INSPIRATION
NORMAN MCLAREN'S PAS DE DEUX
As I developed the story and the artwork for The Kiss I discovered that it was very similar to Pas De Deux by Norman McLaren. The film had been screened in a class that I had taken and apparently I was much more inspired by it than I had realized. Because of the similarities, and because I greatly appreciated many aspects of Pas De Deux, I decided to make my own film something of a homage to the narrative and presentation of love given by both Norman Mclaren.
TAKASHI HOJYO'S PUPPETRY
I knew that I wanted the characters to resemble puppets in this film after visiting the Center of Puppetry Arts in Atlanta, GA. I've always loved puppetry and stop-motion, but that trip really inspired me and my work simply because of the incredible variety of beautiful work on display. After looking at many artists that worked with mediums outside of digital art, such as puppetry and paper-folding, I stumbled upon Takashi Hojyo, who designs characters out of folded paper. His work certainly influenced the designs of my characters.
THE KISS BY GUSTAV KLIMT
My biggest inspiration for this film was The Kiss (1908) by Gustav Klimt. It is without a doubt my favorite painting and I really wanted to find a way to bring the painting to life.
What I enjoy about this painting is Klimt's usage of symbolism and metaphor, shapes and color, and also space to illustrate a state of bliss brought about by love. I saw the painting well before I decided to make the film and it's influence stuck with me long enough to make me want to start a discussion about it through my own project.