In Week 4, the class introduced me to abstraction and experimental animation, which expanded my understanding of what animation can be beyond traditional narrative and dialogue-driven storytelling.
One important thing I learned is that abstraction in animation does not mean randomness or a lack of meaning. Instead, it often focuses on form, movement, rhythm, colour, sound, and timing as the main way to communicate ideas and emotions. Meaning can be created through visual relationships and sensory experience, rather than through clear plot or dialogue. This challenged my usual way of thinking about storytelling and made me more aware of non-linear and implied narratives.
We also explored how many experimental works are driven by a personal or independent vision, rather than commercial or mainstream expectations. These works often break conventional rules and use alternative processes or techniques, such as working without dialogue, using repetition, metamorphosis, symbolism, or focusing on the relationship between sound and image. I began to understand that in experimental animation, the process itself can become part of the message, not just a method to reach a final result.
Another key topic this week was the idea of the auteur in animation. I learned that authorship in animation is complex, especially because animation can be highly collaborative but also allows individual creators to control many aspects of production. This made me reflect on how a consistent personal vision, recurring themes, or approaches to form can shape an animator’s identity, even if their visual style changes between projects.
Overall, this week encouraged me to think more openly about animation as a medium. Instead of always asking how to tell a clear story, I started asking how images, movement, and sound can communicate on a more sensory and emotional level. This perspective is especially useful for my own practice, as it allows more freedom to experiment and to explore ideas visually rather than relying only on narrative structure.