Return
March 2023 – June 2023
Return is my 2023 graduation short film delving into the idea of freedom and self-determination in post-colonialism. Inspired by Aimé Césaire's 'Notebook of a Return to the Native Land' and many many conversations, books, artworks exploring the topic. It tells the story of reclaiming one’s narrative after a period of oppression, using African artefacts such as a wooden comb as vessels for the message.
This project was born from a family trip to Congo in December 2022 and a wooden comb I bought at an artisanal market. I asked myself these questions: Why is it so cheap when the artwork is so intricate? What would have happened if it had fallen into the hands of an art collector in the era of colonial expansion and loot? How is African art perceived in the West and why is it so fetishised? Why is it still in these museums?
I then started my journey, exploring the world of curation, African artefacts, museums and their legitimacy.
I then started my journey, exploring the world of curation, African artefacts, museums and their legitimacy.
My research process started at the museum. There, I wondered why these African objects, sometimes completely mundane like cups, stools and decorative statuettes to ritualistic like masks, weapons and garments were here and displayed in such ways.
Conversations with random visitors, peers and friends helped me narrow down my very wide subject matter. I decided to focus on a more personal narrative as I realised that there is not one truth to the story.
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As a lover of textures, I naturally leaned towards coloured pencils to animate. I enjoy how both precise and rough they can be, giving the artwork so much energy and emotion.
All my animation clips were created in a patchwork way of working. I drew everything on paper with no background, scanned and made the images transparent and composited in After Effects. I used both analogue and digital techniques, painting a background and textures on paper and scanning them to overlay and edit them on Photoshop.
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Conversations with random visitors, peers and friends helped me narrow down my very wide subject matter. I decided to focus on a more personal narrative as I realised that there is not one truth to the story.
As a lover of textures, I naturally leaned towards coloured pencils to animate. I enjoy how both precise and rough they can be, giving the artwork so much energy and emotion.
All my animation clips were created in a patchwork way of working. I drew everything on paper with no background, scanned and made the images transparent and composited in After Effects. I used both analogue and digital techniques, painting a background and textures on paper and scanning them to overlay and edit them on Photoshop.
For the voiceover, I took inspiration from Aimé Césaire's 'Notebook of a Return to the Native Land'. I liked the voice in which he told his story, the tone he used and how clearly the emotion transpired. I modeled his writing style by using repetitions, rhymes and a strong visual vocabulary.