Chopped liver day for Jungle Book
(some poster doodles)
After getting extensive reviews and advice from Daan and Wilbert, I've really been put to think. Almost been put down. But in the end, when all is said and done, there are indeed some points to be made about Junglebook and how it's not working as it is. I know it's not working, I want it to work, but I know deep down it's not.
And also, I don't think it would not be working at all to have to complete a first half and then lateron after graduation to be still working on it for what could easily be two months to complete the rest. That just won't do. I want to finish this movie, have my say on life, the universe and everything and then move on to something new preferably before I graduate. There's still so many stories I want to tell in animation and in comic book form and this will not be the greatest movie I ever made (that would be a rather grim outlook on my career if it would be), but it will be the greatest one I have made so far. I should treat it accordingly and not be so damn epic and angsty about it. That gets in the way of my better judgement.
So it's time to put up some priorities. What do I want about this movie? More than anything I want certain images. Certain storypoints. Not even the complete story or how I get from one point to the other. That doesn't mean to me as much as the mood, and the images. I don't really care about how I get there, as long as I get there and finally for once get the message straight. Beyond the Window (my second year movie) suffered a great deal because of the vagueness and last moment decisions I made. No more.
So for the time being we have more or less this:
-Mowgli = happy with animal friends and forest
-Friends disappear after a roaring sound
-Mowgli think the roar is from the tiger and goes out to hunt it for revenge
-Upon getting there, there's no tiger but a machine
-The machine cuts down the forest and menaches the hell out of him
-Mowgli thinks the machine might be a tiger (sounds the same, looks a bit the same, and threatens him)
-So he tries to charge it as he would a tiger (perhaps in a not so epic way as before as it steals the climax at the end)
-But fails miserably as he appears now to be in a modern city amidst people and machines (the machines kept on building)
-Freaked out like hell he runs around in search of familiarity.
-When he sees it, he is overjoyed and runs towards images of plants and animals
-He finds himself in a large domed buidling and rejoices
-For he sees all his animal friends and the trees
-Then he is shocked to find them killed and stuffed and we now clearly see he's in a museum that has his friends on display.
-Mowgli gives up on modern life and joins the exhibition in anguish. (the public by now should feel either very depressed or feel guilty about being human - I'll get back at you Frederic Back!!! See how you like it!)
http://junglebook.hku.nl/jb2
In the old storyboard, I was taking a lot of time to have Mowgli charge the tiger twice, get picked up by a crowd and transported to the city. Now he could already be in the city and amidst the vehicles so that this part can be summarized. I've got till tomorrow night to make it work. Wish me luck.