Swamp Mouth: A Self Portrait
3D Animation - Blender, Photoshop, Procreate
2021
I create animated shorts that pull surreal humor out of otherwise mundane narratives. My thesis work is a collection of four 3D animations, 'Cup of Joe', 'Swamp Mouth', 'SUCK!' and 'Shit Show'. Each subverts expectations of animated narrative media in a way that intentionally resists being easily absorbed by the viewer. I believe that for moments of unexpected surrealism to have impact, the rest of the narrative can be sacrificed to a sense of overbearing and grounded reality. I’m comfortable with boring the casual viewer if it means I can surprise them in the end.
I want to steal time. I think a lot about how time is spent within a moment whether that’s collapsing events that demand full demonstration or drawing out moments of inactivity. I am interested in making viewers experience time just as my characters do.
My work leans towards a lighthearted darkness, or an intelligent stupidity. I think there’s a gray space between the “real” and the “cartoon” that hasn’t been tapped into enough, and I want to live there.