Film Synopsis

Inspired by silhouette animation, puppet shows, and tactile textures, this short animated film tells a familiar tale in a whole new way. The story, based on Goldilocks and the Three Bears, is explored as a puppet show staged in a compressed and non-literal filmspace. Two- and three-dimensional computer animation techniques accumulate as layers of lush texture that construct a balance between graphic simplicity and patterned complexity.

Production Notes

Two- and three-dimensional computer animation techniques were combined to produce Goldilocks, Redirected. The characters and props were modeled and animated using Maya 3D animation software. Since the characters were designed to look and move like jointed wooden puppets, a customized animation rig was built to control them. This layered rig combined inputs from two joint chains, one driven by forward kinematics and one driven by hair dynamics. The way these two joint chains were blended together allowed the animator to control precisely the amount of dynamic action in the rig. The result is a character with a naturalistic feeling of weight in its limbs, which occasionally appears to be controlled by an outside force, like a puppet. The layered environments were painted in Adobe Photoshop, making liberal use of pattern and texture resources. The rendered character and prop animation and the environment layers were composited in Adobe AfterEffects, where additional 2D animation and effects were added.

• 4th Annual Los Angeles International Children's Film Festival, Los Angeles CA, Oct 2009 - Official Selection
• 6th Annual San Diego International Children's Film Festival, San Diego CA, Jul-Aug 2009 - Official Selection
• 3rd Annual San Francisco International Children's Film Festival, San Francisco CA, Feb 28-Mar 1 2009 - Official Selection
• Hubbub: The Las Vegas Global Animation Festival, Las Vegas NV, Jan 8-11 2009 - Official Selection
• 56th Columbus International Film + Video Festival, Columbus OH, Nov 13 2008 - Honorable Mention
• Flint Film Festival, Flint MI, Oct 18 2008 - Official Selection
• Mid-Ohio-Con Indie Film Festival, Columbus OH, Oct 5 2008 - Official Selection

Director's Bio - Beth Albright

After earning a BFA in graphic design from the University of Notre Dame in 1998, Beth worked in the 2D animation industry for several years as a color stylist and assistant art director, contributing to a variety of feature films, short films and commercials. Her credits include Space Jam, 101 Dalmatians II, The Fox and the Hound II, and the award-winning short film The Indescribable Nth. In December 2008, she will complete her MFA studies at the Ohio State University’s Advanced Computing Center for the Arts and Design (ACCAD), after which she hopes to work in the computer animated film industry.

Contact Beth at beth.albright@gmail.com