Disappear – A stopmotion animated film by Hendrikus De Vaan.
DISAPPEAR looks at the way that our dreams often take a backseat to the daily grind of the social and corporate paradigms that are so easily fallen into. It explores the notion of having to leave one world in order to be able to fully embrace the other.
Credits
Director: Hendrikus De Vaan
Writer: Hendrikus De Vaan
Release date: 2014
Country: New Zealand
Duration: 5 min
Production notes
The film is a direct metaphor of my life at the time I wrote it. I was in a fairly dead end situation, and just wanted to disappear into my film career. I wanted to only do things I was passionate about. So the script sort of just came out all at once, and it stayed 99% the same as the first draft.
I decided I’d do it in stopmotion, for various reasons; I love the medium, but also that it allowed me to exchange my lack of money for an abundance of time. I could work at a very high production value, without spending much at all. Anything that was spent was stretched out over two years, so it really didn’t feel like much.
Everything you see is 100% my work
I did everything myself, apart from the sound and score, for which I brought in Lily Unsub right at the end. This meant having to figure out a lot of stuff. I think creatively it makes it even more of a personal film, because everything you see is 100% my work. I guess in a way it sort of feels like playing god, you really have to think about all the tiny details, right down to the stains on the countertops, or the Pollock-esque oil painting on the wall. If you don’t make it, it doesn’t exist. It quite literally has my blood, sweat and tears on screen.
Awards
The World Animation Celebration Festival – 2014
Biography
Hendrikus De Vaan is productor designer, director and animator