‘Fighting Fish’ is the collision of the sculpture and motion design practices of North Boy South aka multi-award winning motion artist Simon Robson.

 

2020 with all its ructions has allowed time for many creatives to re-evaluate their paths and Simon is no exception. After years of secretly dreaming and drafting his sculptures on paper, this year Simon has dared to make his practice a reality, diving into the physical realisation of his sculptural visions. But with moving image at his heart, Simon couldn’t resist bringing his sculptures into motion life.

 

The film sees Simon’s sculpture  ‘Fighting Fish’ come to life in a plethora of surreal and beautiful ways. Using bespoke procedural animation systems, Simon challenges the rigidity of his sculpture’s form. “I originally built the sculpture as a rigid object, but somehow I knew it wanted to evolve beyond the constraints of its static form” says Simon, “I felt that like all of us, ‘Fighting Fish’ wanted to grow and evolve becoming more than itself, so I brought it to life.” In the film, the sculpture’s Surfaces bend, warp, split and divide, reflecting in the early evening light. Set in a utopian cityscape built from idealistic and abstracted curved structures, ‘Fighting Fish’ is an optimistic love letter to an idealised future. 

 

The musical score, composed and recorded also by Simon Robson is a perfect juxtaposition to the futuristic visual palette. Slide guitars evoking feelings of Americana and wide-open plains rub shoulders with pulsing synth tones. In the centre of the mix is a sound design palette created by Nat Joyce from Sydney based Electric Sheep Music that beautifully punctuates an animating sculpture that transcends the bounds of reality.

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Credits

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Direction, animation & Music score: North Boy South (Simon Robson)

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Colourist: Daniel Pardy

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Post production: Heckler

EP: Will Alexander

Post-Coordinator: Brittany Jones

I/O: Maud Chaupuis

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Sound design: Electric Sheep Music

Sound designer: Nat Joyce

EP: Kate Stenhouse