In these odd times, I've decided to do a small recommendation blog. Each week I'll recommend a short carrollian -esque short film for you to watch online.
This week, the eye popping (or eye destoying) colourful animation Open the Door from 1995.
IMPORTANT NOTE: May be an epilepsy trigger for those with photosensitive epilepsy. Please be careful!
Short can be watched on youtube.
(Image via Animenewsnetwork)
Nonoko is a small child who lives with her mother in a suburban flat. One night she encounters a colourfully dressed child outside her bedroom door and decides to follow it into a multi coloured dream realm.
Let it be known that I really do not like psychedelia. Its generally far too drug - ish for my taste. Open the door however removes this element entirely. What we have here is something childish and carrollian. And also using psychedelica as a leaping off point. You might have to brace yourself for how colourful this is.
Some of you will love this, others will hate the assault of sheer colour. Personally its not to my taste, but I can admire what it was trying to do.
Similar to Superflat Monogram (2007) and Superflat First Love (2009) (we'll get to those later, I promise) Door is not concerned with the psychedelic movement and the 1960s or subcultures. Its too interested in Lewis Carroll's victorian surrealist whimsy for that.
And whimsical it is, from the strange green glowing look of the odd child Nonoko follows, to the "what is that?" look of multiple Cheshire cat style faces.
There is not much of a story. Something about Nonoko returning colour to the dreamworld and trying to get her lost cat back. The story takes a back seat to the visuals and for once this isn't a negative.
The ending is somewhat reminiscent of Through the Looking-Glass: it really was a kitten after all!
The 3D modeling of Nonoko's flat and some of the characters makes me suspect the piece may be a tech demo of sorts, although I can't find confirmation anywhere of this.
This piece very much shows off a subtle side to computer imagery at a time when every CGI using thing was very in your face about it.
Strange how when a new technology is invented, Carroll's Alice is never far behind.
NOTES:
For similar experiments in tech using Alice, see also Alice VR (VR game, 2016), Alice in TV Land (TV special, 1986?) Wonderland (game, 1990)
