I did this for my core class at UC Santa Cruz. The description follows. Geez, this took so much time to do. Enjoy.

Jeffrey’s Encounter With Art
Jeffrey Faden

My final project is a 4-minute animation done in Macromedia Flash. I had my friends provide the voices, and I did all of the art, animation, writing, and otherwise directing. It took me about 72 hours of straight work (and about 200 mg of caffeine) to complete this project.

My intent in making this animation is to show that one’s identity isn’t necessarily so enigmatic that it has to be conveyed through an obscure art form that often makes no sense. What I’ve seen from past personal experience is that some people try to pass off quickly-made collages or marker drawings as something deeper than it actually is.

To further prove this point, this project required the most effort I’ve ever into any project. It’s not meant to strengthen my ego in saying that all this hard work is much more important and meaningful than others that might not have taken as much time, but it’s the fact that the form is animation, which I love doing, and that it conveys my identity by showing that I am passionate about what I like.

Another important aspect is the concept of humor in my work. I was originally planning on making something very different that would attempt to make people reflect deeply on it, but decided to pass that up for something that would be more enjoyable for me to make and for people to watch. And my humor is also a part of me, as I’ve written comics for years.

While this project might come off as a cartoon that ridicules the work of other people, it should also inspire thought into what the art world is comprised of, and it should show that perceptions of works of art can be extremely skewed based on the viewer.