Dear friends, flabbits, and Featherheads, we come to the end of the Shining Isle Q&A videos. In this one, Chris wraps up the time at Hutchmoot '18 to talk about what's next for the Saga. No spoilers here, but a big update!https://youtu.be/q-FuZ4tHOmgDid you guys catch that? MOVIES. Five of them.What do you all think?
Shining Isle Q&A, part 6
Welcome back to our multi-part Hutchmoot Q&A session! In this week's episode, Chris reveals which fictional characters are real and which are fake, he and Joël talk about the value of honesty in community collaboration, and Nicholas explains to us the tree of insults.Watch previous episodes here: One | Two | Three | Four | Fivehttps://youtu.be/b_HQVDOHNTY
Shining Isle Q&A, part 5
"Could we do animation differently?" In part 5 of this series, Chris and Joël talk about meeting financial and technological challenges in the making of the short film—challenges such as how to keep an animated character alive!This is a super nerdy episode, so if you're into animation you'll be geeking out as you hear about the innovations Shining Isle made during production.You can catch up with previous Shining Isle Q&A videos here: One | Two | Three | Fourhttps://youtu.be/xdicWTaTWXk
Shining Isle Q&A, part 4
Here are twelve more minutes of behind-the-scenes intel about how the animated short film was created. In this episode, Chris and Nicholas talk about the animators' style inspirations; using echolocation and catnip to bring teams together; the production triad of good/fast/cheap; and The Great Nostril War of 2015.Catch previous episodes at:Part onePart twoPart threehttps://youtu.be/cThamWr81Qs
Shining Isle Q&A, part 3
We're back this week with the next segment of our Shining Isle Q&A session at Hutchmoot. In this clip, you'll hear again from Nicholas, who talks about how the short film's visual style both intentionally leaves vaguery and space for your imagination, and aims to help the viewer experience the story visually as well as narratively. (Also, thwaps.)https://youtu.be/-7FZ7kw2ObU
Shining Isle Q&A, part 2
Last week we shared the first eleven minutes of the Shining Isle Q&A session Chris et al hosted at Hutchmoot, and today I'm here with the next fourteen! In this one, we meet Nicholas Kole, and hear about his introduction to Aerwiar, the "Rule of Cool," and finding the heart of the Igibys and their story.[Note: Yesterday I accidentally posted part one again. Sorry! Here's the actual part two, and a link to part one in case you missed it.]Enjoy!https://youtu.be/7m7OW2H8ZmU
Wingfeather a Best Animated Short Film
We just got word that A Crow for the Carriage was one of IAMAG's favorite short films of 2018! It's an honor to be featured alongside other great short films such as TAIKO's One Small Step.
Madame Sidler's review: Thermostat 6 contains a couple of minor subtitled swears, and Sonder and Look at Me deal with difficult subjects (divorce and alienation, respectively), so parents may want to preview. Personally, I was delighted by Scrambled—a super cute silent story about about Rubik's cube and a girl in a train station—and L'aviatrice, about the first European woman to break the sound barrier (also intense for a moment when she encounters a storm in midair). My Grandfather's Memory Book was excellent also. You can find the full top ten here! Thanks, IAMAP, and great job to our Wingfeather animators. :-)Featherheads, which films did you enjoy? Have you seen any other short films this year that you think belong on this list?
Calling all Chroniclers!
Dear Wingfeather Scholars and Appreciators of the Strange, Neat, and/or Yummy, Chris Wall and I have a grand adventure for you! There are things in the works behind the scenes at Shining Isle Productions... and while we aren't quite ready for a wide reveal yet, you can help us with something very important.When translating a story from a book (which relies a lot on your own imagination, no matter how descriptive the writing is) to a visual medium (like a graphic novel or an animated adaptation on screen), some aspects of storytelling change. One thing we're looking at is how to drop little clues into the early parts of the story which prepare viewers for big realizations later. Another thing we're looking at is what events are happening at the same time, but in different locations. Knowing these things helps the animators tell a stronger story, and it helps us ratchet up the suspense—like the last minute of the short film, where the scene cuts from the Igibys sitting down to dinner, to Gnorm, and then to—well, if you haven't seen it yet, no spoilers. ;-) [But you can watch here!]Ferreting all this stuff out promises, in the words of Jennifer Trafton, "Glory! Heroism! Adventure!" And a whole lot of nerdery, which is one of my favorite things. :-) So come on up to the Historical Archives section of the Great Library. I've reserved us a dusty corner where we can surround ourselves with books, tea, large lengths of parchment, and perhaps some dried plumyums (no juiciness near the books, please! But snacks are important in any historical endeavor).Warning! This project will be super spoilery, since we'll be talking about everything in the series at once. Please only dive in if you've read all the books! I would hate for you to discover things out of order; that's so discouraging. If you haven't read the books yet but want to help, then, in the words of Jinto Qweb, "Hurry! Reading is fun!" We'll be working on this for awhile, and you can join us as soon as you're done. :-)And now: Onward! to the Archives and Victory!
This week, Madame Sidler will be reading chapters 71-73 (and the following interlude) in The Warden and the Wolf King. Join us on Friday for an excerpt and discussion! And meanwhile, do join us in the forum—there are lots of fun conversations happening, no matter where you're at in the books!