What is the film about?

With each moment, the protagonist feels irritated or underwhelmed by something in her environment. She makes adjustments in order to create a shift and regain a sense of contentment. The external and the internal play out simultaneously offering the spectator a choice of where to look.

What influenced it?

Jaybirds is moved by feelings of attraction, frustration and nostalgia. We are watching the scene through the protagonist’s eyes, experiencing her internalised thoughts and only mark her presence in the final moment, at which point the internal and reality become difficult to distinguish. Though crafted from queer experience, the character depicted is complex and disheartened, and therefore relatable to anyone.

A creative influence for the film was Chytilová’s Daisies (1966). Allowing a character to physically manipulate the frame in which they exist interested me and I wanted to develop this within the realms of animation, playing with, or queering, traditional manipulation techniques.

A little background information...

Jaybirds is part of a wider initiative to investigate the wellbeing possibilities of the stop motion process.
Since finishing production of Jaybirds, I have been developing a project that engages vulnerable adults through animation workshops. The workshops, run by a new partnership of Manchester-based animators and Arts and Health professionals, will conclude in the production and exhibition of original short films made with participants.

How was the film made?

We shot the film using a multiplane, rostrum camera. Across four layers of glass we were able to shoot everything in one shot, using only in-camera techniques.
The first scene is made entirely from raw materials; handmade paper, grass, wool and tree bark. As the film develops, more artificial materials are introduced.