Nate King

Deep within a forest, the paths of a boy, a bird, and a stone converge in a fragile incident of child curiosity.  Old Rag Mountain is a classic coming-of-age tale.  The child is in the past, unaware of what it means to cause hurt.  The adult waits in the future, aware of actions and consequences, aware of his mortality.  The boy learns he must confront his remorse and chooses to lay down his weapon. The short combines multiple animation techniques all composited together.  Backgrounds were made with painted paper cutouts, the rock was rendered as a 3D object, and the bird was painted frame by frame. I wanted to explore something very meaningful to me within this work, namely the environment, forests, and mountains.  There was something special about being young and exploring woods on summer days, and I hoped to capture some of that curiosity within the work. This piece was completed as my thesis film for Pratt Institute.