Friday 12 November 2010

Context & Review (Animation) : Ren & Stimpy

Alongside my fellow zookeeper Mark Haldane, we were tasked with choosing a short clip which showed 'animation' in an interesting way.

After looking around online, we decided to go with a clip from a Ren & Stimpy episode, titled "Sven Hoek";


First things first - some of you may not be familiar with Ren & Stimpy (as it premiered in 1991), so here is a brief overview;

The show features two lively characters, Ren Hoek (a chihuahua) and Stimpson J Cat (a cat, as his name suggests). The show was known for its crazy characters, situations and events. It also featured a large amount of comic violence, alongside quite dark humour (for a cartoon). One of the regular featured techniques used throughout the show, was the inclusion of detailed 'paintings' - these would often be far more gruesome and detailed than the animation itself, adding only to the intensity of any on-screen antics.

We chose this particular episode, as it portrays the strengths of the animation style which The Ren & Stimpy Show used.

The most obvious thing to notice, is that all of the animation is extremely exaggerated. We both agreed that this was used effectively, and although it ensured that the cartoon had a crazy look/feel to it, it was not simply crazy for the sake of crazy - the exaggeration was used to clarify all of the expressions and movements, leaving very little to interpretation.
When comparing this over-exaggerated style to a real character, it becomes almost impossible to replicate realistic movement. It is for this reason, we felt that Ren & Stimpy needed an over-exaggerated style, because then their actions and expressions would be even clearer than normally possible. It also ensures that the story is being received as it should be.

Throughout the clip, Ren's anger is very obvious, and this is enhanced by theatrical movement, and strong staging/posing. It is so obvious, that whilst watching this character, it became clear that the clip could also be watched without sound, and the action would not be confused or misinterpreted.

Although this is the case, the show's creators decided to add to the intensity of the situation, by using very focused shots, which used eerie music, and removal of the scene's background to build tension. By removing the backgrounds, we are forced to relate with Ren and his anger'; by alternating backgrounds quickly, it adds to the intensity of the scene, and makes us connect with Ren's emotions quicker.

Overall, we felt that Ren & Stimpy captured the intensity of a characters emotions well, by using exaggerated animation, and slowly building tension. Also, it's hard not to love Ren & Stimpy as characters!

My colleague Mark has also added a blog entry discussing Ren & Stimpy, which can be found here.

For those interested in seeing the full episode, it can be found online in two parts; here and here.

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