What is the film about?

Produced as part of the 14th edition of Hothouse.

“Wash your hands. Turn off the lights. And don’t forget your prayers to Ganesh.” Having fun with comicbook motifs and plasticine, Akash Jones honours the no-nonsense second- generation immigrant mother who raised him, instilling habits that guide him to this day. Stop-motion animation that says, “Love ya Mom.”

What influenced it?

My influences for this film were memories I had of being a child, as well as the wooden sculptures and paintings that we often see Indian artifacts and gods depicted with. I also was inspired by object animations, which can give a tangible feel to products and relics from people’s pasts. I view filmmaking and animation as a way to immortalize memories, so I was influenced by many animations that filmmakers use to cement experiences or relationships in their work.

A little background information...

Akash Jones (Photo: Fannie-Laurence Dubé-Dupuis, courtesy of NFB)

The film’s background is the accumulation of things my mother taught me, which I realized provide a foundation for my day-to-day life was reminding my girlfriend one day to wipe the counter and thought, Wow, I sound just like my mom. I reflected on all the habits that I just took up subconsciously from her years of teaching, and it made me realize the impact she had on me. I made this film to show my thanks to her for all the values and habits she has instilled in me, because they help me take care of my apartment, myself and the people around me. I am also Bengali, and some of the topics touched on in the film are cultural practices, so I had my mother narrate the short in the same language that I was scolded in throughout the events that make up the film.

How was the film made?

My film was made using stop-motion and puppets that we created out of wood and clay. We chose a colourful style to mimic a childlike essence for the memories from my past. We made two versions of me, old and young, to represent the time periods within the animation. The puppet was shot within mini-sets that were recreations of my childhood home, with exaggerated colours ofthe rooms I grew up in. The subtitles were later shot using clay and wooden letters on glass to be composited in; this was to represent the physical manifestation of my mother’s voice, since that is how it felt as a kid. We wanted to make almost everything out of wood and clay to mirror materials used in my culture’s sculpture-making, which can be seen specifically through the authentic Ganesh statue that appears in one of the film’s scenes.