#neomorphus

photograph by Rodrigo Cordero Hidalgo

Rufous-vented Ground Cuckoo

Neomorphus geoffroyi by hawk person

photograph by Alexander Montero

photograph by jorgecampos2

Photo credit: Ryan Zucker via Macaulay Library

Neomorphus

A fascinating look behind the scenes of the excellent stop motion short 'Neomorphus' by Animatorio... "Strangeness and fragility: Perceptions that we take from the animated short Neomorphus. Somewhat macabre beings live in a habitat of particular nature - a place abandoned long ago. Here, in this unusual spot, they follow the circuit of their lives - being born, developing, decomposing and recomposing. Implemented in stop-motion, the main idea of this short was based on the various processes of a metamorphosis - the transformation and the reactions it propagates. Thus, the scenario received special treatment, as it moves and reacts according to the characters' actions. From this point of view, the space also became a character. The greatest difficulty was animating the creatures - each one was made by hand - and because they had insect’s characteristics, they were extremely fragile and required careful handling. The camera also played an important role in the film, since it is its point of view that runs through the scenarios - for this, a "robot" camera photographed each motion scheduled graph. Once the images were captured, the film received retouching and digital processing. Refinishing is a very important detail on stop-motion as it cleans the scenes digitally frame by frame. In this process, materials used to “hold” the characters in place- such as lines, wires and adhesives - are removed. Then 'styles' were added in the film, such as shadows, filters and special effects – they are essential to generate the scenes ambiance. At last, the sound effects and beautiful track composed exclusively for the short film were added. The end result is a richly detailed animation that unfolds in a sequence of great and unexpected events."