Henry's Girl is a Computer
“Henry’s Girl is a Computer” is an experimental animation piece produced and directed by Jonathan Toomey at the NCCA in Bournemouth.
Who?
All preproduction, production and post production aspects were designed and completed by filmmaker an visual artist Jonathan Toomey as part of his master’s degree in 3D Computer Animation at the NCCA during 2012. The score was composed by fine artist and electronic musician Ben Barlow (http://the-prospector.co.uk/).
What?
Henry’s Girl is a Computer is an experimental animation set in a surreal nightmare where Henry’s Dog is mortally wounded by a dangerous heart but is resurrected by a computer inside his head.
Why?
I was inspired by Surrealist filmmakers such as Germaine Dulac, computer graphics showcases from the 1980s, Postmodern philosopher Jean Baudrillard, and retro video games. I designed the aesthetic to represent computer generated imagery as brazenly unreal to compliment the surreal nature of the story. The concept of the piece developed from a desire to represent the abstract ideas of love and sexuality in the age on the internet; as Henry’s Dog falls in and out of love with computer programs we transition through several hyperrealities as if in a dream state.
How?
All 3D assets were modelled, rigged, and animated in Autodesk Softimage XSI, composited in The Foundry’s Nuke X, and postproduction editing and effects were done in Premiere Pro and After Effects. I didn’t want to replicate or re-present any kind of figurative reality, instead I wanted the HGIAC to appear explicitly CGI to represent a state of hyperreality that our lives in the 21st century exist in. So with my assets I replicated the faceted look of early CGI models and chose an electronic design solution instead of textures.
Next Project?
My obsession with all things 80s and electronic continues as I’ve started preproduction for a psychedelic cyberpunk animation made with a combination of pixel art and CGI.
Which animated film would you like to have made?
I grew up watching lots of Manga, and Lensman [1984] is a film which has had a notable effect on my design choices and is most likely the root of my enthusiasm for space opera. It features a fair amount of CGI created by the Japan Computer Graphics Lab that still looks incredible and is integrated with the 2D animation beautifully. I love the playfulness in the 3D animation that to me feels like a state somewhere in-between awe and naivety, similar to the Panasonic 1981 ‘Glider’ showreel that inspired Henry’s Girl is a Computer.
