Michael Stone struggles to interact with other people. His outlook on life is bleak and mundane. That is until he goes on a business trip that changes everything.
You can tell a film has you hooked when a large chunk of it is set in a single hotel room with only one character. The script had me in tears with laughter in one moment then pausing with suspense in the next.
Kickstarter
Don't get me wrong, I like the occasional blockbuster film. However, it seems that recently Hollywood has had a consistent stream of similar content. People seem hesitant, understandably so, to invest in a film that is not considered mainstream. This is when the world of the internet comes into it's own. The only reason Anomolisa got made was down to crowd funding site, Kickstarter. Nearly 6,000 people pledged over $400,000 to get the film made by US based animation company, Starburns Industries.
Stop motion animation
Stop motion animation is up there with one of the most time consuming art forms there is. Some of the scenes in Anomolisa took weeks to complete. As stop motion animation is created one frame at a time Joe Passarelli, Director of Photography, captured each shot with a RAW still image.
Cameras
As everything on set was miniature, choosing the right video camera for the job was critical. The Canon 7D was the camera of choice with 18 of them used on set. The size of the 7D made it easier to set up the required shot. As the cameras had to be kept completely still for days on end, as to not create shake when they come to the edit, they actually glued cameras in place!
Charlie Kaufman
Writer and Co-Director Charlie Kaufman has always been a favourite of mine. Films such as Eternal Sunshine and Being John Malkovich made a real impact on me. He is the sort of director that has a clear vision of what he wants to produce and is not knocked down along the way by producers or film executives. He doesn't disappoint with Anomolisa.
5 Stars
I understand that bias may have (definitely) played a big part in giving this film a 5 star review. It already gets 1 star for simply being a feature stop motion animation film. The pain staking procedures the animators had to go through required me to take my metaphorical hat off instantly. But there will still 4 stars left. These were made up from the subtle humour, fantastic voice acting, script and overall production values.
If you haven't already seen this film I strongly suggest you do!
