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| © 1998 TAMURA SHIGERU/MMF・BANDAI VISUAL |
Grand Prize
Glassy Ocean
Short Form Animation(Feature Release)
Artist : Shigeru Tamura
(Direction, Original Story, Screenplay, Illustration)
(Japan)
Shigeru TAMURA
Born in Tokyo in 1949. Graduate of Kuwasawa Design School. He has written numerous picture books including "Dana", "SpaceSkate" and "SOS Robot Land". His book of paintings, "Metal Physical Nights" won the Shogakukan Painting Award. His work "The Fish of the Milky Way" won a Special Award at the Montreal Electronic Cinema Festival. His CD-ROM "Phantasmagoria" won the Postal Minister and other Awards at the AMD Awards Grand Prix. He is attracting attention in Japan and around the world for his work as a Video Artist and Digital Content Creator.
The face of a giant whale poking his face out of the transparent, glassy ocean.
This is an image that I have always wanted to see for myself.
The final output was more beautiful than I had imagined it would be.
However, I wondered "Will people be interested in watching this quiet, visual poem?".
I was surprised when the response to the first showing was warm and joyous.
This award is one more step ahead, it's like the judges are all standing behind me and pushing me forward.
Time has come to a standstill.
A whale appears from a glassy ocean and spends half a day soaring gracefully across the skies.
What makes this works extraordinary is the artist's decision to use the transparency and visual bulk of 3D computer graphics only for the un-moving ocean and glaciers.
The people, whale, and ships are all hand-drawn, and with this contrast, he invites the viewer into a different world.
This is a poem written in animation, the creation of a true fantasy.
This project was a considerable under taking, and the results are marvelous.
