Workshot 2.0: CENSORSHIP

workshop for concept & script & stop motion

22. 9. – 1. 10. 2023

 

CENSORSHIP: a restraining, control-mechanism, imposed on individuals who practice their right to free expression as well as on the producers of creative discourses.

Welcome to the 3-phases workshop of concept-based animation filmmaking where practical execution of a short animated project concludes the process of learning critical approaches to media and understanding film as a complex mode of artistic communication. 

The Participants will learn stop motion animation filmmaking from PIOTR CHMIELEWSKI and URSZULA DOMAŃSKA, socially engaged, stop motion animators from Łódź (Poland); scriptwriting from TAL KANTOR, multi-award winning animator and teacher (Israel) and VASSILIS KROUSTALLIS, writer, film critic, and academic (Greece / Estonia); while the skills of critical literacy will be introduced by sociologists URŠKA BREZNIK and KAJA FIEDLER (Slovenia).

At 13th StopTrik IFF censorship is analyzed as a device within the power systems which has been appearing in changeable forms throughout the times and places. The Festival’s core and accompanying programming will pose questions in regard to the defining features and limits of what have been historically considered as a manifestation of censorship in animation as well as its contemporary modalities (from institutionalized forms of censorship, through functions of communication such as content moderation, political correctness, or cancel culture, up to constructive discourses of criticism and free expression).

Propaganda and censorship have been used by societies since ancient times to control public opinions and behaviors. In prehistoric times, tribal cultures used oral storytelling as a form of propaganda and censorship. Stories were used to teach moral values, maintain social control, and influence group decisions. These stories often took the form of myths, parables, and fables which focused on themes of justice, honor, loyalty, and courage. Like propaganda, these stories would often be exaggerated or manipulated to suit the particular needs of the tribe or society. Like censorship, early stories were used to control the flow of information within the group and to discourage certain behaviours or beliefs that were seen as threatening or disruptive to the existing social order. And yet, the storytellers, followed by the artists practicing a myriad of disciplines, seemed to listen to Donna Haraway’s call: Stories are much bigger than ideologies. In that is our hope (The Companion Species Manifesto: Dogs, People, and Significant Otherness, 2003).

WORKSHOP STRUCTURE: TIME & CONTENT

The workshop activities are held from 10:00 to 18:00 with 1 hour lunch break.

Phase 1: 22. 9. 2023, Critical Literacy workshop with Urška Breznik and Kaja Fiedler, zoom

Phase 2: 24. - 26. 9. 2023, Script writing workshop with Tal Kantor, live event

Phase 3: 27. 9. - 1. 10. 2022, Animation Filmmaking with Piotr Chmielewski & Urszula Domańska, live event

  • Through a critical literacy workshop we will encourage the realization that knowledge is a social construct and deepen our ability for critical understanding, interpretation and production of information. Namely, access to knowledge and information has a big impact on creation and preservation of inequality. With various theoretical tools we will reveal the relationship between knowledge and power and develop a critical attitude towards our own knowledge. We will raise awareness about economic, political and social interests that affect knowledge, information and the content we chance upon or produce on a daily basis. With the help of critical discourse analysis we will deconstruct audiovisual texts and search for hidden agendas and missing voices. We will also address the topic of censorship, an occurrence too often connected only with the states that are considered to have a dictatorship, and look for more hidden censorship present in our daily lives (especially media, educational material, mainstream culture…)

    During this phase you will learn about:

    • Power relations in the society and the ways to analyze them

    • How accessing knowledge and information is related to power

    • Application of critical discourse analysis in reading of written, visual and audiovisual texts

  • Day 1 (24.9.2023) includes “Themes, Characters, and Plots: How Not To Cancel Your Film Narrative”. At this seminar with VASSILIS KROUSTALLIS (from 10:00 to 13:00) you will learn about basic principles of creating good plot structure, characters, motivations etc. and discuss the issues of self-censorship. In the afternoon the workshop with Tal Kantor will begin.

    During Day 2 and Day 3 the groups will reflect and exercise creative writing for animation. Somewhat echoing musical improvisations, animation scripts remind of fluid forms, suspended between character/plot development-oriented writing and storytelling conveyed with visual design, animation/soundtrack synergy, and the general expressiveness of poetics which govern particular animated worlds. Awareness in regard to those qualities of animation filmmaking enables the participants to understand, independently construct, and creatively use basic principles of narrative in the development of their own animated film scripts. Subversive film art uses the intangible symbols and metaphors in order to tellingly rebel against the regime of conventional expression.

    During this phase you will learn about:

    • basic principles of film narrative;

    • understanding what is the center image within the story;

    • translating the concept-based stories into visual narratives.

  • Under the guidance of our workshop leaders, we will delve into the limitless potential of stop-motion techniques as a medium for artistic expression. We will demonstrate how to imbue a cinematic puppet with a distinctive visual identity using readily available materials. As a group, we will construct wire frameworks and experiment with a variety of texture styles, such as papier-mâché and acrylic paint or felted XPS (styrodur). We will also introduce you to innovative and entertaining methods for creating special effects (like the flow of water, fire, smoke, or wind) using stop-motion techniques.

    During this phase, you will learn about:

    • Wire Constructions: Together we will create wire constructions, learning how to give form and structure to your ideas.

    • Texture Styles: Experiment with different styles of textures like papier-mâché and acrylic paint or felted XPS (styrodur) to give your puppet a unique look.

    • Special Effects: Discover exciting and funny ways of creating special effects (like flow of water, fire, smoke or wind) in stop-motion technique.

    • Animation Basics: We will cover the fundamental principles of animation, helping you understand how to bring your characters to life in a believable and compelling way. This includes learning about timing, spacing, easing in/out, and other key concepts that contribute to smooth and natural movement in animation.

 

MENTORS' BIO

  • a Sinologist and art historian, director of Pekarna Magdalenske mreže since 2013. She coordinates projects in the field of youth and cultural and develops and leads critical literacy workshops and seminars for young people, youth and pedagogical workers and general public. Executive producer of StopTrik IFF.

  • a Sociologist employed at Pekarna Magdalenske mreže since 2016. Developing and leading critical literacy workshops and seminars for young people, youth and pedagogical workers and the general public. Coordinating educational projects in the field of housing cooperatives, climate crisis and workers rights. Producer of music events at StopTrik IFF and editor of StopTrik IFF website and social networks.

  • is a Greek film and animation professional, currently based in Tallinn, Estonia. He has conducted studies in Classics, philosophy, and film in the UK and Greece. He has extensive experience of animation festival programming, currently serving as animation programme director at PÖFF Shorts (Tallinn); he is also Head Editor of the online journal for independent animation Zippy Frames. He is both a film and animation scholar (won the Society for Animation Studies award for his Waltz with Bashir study article) and a creative writer. His short film scripts 'The Hotel' and Mar(t)y have entered into screenplay competitions, with Mar(t)y being the finalist at the London Greek Film Festival 2020. He has acted as a professional consultant for animation filmmakers, and he is a member of the Annie Awards. He has completed the short film Homespital, while his second one, Mar(t)y, a gender-bending story, is currently in development.

  • [b. 1988] is an award-winning independent animation filmmaker & visual artist. Graduated with honors from the Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design, Jerusalem, where she currently lectures at the Screen-Based Arts Department. Director of the films such as Letter to a Pig (2022), In Other Words (2016), Under the Small Sun (2015, co-dir. Shahar Davis).

  • is an stop-motion animation autodidact who dedicated his knowledge and skills to raise social issues with visual materials. He does campaign animations for various non-governmental organizations and he made his first steps as an art-house film director by directing the well-received film Crab (2022).

  • is a stop-motion animator who graduated from Lodz Film School with a degree in animation and special effects. She has directed several films, including the traditional cut-out animation The Windows of That House (2019). Urszula is passionate about working with different animation techniques, including puppet animation, which is popular in Polish television shows such as The Treflik Family.

  • workshop assistant; Lene makes sculptures, films and mixed media artworks. Her works are characterized by the use of everyday objects in an atmosphere of middleclass mentality in which recognition plays an important role.

 

WORKSHOT 2.0: CENSRORSHIP is a project organized by Pekarna magdalenske mreže through cooperation with a network of universities collaborating in the frames of BIP ERASMUS NETWORK, coordinated by the University of Nova Gorica School of Arts (Slovenia), and involving the following partners: Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna (Austria); University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria (Wels, Austria); New Bulgarian University in Sofia (Bulgaria); Academy of Fine Arts in Zagreb (Croatia); EKA Estonian Academy of Arts in Tallinn (Estonia); Universidade Lusófona de Lisboa (Portugal).

 
Kaja Fiedler