Expressionism Animation - Regina Pessoa

 In order to do my project, I considered it important to understand, in addition to the animations that exist in the classics that I mentioned in the previous posts, to know animations that could somehow relate to expressionism. The first artist I chose was Regina Pessoa, a Portuguese animator who graduated from the School of Fine Arts in Porto. Her first animation was "A noite". (Gordeeff, 2013)

Image from the animation “A noite”

We can see in Regina Pessoa's drawings, the influences of expressionism, with distorted scenarios, the light-dark contrast, exaggerated expressions, among other aspects. (gordeeff, 2013) In Regina's animations, we can see the inspiration she had from the movie “The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari”.

Images from the animation x Images from “The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari”.

I also liked the drawings that Regina made inspired by Goeldi's prints, which I don't know, but to whom I will dedicate a post. These images of animation make me understand better how I should work the backgrounds of my animation, to somehow fit into the theme of Expressionism.

Animation image x Engravings by Goeldi

In the film "A noite" I watched a short excerpt, available at (18) A NOITE de Regina Pessoa (1999) – excerto – YouTube,  Regina does what I want in my animation, being able to make an animation without dialogues, managing to capture what I want only with sounds or music. The animation environment alone is enough to give us a dark look, in the case of this scene of a child who is afraid of the night.

Image from the film “A noite”

In 2005, Regina made the animation "A tragic story with a happy ending", an animation with narration. It tells the story of a different girl, whose heart beat faster and louder than other people. The scenarios are bleak, with some distortion. The main character's face is well marked with negative emotions. This animation relates to the animations with which I identify, characters and scenes in black and white. However, I have to be able to bring more expressiveness to my characters and this animation helps to understand how it is possible to do this. We can watch a part of the animation in História Trágica com Final Feliz - 21/07/2006 - UOL TV e Famosos

Image from the film “A tragic story with a happy ending” where we can see how Regina defines the expression of the characters making a combination with the light and dark tones and highlighting features on the face to make them darker and more highlighted.

Another image from the same film, where we can highlight the dark aspect of the scenery and the characters.

According to P3 (2014), Regina Pessoa's film, "Kali, the little vampire" was classified as "international cultural heritage" by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). 

With this animated film, Regina won more than twenty awards at international festivals, being nominated for the Annie (Oscars of animation) and Cartoon d'Or. It is an animation made by drawing and computer engraving and is available at the following link: Kali, o Pequeno Vampiro - SAPO Vídeos

Regina already highlights some elements with a color that stands out in dark tones, such as red, which is a good idea when we want to emphasize a certain aspect. The characters present themselves with a prominent face and very large eyes, showing their expressions well. The idea of ​​creating characters that do not follow the real and detailed features of humans, being human, is very interesting. Throughout the animation, they show some deformation, some movements highlight this deformation. A very interesting idea.

With the example of Regina Pessoa, I realized better how I can make my animation, get closer to some expressionist aspects.

Images from the film, "Kali, the little vampire“, I chose these because we can see how she uses the color highlighted in the dark tones to make an idea stand out.

References:

Gordeeff, E. (2013) Animated Expressionism in the work of Regina Pessoa. [online] Available from: (PDF) Animated Expressionism in the work of Regina Pessoa / O Expressionismo Animado na Obra de Regina Pessoa (researchgate.net)  [Accessed 20/01/29]

P3 (2014) UNESCO destaca “Kali, o pequeno vampiro”, de Regina Pessoa. [online] Available from: UNESCO destaca “Kali, o pequeno vampiro”, de Regina Pessoa | Cinema | PÚBLICO (publico.pt)  [Accessed 20/01/29]

Ramos, J. (2020) A NOITE de Regina Pessoa (1999) – excerto. [Youtube vídeo] Available at: (18) A NOITE de Regina Pessoa (1999) – excerto – YouTube [Accessed 20/01/29]

Sapo vídeos (2012) Kali, o pequeno vampiro.  [Online Video] Available from:  Kali, o Pequeno Vampiro - SAPO Vídeos [Accessed 20/01/29]

UOL entretenimento (s.d.) História Trágica com um final feliz. [Online vídeo] Available at: História Trágica com Final Feliz - 21/07/2006 - UOL TV e Famosos [Accessed 20/01/29]