(Cathedral) (2021)
selected images from “(Cathedral)” (2021), trailer
Project Statement
(Cathedral) is a 2D & 3D animated film that follows a procession of ants through a desert landscape from a first person point of view. After a sequence of cryptic hand-drawn animated glyphs, the view shifts into a three-dimensional world. A trail of ants on a dining table leads the viewer out into a desert, traversing a labyrinthian canyon, and down the opening of an ant hill. The path home is traced back, revealing a ritual exchange of goods between the inner and outer world.
Starting with a series of stream-of-consciousness ink-on-paper drawings, which were then animated frame-by-frame, these images served as a network of symbols for a larger mythology. By recreating and arranging these objects in 3D modeling software, they came together to form a map of a simulated desert. As the camera moves through this environment, it slowly reveals a landscape that is living and dream-like, its inhabitants moving with clockwork behavior. It becomes apparent, through montage, that the ephemeral, hand-drawn glyphs and the solid, digital artifacts are also connected, different modes moving in sync. A soundscape was created through the complete distortion of a recording of symphonic music. The motif of the labyrinth is psychological and reminiscent of myths and fairytales, such as Theseus and the Minotaur and Hansel and Gretel, while the desert is a reflection on first-hand experiences in the American Southwest.
Select Screenings
2024 – DarkRoom. Press Room, Alamo Drafthouse, New York, NY, US
2023 – GUI/GOOEY. Plexus Projects, Brooklyn, NY, US
2022 – Slamdance Film Festival. Park City, UT, US
2022 – Athens Animfest. Athens, GR
2022 – Tallgrass Film Festival. Wichita, KS, US
2022 – Utopia Interventions in Berlin Landscapes. Cooperativ Werkraum, Berlin, DE