We can see already in this early short, the simplistic, shape-based stylization that we now know from their more recent works. One can tell from this short that the makers are dedicated to both storytelling and animation, and they are not scared to step out of the mild and child-friendly box that cartoons often are put into.
Later, the studio would continue to look to european folklore to find inspiration for their stories and designs. They do this with much grace, and the environments and people they recreate from history often end up being very believable and makes the products much deeper.
The characters personality is reflected in their design, the man is made up of sharp and strong square shapes, the girl of soft, gentle curves.
The design suggests that the skeleton is dangerous and maybe even evil, yet it's body-language tells you it's curious and careful.
This short does not have as complex backgrounds as later works, but they still bring in a clear temperature and mood into the animation.
"Cúilín Dualach" from 2004, also directed my Nora Twomey, is much more light-footed and humorous. Based on a short story by Jackie Mac Donacha, it's about a boy who is born with his head facing backwards. This won a couple more awards than "from darkness", but is also longer and had a larger crew working on it.
(This is just a promotional trailer, you can see the full short here: http://www.cartoonsaloon.ie/2009/06/short-films-cuilin-dualach/ )
This short has a more playful and experimental style to go with the story, but the clean lines and the expressive animation is still recognizable. The irish folk-music goes well with the story and adds to the story, and even if you don't understand the language, the visuals makes it easy to follow the story.
Screencaps:
The characterization makes it easy to read the mood and personality of the different characters.
Simple, yet effective and imaginative humour.
The characters wearing glasses have realistic eyes, which is an entertaining feature. The style isn't as simplified here as in their other works, which allows for more emphasised movement and expression.
"Old fangs" was directed by Adrien Merigeau's in 2009, and was his first short as a member of the Cartoon Saloon. It is still having great success in film-festivals, and has also received a number of awards. The mood is different in this short, not as expressive and obvious as their other works, but more subtle and even more abstract in it's stylization. However that doesn't make it less powerful.
The family-themed storyline is thoughtprovoking, heartbreaking and mysterious, and the beautiful, atmospheric artwork enhances the experience greatly. The music, which often tells half the story, is what is making this so different. The weak-voiced, almost monotone voice-acting is what's making the characters deeper and more life-like. It's easy to tell from this that the makers have become even more self-confident and their work more sophisticated.
Screencaps:
The scenery is loaded with beautiful lighting, colours, patterns and textures.
Contrast and a flat perspective makes it more surreal.
Symbolism also plays a big role in telling the story.
The characters are often based on shapes, round, sharp, square, and it makes them easy to recognize. The three boys are clearly not like the big, scary wolf-dad, but one can still see that he could be the father of the wolf-boy.
"From Darkness" sources:
http://youtu.be/e1H_Nc2hDkE
http://www.cartoonsaloon.ie/2009/06/short-films-from-darkness/
http://nora-twomey.com/category/short-films/
"Gúilín Dualach" sources:
http://youtu.be/G3WpOvvAPgQ
http://www.cartoonsaloon.ie/2009/06/short-films-cuilin-dualach/
http://nora-twomey.com/category/short-films/
"Old Fangs" sources:
http://youtu.be/e1H_Nc2hDkE
http://www.cartoonsaloon.ie/2009/09/short-films/
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