Girl of the moment Lesley Barnes took a moment out of her busy schedule to cyber chat with Picasso about her latest directorial effort, Apple, created to accompany the winning entry for Channel 4's 'Random' Spoken word competition, screened earlier this week...
Picasso: How did you decide on a look for this piece after first encountering it?
Lesley: I wanted something really simple and graphic that would enhance the words of the poem, not distract from them, so I kept it really stylised and incorporated text into the designs for the animation. I wanted the language of the poem to do the talking rather than the pictures.
P: Is it difficult to create something born from someone else's work?
L: I think it's really special as you can add some of your own spin to someone else's creation and transform it into something more.
P: How would you describe the finished animation?
L: life. death and apples
P: Were there any unique challenges presented with this project?
L: The main challenge was to capture the essence of the poem and try to follow its rhythm and flow. The other challenge was the timeframe we had to work with! We had just over a week to design and animate it all!
P: You worked recently on a Belle and Sabastian promo, how did Apple differ to working on that?
L: I think they are completely different! I had a few months to devote to the Belle and Sebastian promo and I could indulge my love of colour, pattern, detail and dancing bears to my hearts content!
P: Is it a thrill to know your work will go from a studio to being beamed into every living room?
L: It's very strange and slightly scary!
See the full film below:
Apple from Picasso Pictures on Vimeo.
