NFB Hothouse 11: ‘Fyoog’ (Curtis Horsburgh)
This week on Skwigly we’re delighted to meet the participants of the National Film Board of Canada‘s 11th Hothouse apprenticeship scheme for emerging Canadian animators.
Hailing from Calgary, Curtis Horsburgh is Victoria-based, mixed media animation artist whose work combines traditional and digital methods and materials, such as 2D, stop-motion, sculpture, marbling ink and spray paint. Having studied in Edmonton and Ontario, Curtis developed a passion for animation following “a long time and a lot of student debt”.
On the production of Fyoog:
Fyoog is a multimedia experiment, a game, playing with stop motion and 2D animation. It’s about the dream world and the waking world and the continuum of absurd wonder in between. There is something about trains and animation and dreams and graffiti… I used to take the C-Train in Calgary to high school every day. I used to study the graffiti on Queen Street in Toronto. When I heard the found-sound audio clip of a Toronto subway train, I couldn’t get it out of my head.
The stop-motion interior frame idea came to me in the middle of a yoga class. It felt like a weird thing I hadn’t seen before. I love many different styles and mediums and I like to combine them in fun and meaningful ways whenever possible.
On the benefits of Hothouse:
I learned that a dedicated production team is a powerful thing, with its own beautiful alchemical process. The film reacts in some way to the movement of everyone involved. Luckily everyone involved believed in the idea and in the power of animated storytelling. The generosity of the entire team made everything possible.
What next?
I bought an old delivery truck. I’m moving into it… it’s going to be like an animation tree-house on wheels.
Keep your eyes on Skwigly over the coming days to hear more from the Hothouse 11 participants. To learn more about the work of Curtis Horsburgh visit curtishorsburgh.tumblr.com and his continuous-image blog skrowl.com