Growing up on
the sandy shores of Benaulim, Bismark
Fernandes decided to follow his dreams, and today, he is on his way to a film
festival in Palm Springs, California.This is not his first film festival; the
29-year-old has now been to over a dozen film festivals and each time he does
so, his family and friends back home swell with pride.
“As a Goan and his
friend, I feel proud of his achievements. I have known Bismark for many years,
known his passion for animation and love for animated movies. He loved to
imitate the voices of popular cartoon characters. When I learnt that he had
gone to the US for further studies in animation, I knew he would be successful.
As a friend and a fellow Goan, I feel proud of his achievements and would love
to congratulate him and his family, who supported him in his life and choice of
career.He is passionate about his work,” says Konrad Rodrigues, the Benaulim
based musician.
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The film is an
animated short created by stop-motion animation.
“My short film,
titled, ‘Expend’, was made as a part of my thesis completion towards my MFA
degree in animation at Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD), Savannah,
Georgia, USA. The film was created using the stop-motion medium. It is a type
of animation using puppets and miniature sets, which is animated frame by
frame, one camera click at the time, to create the illusion of movement,
“explains Bismark, who is the writer and director of the movie.
The 113-second-long
film is made by students from SCAD and Bismark’s professorat SCAD, Nathan
Asquith, was a key figure, guiding the team during the film making process.
“The medium of
stop-motion was chosen to complement the idea of the story. Stop-motion is
tactile and tangible. Everything on the other side of the screen is relatable
and real. It pushes the boundaries of storytelling by connecting with the
audience on a personal level,” adds Bismark.
The film is made
entirely with hand-crafted models made by students of various departments, like
production design, fibres design, sound design and majorly animation from SCAD.
A part of the film’s funding came from the crowdfunding campaign, which helped Bismark
complete the film. The highest backers, titled Executive Producers in the
credits are Frederick Fernandes, Hillary Fernandes and Laura Whitney Thomas.
The movie is a
contemplative piece focusing on a man’s hunt for elusive power sources, that he
wants to use for his own petty desires. His search through this decaying world
reflects the human tendency to continuously exploit resources in an endless
loop.“Humans constantly utilise or exploit resources that are available to us.
The term resource is used in a general sense, as it can be related to food,
water, raw materials or fuel. We use it as a necessity, to survive or use it
excessively as a luxury to bring comfort.
“The film ‘Expend’
portrays the human tendency to exploit resources for our petty desires. In the
story, the character acquires this energy by bringing harm to other creatures
in the process. The human character in the film does not feel remorse or guilt
for his actions as this is part of his daily routine. The idea is not to
condemn the use of our resources but to think of its source before wasting it,
“says Biskmark.
The film had two main
characters: Oscar, the man, who hunts for power sources, which he gets from
these cybertronic animals. Then there’s the animal, the deer, from whom the man
gets the new energy source, which is the deer’s heart, its life source. The
film goes back into the loop of the man going out and hunting more animals
after his current energy source drains out.
Bismark, who
completed his graduation from MAEER’s MIT Institute of Design, Pune, recently
received a film award at the Calcutta International Cult Film Festival.
The film has also won
awards at the Savannah College of Art and Design Animation Showcase, Gold
Awards Winner 2018, USA, Berlin Flash Film Festival, Best Super Short
Animation/ Stop-motion for June 2018, Germany, Aphrodite Film Awards, Best
Animation Short for July 2018, New York USA and the Royal Wolf Film Awards,
Best Animation Short for July 2018 and Best Film of the Month for July 2018,
Los Angeles USA.
Bismark
said he was extremely grateful and humbled by the support and appreciation he
has received from his family, friends, mentors and well-wishers.
