Under the Mask

A stop motion project. While I was not as satisfied with the end result as I would have wanted, this project allowed me to experiment with a variety of new tools, from plasticine to sound editing, I enjoyed making this little animation much more than I thought I would. The theme is based around the concept of psychological masks, the ones we wear and switch every time the current setting varies. We all wear different masks for family, friends, work or when we are alone.

One of the masks present in this animation. I tried my best to make them as diverse as I could by shifting colors and shapes. While I was not aiming for any particular form, I did draw inspiration from Tiki masks.

The scene was built using simple cardboard plates and a box that was taped together to act as a frame to hold the walls and floor. I did so as to avoid gluing or stapling the walls together. This way, walls could be removed to allow the camera to have an even shot of the scene.

The monster itself is supposed to be an amalgamation of all the mask. The message I was aiming for was the person's true self being consumed by all the masks they wear. The monster was arguably the most challenging element of the animation to manipulate due to the weight of its limbs. Aesthetically, the beast was inspired by No Face from Studio Ghibli's "Spirited Away".

Under the Mask (Stop Motion, 2018)

I am personally extremely fascinated by human psychology. And one of my favorite themes is the sense of identity. This stop motion was inspired by the use of psychological masks. While I am no expert of the matter, it is generally widely known that almost everyone holds multiple facets of their personality inside them. For example, they will act differently when at work, with family, with friends or alone. Masks are also some of my favorite type of objects. They are present all throughout human history and from cultures from around the world. They take different shapes and aspects. They are malleable. The same way human behavior can be under the right conditions.