back Metaphorically Speaking Project Description: Due to the success and positive feedback of my latest project, I decided to continue with my Flash animations. I will continue with a journalistic style-brief, with a central metaphor. Concepts and Objectives: Metaphors are fun; they are a useful tool for communication. Poetic. Most importantly they can be funny. Especially when taken too far. Metaphors are practical in a limited sense, but no metaphor can fully explain a situation, and trying to leads to all sorts of hilarious misunderstandings. The primary objective of my animations, however, is to make them entertaining. While some might be considered informative, that's up to the opinion of the individual. 3 Questions: The three questions that I came up with that will guide my work are focused on the writing as opposed to the execution. Why do people use metaphor instead of a more technical way of idea articulation? What emotion/concept most causes people to utilize metaphor? What kinds of metaphors are easier to force strange connotations out of? For example: simple metaphors v. complex metaphors, metaphors referring to natural occurrences v. unnatural occurrences. Precedents and Research: The two artists who have the biggest influence on this project are Benegal and Drew's Toothpaste for Dinner. I like the color and expression of Benegal's work, and the simplicity and comedy of Drew's. I mentioned both of them on my website in reference to the Flash project. However, upon further reflection I realized that my favorite authors are heavy into insane metaphor. J.D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye, is a great example of the narrative style my animations take. More recently D.B.C. Pearce's Vernon God Little, and of course my all-time favorite author Chuck Palahniuk.    "This isn't really death," Tyler says. "We'll be legend. We won't grow old."    I tongue the barrel into my cheek and say, Tyler, you're thinking of vampires.    -Fight Club However, on a more technical note, I'd have to say that getting my transitions to flow in an unique manner and keep interest is a challenge I wouldn't have so consciously taken on if not for Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics. He has a chapter on the 6 different types of transitions that is very eye-opening. Form, Material, Etc: Since this is electronic media, I'm most worried about writing the animations. I'm a screenwriting major, so I've got ideas going through my head all the time. My main concern is that I want to present as many different characters as possible and I'm afraid that my metaphors will be too unique to my mind-bottle the characters unnecessarily. Whereas I could give a character a physical trait or scarred childhood quite easily during the course of a film, it's quite another thing to explain that in the course of 30 seconds using only a metaphor relating topics far from either of those characteristics. A secondary concern of mine is finding actors. I really want to have different people voice the different animations. No two people alike. This is a design choice I made to help keep the animations disconnected in practice. Even though features such as Strong Bad's E-mails comes to mind as a series of animations (100 since last I checked) with the same character/narrator, I don't want the audience to have only one character to either connect with or keep detached from. I suspect several subjects I'll tackle people will disagree, and I'd rather them not stop watching for that reason. Also, I want the audience to get the feeling that there are several people with which they can identify (if they do so) other than with one singular character. Relationship to the Course: While the narrative (story/metaphor) itself runs quite a linear pattern, the medium does not. At the beginning of the semester Samantha did an exercise with us where we rhymed "blue" and ended up with "eggs." Similarly, I want people to explore their communication-in this case with metaphor-farther than they would normally. taking a small straight line of a connection and making it a long squiggle or outward spiral. Hell, even a pentagon for all I care. Presentation: Since there are many computers in the lab, I'd really like to put a separate animation on each and let people roam as they please. Moreover, I'd save about 5 of them to show on the big screen. My 5 favorites. That is unless people would prefer to see all of them up on the big screen. Equipment: All I need are actors, and I'll take volunteers… (*hint*). back