Musings
All images, music and sound effects in the animatic are not my own and for demonstration purposes only
On Light and Truth
One of Hannah Arendt’s critiques of Plato’s Allegory of the Cave is that the philosopher is set apart from the cave dwellers. (Abensour et al., 2007)
If animators and viewers were placed within Plato’s cave, we might assume the animator is the philosopher and the viewer is the prisoner.
This project reflects on who controls light, shadows, and information and for what purpose.
According to Free Press Unlimited, “No independent media access to Gaza has been permitted since the start of the war, increasing the pressure on domestic journalists, and creating a space for mis- and disinformation to flourish.”
The final project will seek to redress the power imbalance between creator and viewer by portraying one imagined experience and will leave the statistics to speak for themselves.
The objective will be for shadows to convey to the viewer one possible truth by prompting them to consider their own shadow and place in the world.
References
Abensour, M. and Breaugh, M. (2007). Against the Sovereignty of Philosophy over Politics: Arendt’s Reading of Plato’s Cave Allegory. Social Research, [online] 74(4), pp.955–982. Available at: https://www.jstor.org/stable/40972036.
Committee to Protect Journalists. (2024). Media organizations urge Israel to open access to Gaza – Committee to Protect Journalists. [online] Available at: https://cpj.org/2024/07/media-organizations-urge-israel-to-open-access-to-gaza/ [Accessed 16 Oct. 2024].
Dolan, F.M. (2000). Arendt on Philosophy and Politics. [online] The Cambridge Companion to Hannah Arendt. Available at: https://www.academia.edu/33674859/Arendt_on_Philosophy_and_Politics [Accessed 16 Oct. 2024].
Do Politics Repel Truth? Hannah Arendt on Political Controversies in Dialogue with Plato. (2021). International Dialogue, 11(1). doi:https://doi.org/10.32873/uno.dc.id.11.1.1188.
Free Press Unlimited (2024). Urgent call for Israel to give journalists access to Gaza. [online] Free Press Unlimited. Available at: https://www.freepressunlimited.org/en/current/urgent-call-israel-give-journalists-access-gaza [Accessed 16 Oct. 2024].
United Nations Western Europe. (2023). The UN and the crisis in the Middle East. [online] Available at: https://unric.org/en/the-un-and-the-crisis-in-the-middle-east-gaza/.
Wikipedia Contributors (2019). Allegory of the Cave. [online] Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allegory_of_the_Cave.
INT. SUBCONSCIOUS SWIRL EFFECT
FADE IN TO: Grey tones with shapes and shadows fading in and out.
MUSIC UP: “Sleep Little One” by Marcel KhalifE.
EXT. FADE IN TO BEACH SCENE – DAY
Beach with waves crashing onto the shore. Structures can be seen in the very distant background. An elongated shadow of a person is visible. A kite is on the ground.
KITE DECREASES IN SIZE LIFTING INTO THE AIR
PAN DOWN TO BEACH DECREASING IN SIZE BELOW VIEWER WITH SHADOW DECREASING IN SIZE
SHADOW OF A PERSON MOVES ALONG BEACH
KITE WITH SKY BEHIND AND TENTS APPEARING IN THE FAR BACKGROUND
PAN DOWN TO BEACH WITH TENTS BELOW
SMOKE ROLLS IN FROM RIGHT
PAN INLAND TO RIGHT TOWARDS SMOKE
PAN RIGHT TO REVEAL DESTROYED BUILDINGS BENEATH THE SMOKE
EXPLOSION WITH STROBE BEHIND SMOKE
MUSIC DOWN
INT. SUBCONSCIOUS SWIRL EFFECT
Grey tones with shapes and shadows fading in and out.
FADE TO BLACK
FADE IN
INT. UNDER RUBBLE – DAY
Foreground shows broken household items including a stuffed animal. Above are broken blocks and cables. Bright sunlight shines from above making god rays.
SOUND UP: Soft crying. Rumbling. Footsteps running.
FIGURE PASSES IN FRONT OF LIGHT ABOVE
SOUND UP: Rumbling intensifies.
STUFFED ANIMAL MOVES INTO EXTREME FOREGROUND
SOUND DOWN: Cut to silence
INT. SUBCONSCIOUS SWIRL EFFECT
Grey tones with shapes and shadows fading in and out.
FADE TO BLACK
Contact
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