Study Task 2 - Environmental Storytelling - The Fantastic Mr Fox

I decided to look at the stop motion animation by Wes Anderson called The Fantastic Mr Fox for the Environmental Story telling brief as I felt this feature fit well as it was developed from a book, and managed to keep the story-book vibe through the use of backgrounds, lighting and filters.

The whole feature was inspired heavily on Roald Dahls world from the book to their actual home town. When creating the script, Wes Anderson visited The Gypsy House where Roald Dahl and his family lived for years. Being let into the world of Dahl, through his writing and his own surroundings of his home town, Buckinghampshire, led Anderson to look around for inspiration in an attempt to capture Dahl's imagination. Anderson also insisted that the actors acted out the scenes at a farm, rather than just voice recording. Neither of these processes are necessary, however they create a sense of atmosphere as well adding a sense of charm.

The whole feature is heavily based around the world that the characters live in.  The warm, orange hues shift when the scenery or atmosphere changes, evoking the emotions that are occurring and stick with the action that is happening. This is an important aspect to focus on when creating films and animations as it helps evoke meanings and fits in with the action that is occurring. 

Typical of Anderson, the composition of his shots are driven by the focal point he is trying to create. He forces the viewers to look at what he wants them to look at, rather than creating compositional shots that ask for you to search for the focal point. His characters always seem to appear in the middle of the screen, and there are rarely shots that are typical of most feature films, let alone animated ones. 

The backgrounds and scenery almost wrap around the characters, and perfectly fit with the characters movements and actions. There always seems to be a numeric feel to Wes Andersons compostions because they always seem to be evenly spread, and placed in a certain way. Even though the placements and arrangements of the backgrounds are forced and unnatural, the actual set itself is a unique and detailed environment that seems real.

Texture is a large theme that runs through this animated feature. The characters have a rough, furry texture, much like their surroundings.

This scene is a perfect example of how Anderson tends to apply linear formation when shooting scenes. The rule of thirds are usually still present, however everything seems to work together to create a cartoon like aesthetic. The warm and homely hues are still present in this scene, however they are darkened by the shadows. 

The colour scheme switches in this scene from the warm hues to a stark white background in order to symbolise the cleanliness of the store. The warm hues are still present in the characters fur as well as the objects within the store. The composition of the sets from this animated feature always seem to be perfectly spread out and positions, which contrast the scruffy and uneven characters that move about in the world. This causes a visual contrast and makes the animation/ camera shots stand out against other features.

This shot is based on a contrast between two worlds that the two characters come from. The stark whiteness in the distance evokes a sense of coldness, and the soft orange hues at the front create a sense of comfort and warmth that is present throughout the whole of the animation. This creates a universal divide within the world of the animation.