Animation should be considered as an industry that has the potential to progress and develop, and despite being time-consuming, it is possible to earn through it. We have to upgrade ourselves technically, we tried to use the latest equipment and work approaches”, Ali Basiri Nik, the director of the animated film “Journey to Darkness,” said.
According to the Young Journalists Committee of the 35th International Children and Youth Film Festival, Ali Basiri Nik gave an explanation about his animation in a press conference after the first screening of the film in the festival.
“Journey to Darkness” narrates the story of a boy who travels deep in time and encounters one of the most strategic events in the history of Iran in the last hundred years, the Goharshad Mosque movement.
“My reason for using a historical theme is the importance of teaching today’s children and youth our culture traditions in our clothing, lifestyle and moral values. They were the issues that promoted us to make a conceptual work”, Basiri said.
“We also did a detailed research on the historical events of Goharshad Mosque movement in order to be sure of the accuracy of the story, atmosphere and character design and to correctly convey these issues to the new generation”, the director noted.
“One of the attractions of animation production is a group of artists coming together and working in a coherent manner. We had days when the crew worked late and even spent a few sleepless nights to complete the project by the deadline of the festival. In this project, we used young native artists and created a platform for these people to gain experience and skills. The animation production process is difficult and time-consuming, the cooperation and effort of each individual in different departments completes the work”, he added.
Referring to the high cost of animation rendering and its less use in Iranian animations, the director said that, “we used software for creating locations that was only used in the context of the game, because of this we had weaknesses in rendering. We made all the locations of the film, including the Imam Reza Mosque, the neighborhoods around it, the bazaar, etc. in 3D. Then we determined and placed the location of the cameras and started lighting”.
In his final speech, he emphasized: animation should be considered as an industry that has the potential for progress and development, and despite being time-consuming, it is possible to earn through it. We have to upgrade ourselves technically, we tried to use the latest equipment and work approaches.
The 35th International Festival of Children and Youth Films is taking place in Isfahan from October 7 to 12, 2023.
