producer | writer | backgrounds & vis dev
Short Animated Film
Lost and Found (2024)
Roles: Production Assistant, Background Layout Artist
Synopsis:
A young boy, Nino, wakes up lost in the heart of the sea with no recollection of himself, only to be rescued by a mysterious ferryman. Begging to stay with the man, Nino rides in the small boat as it sails them across wondrous scenery. Here is where Nino will discover his greatest loss.
Director: Edzalyn Gaudinez
Producers: Edzalyn Gaudinez & Alexandra Talbot
Duration: 4 minutes 27 seconds
Genre: Folktale, Adventure, Mystery
Release Date: TBD
Poster by Alexandra Talbot
Lost and Found (2024) has been awarded for the following at Griffith Film School.
Nominations: 'Best Animation Production Management,' 'Best Animation Background Art,' and 'Best Animation.'
Awards: 'Best Animation Background Art,' 'Best Animation Production Design,' and 'Best Visual Effects for Animation.'
Accolades: Melbourne International Animation Festival - Australian Showcase (Nominee)
About the Production
Lost and Found (2024) is a 2D animated graduate project from Griffith University inspired by Filipino folklore and highlights how visual imagery is a powerful storytelling tool. From the start, it was clear that this production was going to be a challenge due to the proposed cinematic art style, 2D handrawn method, and the time constraints to complete the film in less than a year.
The director, Edzalyn, who previously assisted as an artist on Cadence (2023) reached out to myself and a few other graduates for advice, and assistance on the film as background layout artists. After trying to recruit a suitable Producer with no luck, and a declining morale, I also offered to step in as a Production Assistant, assisting in the more menial tasks to try and alleviate the extraneous pressure they were putting on themselves to create a 'perfect' film.
As I was already a graduate from the previous year, the scope of how much we were permitted to contribute was small. Alongside my layout, I assisted the team in reassessing their priorities, maintaining clear schedules and setting weekly milestone goals to ensure production stayed on track. I provided insight into what did and didn't work on my own film and what I would implement instead for future projects.
While the team had excellent Project Leads (Director, Art Director and VFX Director), it was clear that communication and decisions made between the three were not trickling down into the rest of them team, resulting in members working on tasks that were no longer needed or changed but were uninformed. I had a meeting with them to establish weekly updates and how to effectively address changes as priorities fluctuated, and to value the time of their peers.
These updates proved useful as it reduced the amount of back and forth between the team and the leads regarding deadlines and universal questions, facilitating a positive, professional environment.
I have included below, examples of my tasks and responsibilities as LnF's Production Assistant.
Contribution