Dance Macabre

This is the first animated film I ever made without assistance. It was originally just a project for my beginner's 3-d cgi animation class. This film won the "Best Animated Student Film" award in the Vision Film Festival for 2005.

This film was very experimental for me at the time. I had just learned my pencil-cel animation techniques and I was beginning to understand the basics regarding cgi. I was also just learning the program and had to kind of "roll with it" to make certain things work. A little overambitious of me, perhaps. A lot of the effects in this film I had to learn off-the-cuff, and they didn't always turn out how I liked. Looking back on it now, I cannot help but wince at a few parts, because they didn't turn out exactly how I wanted them to, and I know that I can do so much better now. Still, it's an important early work for me, and I like to think that the flaws that are so obvious to me might be overlooked by a casual audience...

The 3d parts of the movie were animated in Cinema 3d, and all of the models were constructed and textured by myself within that program, the only exception being the very best models; the skeletons, which were provided to me by a classmate, whose name I cannot recall (it has been so long), generously offered me the skeleton model he was using for his own project. The model was incomplete however; I still had to "bone" it (ha ha).

The rest of the movie was hand-drawn and animated via paper cel method. I wanted to see how well I could blend 3d cgi and paper-cel methods... however, to be honest, I was (and still am) more comfortable with the paper-cel method, and used it for certain parts that I had trouble animating in 3d.

The music is, of course, "Danse Macabre" by Camille Saint-Saens, one of my favorites. The movie did win an award, but it didn't win any money, and I made absolutely no profit from it's make.

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• Necromancy
• Student
• Film
• Experimental
• Beginner
• Classical
• Camille
• Danse
• Macabre
• Dance

[cheerfulladybug]

Zomg, awesome! Our orchestra teacher showed us this video in class to intro this song to us. We're playing and loving it! Good job!

[spookyelectric01]

@cheerfulladybug

Oh wow, really? That's awesome! I'm really flattered!

I'm curious, where is your school located? I'd like to compare it with where I live.

This is a great song, one of Camille's best by far in my opinion. I'm glad you guys are enjoying playing it!

[princeelphin]

Grandiose.

Extremely impressive video, both gloomy and beautiful, which fits this musical masterpiece. If I may ask Is the threatening elf-like boy Death himself ?

In any case, congratulations

[spookyelectric01]

@princeelphin I'm glad you like this video! It was a lot of work, for sure!

The purpose of the elf-like summoner is purposefully open to interpretation. I can definitely see him as Death; the image would work really well on several levels.

Thank you so much for the kind comments!

[yoyououototo22]

@cheerfulladybug My orchestra teacher played this at Halloweenish time :P Im ten and I play violin and I hope to be able to play this someday! Really super great song + animations!

[hotqueekboi]

Someone has been reading too much Lovecraft.... :P

[crazybellanz]

Video's really good! Well done :)

[TheSixelar7]

@razberryrain56

Actually he wrote for a poem of the same name about an old french legend in which skeletons arise from their grave at midnight and dance!

[BuddyFantastic]

A bit in there reminds me of a scene in an old horror novel called The Spear. In which the main character is being pursued by the skeletal remains of a high ranking Nazi SS chief in a dark hallway.

[kittycat98meow]

ah. i love this song. so beautiful. great job with the video btw

[Partyrockinx3]

we played this at mah school it was wicked awesome i love this song so much <3 oh btw i go i mean i used to go to hubble middle school just gratuated teehee

[razberryrain56]

@lasaboteuse Ya he did,look it up.ive been learning about him since 1st grade,i may be wrong,but thats just what i was taught

[lasaboteuse]

@razberryrain56 It's Camille Saint-Saëns, and no he didn't.