A video essay adaptation of my Studio 4 exegesis 'From Zeman to Gilliam: The evolution of Mystimation'.
This video explores the work of Czech film director and animator Karel Zeman and the animation techniques he pioneered. Zeman’s combination of stop motion, hand-drawn and cut out animation with various optical special effects, dubbed ‘Mystimation’, has had little academic discussion. Yet, Mystimation is a stated influence by film directors internationally who have adapted and evolved these techniques. Several case studies within this paper will provide an exploratory introduction to Zeman’s work and trace his style of animation through the history of film, highlighting its adoption by others and its evolution to now. This paper traces the influence Zeman’s body of work has had on filmmakers and contends that not only is Mystimation a recognisable and continual style of filmmaking, but also that filmmaker Terry Gilliam is Zeman’s most recognisable successor.
By Emmett Redding
Email Emmett Redding
Published On: 22/10/2020
animation, live action, written
2020, AGI Studio 4, AGI Studio 4 2020, PRP, Professional Research Project, Semester 2 2020, Studio 4 2020, exegesis, professional research project (2020)