In celebration of the return of Adult Swim's "The Boondocks", I was hired to direct this fun promotional short. The brief for this project was pretty open, so I had the pleasure of coming up with a completely original narrative. The goal was to create something bold that embodies the clever, stylish, and subversive way with which the show tackles serious subject matter. After watching, be sure to check out the extensive design exploration.
Client: Adult Swim
Studio: Carboni Studio
Design, Direction & Animation: Chris Carboni
When first approached for this project, my immediate idea was to create something abstract. When viewing these frames, imagine a folded plane - each line in the mosaic representing a crease in the surface - constantly shifting, compressing and expanding in rhythm to the track...
The color and treatment of the material continues to change until the silhouette of a character walking is revealed...
The camera cuts in and out as the artwork continues to jump between styles at a quicker pace, nearly creating a strobe effect...
We shift to a front perspective as Huey continues to walk, cropping in on different parts of his strut in a continuous rhythm...
As much as I liked the abstract direction, In the end, we opted for an approach that adheres closer to the themes and energy of the show. The gritty textures and rough brush work felt more appropriate, and the shifting background content gave us a chance to explore lots of ideas in a way that still felt cohesive.