. In his dazed state of confusion, he is not only angry and looking for answers, but is also hit by two eighteen wheeler trucks. Of course, since it is a Disney movie we can’t expect our character to die, be hurt, or have any form of blood showing. In this movie world, he is safe from harm under the guise that he is an extraterrestrial from another planet. However if we were to bend the rules a little bit and expect him to meet our real world expectations, we would inevitably find a few flaws in the logic. If he were able to survive and be functional in the atmosphere and gravity levels of Earth, we could logically imagine that Stitch has a similar and compatible bone structure. In the trolls lecture, we explored the proportional bone width to size phenomenon. Due to Stitch’s unlikely and small stature, we could imagine his bone structure would look more like that of a koala’s.
As you can see, the bone width is relatively small in comparison to the strength and weight of two eighteen wheeler trucks that are going even at a slow speed of 40mph.
For a creature of that size and weight to be run over by something like that, they would not only be obliterated, but they would also enter the realm of becoming a 2d character… otherwise known as a pancake. However, we witness the incredible nature of Stitch as he tumbles and rolls through the two trucks maintaining all sense of recognizable volume. One thing that does make it a little more believable though, is the reaction of absolute astonishment by all of the other characters who hear this story. Even if it isn’t physically possible, it still maintains the viewers belief by this reaction and care they put into the story.
Aside from many instances where the physics in a world have been bent, Lilo and Stitch really does maintain a level of realistic behavior with the laws of physics. It is nice to see this especially when the settings are based off of an easily recognizable place in our world. We can see the connections and instantly assume that the setting will behave and interact like our own. An example of some exemplary realistic-ness is when Nani is hit by Mr. Bubble’s car, she reacts and the weight and timing is incredibly lifelike. She is in mid-run, and the car is going no faster than 5mph maybe, which would only be enough to throw her slightly off balance. In the scene she is hit and almost falls but catches herself as she hops to the left slightly showcasing a good distribution of force and acknowledging that she definitely weighs less than the car. Her reaction is subtle, but also very well thought out on the animator’s part. Although it may not be the flashiest showcase of reality in a movie, this scene has a lot of character and not only shows the determination Nani has for maintaining the family, but her sense of duty and love of family as well.
In conclusion, it is incredibly entertaining to watch the laws of physics be broken, especially when they are accompanied by daring circumstances, beautiful animation, and are completely justified by gorgeous craftsmanship. Even if the movements don’t necessarily work in our world, that doesn’t mean that it takes away from the world of the story. After all, we watch movies in order to escape in a way, so why not break a few rules?
The amount of speed in which characters stop or have a force acted upon them in a fantastical cartoon world would leave them as splattered mush in the real world.
Paragraph 1: Tangled Example
When Flynn and Rapunzel are escaping from Maximus, they fall down a rickety bridge and Flynn simply does a graceful barrel roll and is left completely unharmed.
Paragraph 2: Lilo and Stitch
At the beginning of the movie Stitch is hit by an eighteen wheeler truck, and is pristine even to the surprise of the other movie characters.
Paragraph 3: Where it is actually shown realistically.
Lilo and Stitch when Nani is hit by Mr. Bubble’s car, she reacts and the weight and timing is incredibly lifelike.
In UP when Carl falls down as he is struggling to hold down the house, he has a realistic weight and the forces acted upon him are believable.
Conclusion:
It is incredibly entertaining to watch the laws of physics be broken, and even if they don’t work in our world, that doesn’t mean that it takes away from the world of the story. After all, we watch movies in order to escape in a way, so why not break a few rules.
I had such a blast when I was making this specific stop motion animation. I was inspired years ago by seeing Kina Grannis accomplish this amazing video where it was a stop motion of her over animated jellybeans and wanted to recreate a smaller scale version of the project.
There was a lot of planning involved, first I had to go out and obtain 5 family pack of skittles and sort through them in order to have my color pallette solidified. Then, I went frame by frame and mimicked a ball bounce animation that I found online, and did the best I could to replicate it in the bird.
Overall, I am pretty happy with the product, and would definitely play with this medium again sometime!!
In any realm, there is always a fine line between magic and mystery. In the animated feature film: Kubo and the Two Strings, this remains to be true. As you enter the magnificent and imaginative world that encompasses Kubo, the sense of adventure will lure you into the belief that the physics are completely natural. Even if they are anything but. As you embark upon your journey, you are immediately met with the sense that there is immense history and texture to the world you've been submerged in. We follow the journey of our unlikely protagonist, Kubo, as he struggles to find his place in the world along with himself.
To simply orient ourselves though, let me guide you in the daily routine of our young hero. Kubo, a young boy of 13 wakes up every morning in the cave in which he resides, and walks several miles into town. There he is met with many friendly faces as he makes his way through the crowds. Then, in the very center of the village, he begins spinning magical tales of valiant warriors and moon kings using his string instrument (a shamisen), and pieces of paper that fly up from the ground as they weave themselves into the living embodiment of his words. Now, this is our first glimpse of the wondrous magic that is used in the movie and definitely isn't our last.
But that brings about the question, how does this type of magic exist in his world?
There are several plausible theories as to why this phenomenon occurs, however the one that seems the most solidified is if the matter in this universe has some connection with being manipulated by the human mind. The frequencies of the note progressions that Kubo plays in his beloved shamisen could indeed be amplified by the air, causing it to fold the paper into elaborate origami structures. This is a theory called forced vibration, which is basically the increase of the amplitude in a note, creating more distinct and powerful sound waves.
This is not the only time that we witness Kubo use this ability either. He uses his instrument to create a small soldier which later becomes a friend who guides him throughout his adventure.
In another instance, he uses this power to mimics a small bird, and later annoy his companion, Monkey by turning them into mosquitos.
However, with each time he uses this gift, his reliance on the instrument slowly fades. This is what indicated to me that select people in this world have the ability to manipulate their surroundings. For example, when he is mimicking the bird and creates a whole flock to follow it, he stings monkey with a whole swarm of mosquitoes. While he sheepishly admits to sending one after her, he mentions that the entire swarm was merely a thought he had and not a direct order.
This ties into the mystery of his little origami soldier who seems to have a mind and life of his own. My theory is that he is the subconscious thought process of Kubo, who is just expressed in a very visual way without even Kubo understanding what is happening. Throughout their entire journey, this little soldier continually points the way to each place they are meant to go as if he were an inner compass of some sort.
This is just one of the many ways in which the story unwraps to reveal such fantastical abilities. Some things we see throughout the journey we could only dream of acquiring, such as levitation. The sisters float and levitate as they attack, they are never grounded which is physically impossible, but the way that particles in this world work show that there’s a connection between the human mind and the ability to manipulate matter. They could very well be creating increased molecular density in the air, which makes the air surrounding their ethereal bodies would be colder, allowing for the effect of being lifted into the air. This also works in contingency with the film, because as soon as the sisters make an appearance, they are turn everything around them cold, and even in the fight scene on the boat they seem to have some abilities with controlling the weather.
Another way we see increased molecular density at work is when we witness the grandfather moon king practically swim and glide through the air. One of the interesting metaphorical visuals in this movie are the ideas behind flying. I've noticed that in this film, the less grounded the characters are in their sense of self, the lighter they are in this world. The evil sisters not only glide in unison, but they wear a mask in order to hide their imperfections. The same trend goes for the moon King, but simply in a larger scale, because he is literally blinded. The entire motive for the moon King is to take Kubo’s other eye so he won't have to deal with the pains of the world and can be accepted into their family, clarity is one of the most coveted commodities in Kubo's world.
However, Kubo realizes that no matter how much pain life is, it's better to be dragged down by it and to find strength in your community and friends rather than to allow yourself to shrink inward. A literal moment in which he deals with a struggle like that could be easily related to the gravity in his world. He finds moments in which there are great amounts of distress to either flourish, or is saved by a companion.
Instead of using the mind to increase the molecular density in the air, another theory is that the there may just be less of a gravitational pull on their planet. For example, there was a point in the movie where Kubo manipulated the leaves to create a grandiose boat out of autumn leaves. However, in a realistic setting the entire contraption would have crumbled if it weren't for the vibration frequency continually holding it together with Kubo's power, as well as the lessened gravitational pull in their world.
In another instance, Kubo and monkey find themselves falling to an inevitable death, but then out of the blue Beetle rushes to their aid, just discovering his ability to fly. The average gravity in that world must be less because Beetle is able to fly even though he is wearing a full suit of armor and was carrying Kubo and Monkey. Either that, or Beetle is just insanely strong, which in an epic-type movie may actually be the case. Nonetheless my interests were still captivated by not only the beauty of the film, but also the rich amount of imagination that was woven into this film.
Overall, no matter how crazy the magic powers had gotten within the realm of this movie, it continually has a way of tying in and feeling like it is exactly in place. If you haven't had the chance to view this film, I highly recommend it because there is something so rare and unique about the message. It has a feeling of this very fantastical world, and yet it only focuses on a very small sphere of it. Kubo is definitely a movie that has invoked a paradigm shift within me, and remains to be one of my newest favorite movies.
My name is Ivy Jordan, and I am an Animation Major in my fourth year at SJSU. I have always loved drawing, and the art of film and physics, so when I discovered animation as a medium in high school I was hooked. I have been drawing ever since I could hold a pencil, and love learning new things about the medium. I'm going into the story development facet of the major though, because building an entire world and collaborating to make a beautiful message just seems so enticing to me.
Anyways, here are a few pieces of mine that I'd like to share...
This is Martha, a 'society member' walk cycle I animated traditionally for the short film, 'Blue and Beyond'.
Some personal work I created while thinking of Mirage from the incredibles.
Beyonce from her music video movie, Lemonade.
A few hand studies I did in my spare time.
Ururaka from my favorite anime, "Boku No Hero Academia"
My friend's Cat, Frankie.
Sketches of an OC of mine.
Another personal work piece.
A kickflip study I did of someone doing Kung Fu.
Lastly, a basic breakdancing move.
I hope you enjoyed my portfolio, have a wonderful day!
