In my first ever computer-animated film, Dream, I aimed to create a surreal and visually compelling subway scene by combining elements of subway architecture, characters’ movement, lighting, camera work, and sound.

To make a woman's subway ride turn into a flight of imagination, the music, an aria from La Bohème, was a catalyst in this film. The song transports a woman from an empty subway car, out of the tunnels, into the mountains, and finally into outer space.

My focus was to create seamless transitions from the real world to the dream world, conveying the woman's emotions to their extreme. Dream marked my first realization of the possibility of a moving collage created using digital tools.

Distributor

Indieflix.com

Synopsis

A woman walks into the subway station. Suddenly, a man approaches her and starts singing. While listening to his song, she starts daydreaming. In her dream, she flies to the moon.

Casr & Crew

Directed by Masayo Nishimura
Sound Design by Satoshi Nakamura
Cast: Sam McKelton (man's voice)

Software & Hardware used

Alias PowerAnimator (version 8.5 and 9.0)
Silicon Graphics 02 and Octane
Composer 5.0
After Effects
ProTools

Create at the School of Visual Arts, the graduate Computer Art Program, 1999

Screening & Awards

Selected Screenings
2000 Black Maria Film Festival, Jersey City, New Jersey
2000 Cinequest San Jose Film Festival, San Jose, California
2000 Dallas Video Festival, Dallas, Texas
2000 New Directors/New Films, Film Society of Lincoln Center & Museum of Modern Art, New York (screened at MOMA)
2000 Film Fest New Haven, New Haven, Connecticut
2000 Taos Talking Picture Film Festival, Taos, New Mexico
2000 Thaw 00:Festival of Video, Film, and Digital media, Iowa City, Iowa
2000 ARCIPELAGO-Festival Internazionale di Cortometraggi e Nuove Immagini, Rome, Italy, 2000 Stony Brook Film Festival, Stony Brook, New York
2000 CYNETart 00, Dresden, Germany
1999 ANIMAC, Mostra Internacional De Cinema D'animacio, Lleida, Spain
1999 San Luis Obispo International Film Festival, San Luis Obispo, California
1999 The Louisville Film and Video Festival, Louisville, Kentucky
1999 The New York Exposition of Short Film and Video, NYC, New York
1999 Telluride IndieFest, Telluride, Colorado

Awards:
2000 Director's Choice Award, Black Maria Film Festival
2000 Student Academy Award, New York regional finalist
2000 Honorable Mention, Rochester International Film Festival
1999 Honorable Mention, San Luis Obispo International Film Festival
1999 Jurors' Award, The Louisville Film and Video Festival
1999 Jury Award, The New York Exposition of Short Film and Video Festival
1999 Short Video Winner, Telluride IndieFest

Bibliography:
2000 ND/NF: Short Films Make it Big, Where You'll Find the Next Spike Jonze by Anthony Kaufman, http://indiewire.com
New Haven Advocate: Film Fe(a)st New Haven - The Reviews, Year 2000.(newhavenadvocate.com)
Finalists Selected for 27th Student Academy Awards (www.oscars.org)

Television Broadcasting:
2003 WNET/Thirteen, the eighth annual Reel New York
2000 The Territory, programmed by South West Alternative Media Project (SWAMP)