In our contemporary moment, which some are suggesting is a “Golden Age” of American television, programs featuring Latinx characters, especially Latinas, remain scarce. The history of Latinx representation in American television is filled with stereotypical portrayals of violent drug dealers and forlorn domestic workers. This thesis examines how the animated fantasy television program Elena of Avalor (2016-) offers alternative, and potentially empowering, narratives for Latinas. Elena challenges gender norms, explores the ramifications of colonialism, and imagines a world in which whiteness is not the default. However, the show often fails to acknowledge the colorist and anti-Black discourses prevalent within the US and Latin America. as a product of the Disney empire – a corporation that for years has faced criticism for its portrayals of Latinxs in their live action and animated films and shows – Elena embodies the struggle for representation and the fight against commodification. Though a “Latina Disney Princess” can be a source of inspiration to Latinas around the world, there remains the question of how the Latina body is commodified by and for white, non-Latinx consumers. By analyzing the episodes and tie-in merchandise of Elena alongside other Latina-centric programs like Once Upon a Time (2011-2018) and Disney films like Saludos Amigos (1942), I argue that Hollywood’s fixation with cultural and ethnic authenticity is reifying hegemonic notions of Latinidad. While shows like Elena have the potential to dispel stereotypical understandings of Latin America, the US film and television industry continues to disregard the cultural complexity of its Latinx viewers, normalizing whiteness and exoticizing Latinidad.

My thesis project, entitled The Curse Breaker, is a personal and career venture studying the medium of 2D animation while battling my struggle with cigarette addiction. I researched and applied symbolism and narrative strategies while building an impactful hero narrative. Joseph Campbell's The Hero with a Thousand Faces provided insight into the monomyth and hero archetypes. Character and environment designs implemented symbolism as a driving focus of my thesis and fueled the semantic interpretation needed to successfully communicate my struggle with the audience in a non-verbal fashion. The language of cinematography aided in the effectiveness of my thesis film. The use of focal points and transitional wipes helped blend my film cohesively. Understanding the 2D pipeline with the production of my film, my thesis aligns with current industry demand. Large streaming companies have acknowledged this demand and invested heavily in new 2D animated content catering to children and adults.

Un-Portalable! is an animated multimedia short film about two friends who become fused together after using a faulty teleporter. They attempt to conceal their deformity while simultaneously navigating a social situation with one of their friends. The main focus in the film is the concept that boundaries tend to become clearer as they begin to break. This conceptual focus merges into the visual theory of the film in which highly expressive character design and hybrid media utilization are driven by relational and narrative design choices. This film serves as a condensed pilot and proof of concept for a larger prospective serialized work. The construction of the physical aspects of Un-Portalable! allow for flexibility in camera angles that benefits not only production of the film itself, but also future projects within the potential series.

It is only through the strength of bonds that we can overcome evil. In Crossed, these bonds are tested as Calum and Dmitri are forced to duel for their lives. The film explores the themes of indoctrination, belief, the power of friendship, and never giving up on the people you care about. The accompanying paper explores how these themes are integral to who we are. I then explore the process of producing animation utilizing cutting-edge mediums and how these mediums can allow us to create animation in an entirely new way.

A pop music video is a form of media containing incongruous surrealistic imagery with a narrative structure supplied by song lyrics. The lyrics' presence allows filmmakers to digress from sequential imagery through introduction of nonlinear visual elements. I will analyze these surrealist film elements through several post-modern philosophies to better understand how this animated audio-visual synthesis resides in the larger world of art theory and its relationship to the popular music video. This analysis coincides with the practical and theoretical experimentation evident in the film companion to this thesis, Slapper the Cat: A Musical Cartoon. A long-form animated music video with a satirical take on elitism, this film's artistic and comedic influences form a bricolage through the use of signs outside of their originating context. I designed and recorded all music and voices along with visuals in the "total artwork" style. The forthcoming analysis in this thesis shall also delineate the ideological characteristics of the cinema spectator and the connection between mediums. Elements of Slapper will be contextualized to illuminate the concept of high versus low art, success, and openness to innovation. Finally, this writing and accompanying film aspire to reveal the positive potentials for synergistic audio-visual experiences.

Castle of Unknowing is a rendered virtual reality (VR) experience presented as visual poem. As VR is a nascent technology, content is still limited, and methods of storytelling are not yet formalized. My film seeks to expand the breadth of what types of narratives are being told with this medium. The project is an immersive, experiential narrative imbued with symbolism. The viewer moves through a fixed sequence as they are taken on a journey which mixes elements of sci-fi, fairy tale, and surrealism. It utilizes compelling visuals and sound instead of traditional narrative to evoke an emotional response within the viewer. The immersive aspect of VR allows for the reification of surreal visuals which metaphorically convey an inward journey, creating a sense of mystery and inquiry within the viewer. The experience reframes the relationship of subject and object, making the spectator a participant in a surrealist allegory exploring the themes of suffering and transformation. To view the experience visit: https://youtu.be/Vsr4swts1X4

Storm is an animated short film that follows a family of Florida Sandhill Cranes. The family experiences a storm that destroys their nest and separates them from their smallest chick. The reunion of the cranes, at the end of the film, symbolizes that the sense of home consists of the members of the family, and not the physical place. The film combines digital two-dimensional (2D) animation with traditional paint on glass animation to create visual contrast between the cranes and the storm. The stylistic choices that I have made include showcasing paint strokes, going with a lineless and painterly animation style, using colour to highlight emotions, and animal characters that have anthropomorphic expressions. The fluidity of the paint strokes reiterates the naturalistic story of the cranes. Allowing the medium to come through strongly in the final animation is a quality that I strived for in my thesis short film. I want the paint strokes to be a focus, not hidden within the animation.

Cycles is a 3D animated short film about a father who struggles to keep up with his daughter as she races through life. Whereas most coming-of-age films focus solely on the journey of the adolescent, Cycles subverts the expectations of the genre by exploring the impact growing up has on both the parent and child in tandem. As a film, Cycles relies on the careful and deliberate use of tropes, informed character and environment design, and established cinematic devices to support the story's theme of accepting change. Though my personal experience inspired this film, it evolved into a contemporary and universal example of the coming-of-age genre through iteration and thorough research. While viewing Cycles, I invite the audience to reflect upon their own experiences with maturation, growth, and familial conflict. To view the film, click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Ag9Ib1rjU8

Reflexive art makes explicit the inherent connection between artistic process, intertextual context, and an audience to create an intentional dialogue with its audience by tapping into the duality inherent in spectatorship - awareness of both the creation process and the final product, and participation in one or both through viewership. In this study I analyze several pieces across three mediums––film (Funny Games (2007), The Poughkeepsie Tapes (2007)), theatre (Ubu Roi (1896)), and video games (The Stanley Parable (2013), Bioshock (2007))––and consider audience reviews to determine how audiences are affected by reflexivity in each. Through the lens of the horror genre I consider reflexivity––and the liminal, intertextual, and interactive methods employed to achieve it––as a form of cultural reflection in which an art work calls upon its audience to reflect on how it has been created and on their place in that process as viewers. Explicitly and inescapably reflexive works of the horror/adjacent genre, such as those discussed herein, allow spectators to renew their awareness of the implications of art as both a cultural community and as individuals. While impeding some aspects of entertainment or enjoyment for audiences in the moment, as suggested by audience reviews, reflexivity seems to make these popular media works all the more culturally enduring.

The purpose of this paper and film is to explore the animated medium's ability to convey controversial political topics. The goal of this film is to reach my audience on an emotional level, which will hopefully motivate them to act on the information presented. By using animated themes and metaphors, the audience can digest the political messaging by disassociating themselves from the characters in the story. This will allow them to be open to other perspectives. This paper will explore how one can use the aesthetic quality of animation imagery to convey an important political message about our environment. The hybrid combination of two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) animation mediums creates a unique visual style utilizing texture and movement to reinforce the story. By using the style to supplement a story, the message could be emphasized and reiterated throughout the film, again optimizing the ability of a short to deliver the intended message.