Behind the Lens

“It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings

I could not think of a better way to encapsulate how I feel about starting my Substack journey than from the words of Bilbo Baggins. During uncertain times, I often find solace in the world of Middle Earth whether it is rewatching the Trilogy or letting the music of Howard Shore fill the void. Writing this first post brought a similar sense of uncertainty, a hesitant anticipation that made everything feel more real.

If you’ve made it this far, thanks for joining me. Let me share a bit about myself and the exciting plans I have for this newsletter.

Who I Am

The photo above was taken during my recent experience working on a short film for a studio down in Leith, Edinburgh called Eyebolls. The film is currently in post-production stage, so I can’t reveal too much about it just yet but I was the lead animator and I am super excited to see the final result. However, for a later post, once the film is released, I’ll share a more details about my experience on set, my process and the final film.

My journey to this point has been anything but typical for someone pursuing a career in animation and filmmaking. The path has been unconventional, but it’s shaped how I approach my work today and how I’ll tackle future ambitions. Before discovering the world of moving images, I was a table tennis player representing my country on the world and European stage. Competing at that level was a privilege, not just for the sport, but for the chance to travel the globe and experience diverse cultures. After two years of full-time training in Sweden, I returned to Scotland with a renewed focus on further education and my future career.

As of now, I’m in the final formal stages of my PhD, having passed the Viva with minor corrections. I’ve submitted those corrections and am now awaiting the completion of the final steps. By the time you read this, I might officially be a Doctor (of animation). At least, that’s the hope! I wanted to give you a bit of an insight on the work I have done and what I hope to do in the future.

Below is a still from Cyclic, the animated documentary I created as part of my PhD. 10 minutes of runtime, 15,000 individual frames, and a lot of patience to bring this project to life. The focus of my research was the transition students take from university to industry in Scotland and how to better improve development pathways for individuals looking for a career in animation.

However, as a practitioner, it ignited more of a desire to continue down the path of making my own films which is something I plan to document and experience through this process. My primary goal is to become a filmmaker—a storyteller who can connect with any audience willing to listen. For me, success isn't measured by numbers; finding even one person who resonates with my work would be enough. What matters most is expressing myself, continually improving, learning from my mistakes, and sharing my stories.

I hope you can see from the glimpse below, that tactility and form is important to me. Stop-motion gives me textural quality as a practitioner. It allows me to use the medium to help shape the atmosphere and experience the viewer has. Perhaps from this single still frame you get a sense about the narrative unfolding… Now I just need to continue along the path of development and discovery.

As well as filmmaking, I have ventured into the storytelling world of still images. The interest in photography has always been there for me, first as an admirer and a student who appreciates works of art. However, when COVID restrictions lifted, I felt an urge to escape the dark confines of the animator’s studio and reconnect with the outside world. Away from the intense focus on short films and moving images, I sought to improve my skills with a camera and rediscover the feeling of fresh air. That’s when I started street photography. What began as a simple escape from the studio quickly evolved into an intense and creative endeavour, opening up new ways for me to tell stories and capture the world around me.

Naively, I did not fully appreciate the overlap between photography and animation, the close relations both disciplines share and how I could improve both art-forms by engaging with them simultaneously. With that I hopefully have summed up who I am. That is where I currently am in my current point in time… an eager and naive animator with ambitious next steps to take…

What to Expect by Subscribing!

This newsletter is all about creating, specifically making films and telling stories through visual imagery. As an animator I am fascinated in the way which a single frame can inspire new ideas, evoke the deepest emotions and help people escape to new worlds. At the heart of that, is the desire to know why we create and how we create. By subscribing I am hoping you will join me on this journey of discovery and enjoy reading about my own work as well as reviews of important cinema to me!

I will start with two sections with the hope to expand to further depending on how the journey unravels.

In the series titled: Frame by Frame: ReView, I’ll delve into the cinema and photography that have inspired my own creative journey so far. My goal is to spark new influences for others and foster conversations around the ideas and inspirations behind images, both moving and still. I want to also do my best to share my thoughts on the current state of cinema, as we navigate a landscape filled with the carcasses of old franchises, filled with sequel and prequel obsessed vultures. Perhaps the light of originality and renewal will soon dispel the darkness once more…we can only hope.

Visual Reflections will be an ongoing blog series where I share insights into my creative process. Whether it's a day in the life of an animator or a photography project I've worked on, I'll explore the thoughts and motivations behind my work. The series will feature a mix of longer essays and shorter pieces, covering my films and visual experiments, as I seek to better understand myself as a filmmaker and photographer. Beyond writing, I’m excited to share visual content for you to enjoy and engage with. I look forward to using this platform as a space to explore and showcase my work.

Before I press the button and turn the Substack into a reality, I want to leave you with this image, a recent photo I made in Edinburgh. Perhaps leave you with a taste of what is to come and what you might see… I shot in this Edinburgh while dodging the oncoming Fringe activity. A hectic time. An erratic period within the city. This image however, for me, made the stress of that environment worth it… Movement in a single frame. I was delighted with this image. My intention was to use a lower shutter speed and match the movement of a subject in motion, but the result for me was so much more. It showed me how I feel sometimes in Edinburgh, fleeting moments, too quick to take in but enough to remember the important details. It reminded me of a quote from photographer David Alan Harvey.

“Don’t shoot what it looks like. Shoot what it feels like.”

That is ultimately my goal, to create visual work that makes people feel. Not getting bogged down in the technical details (despite important for me to know) and enjoy the making process. I want to take my emotions and the stories I’m passionate about and watch them evolve and take on new life through your engagement and connection. Perhaps an obvious ambition for anyone who is creating work… but important for me to state and write down. Now I just need to work at making it happen. Thank you for sticking with me to the end of my first post! I hope you enjoyed it and got to know the person behind the words. I'm really excited to start this journey and can’t wait to hear your thoughts as you join me. Until next time.

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