Embrace Your Dream: Review of DreamWorks Animation Exhibition
words & photo by Cindy Peng
While many girls dream of meeting their princes charming, Shrek breaks the tradition in fairy tales of handsome and gentle princes. While animals in zoos seem mild and cute, Madagascar's Marty dreams of living in the wild, and his neighbors are three crazy penguins planning to escape from the zoo. While pandas might be seen as lazy and narcoleptic, Po the giant panda is trying to learn Kung Fu to save his home. While dragons are mysterious and mythical, Hiccup on the island of Berk shows you how to train dragons and the strength of his and Toothless’ friendship. Without a doubt, these animated films have made and continue to make audiences laugh and cry, and the exhibition of DreamWorks Animation this year gives the audience a chance to learn how these amazing animations were created.
When: 2016/10/29-2017/2/5 (One day off on New Year’s Eve)
Where: National Taiwan Science Education Center (國立台灣科學教育館)
How much: 300 NTD per adult / 260 NTD for students or children who are above 3 / 150 NTD for disabled persons or the elder who are above 65
Where: National Taiwan Science Education Center (國立台灣科學教育館)
How much: 300 NTD per adult / 260 NTD for students or children who are above 3 / 150 NTD for disabled persons or the elder who are above 65
In speaking of American animation, one might first think of Pixar or Walt Disney Animation Studios, both of which have released numerous well-known animated films such as Toy Story, Monsters, Inc., Finding Nemo, and Mulan, Frozen, Zootopia, respectively, but DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc. has also created well-known animations. This exhibition includes all of DreamWorks Animation works, from its first film, Antz in 1998 to more recent and ever-more popular ones such as Shrek, Madagascar and Kung Fu Panda, as well as the drafts, pictures, storyboards and animated images of each animation to show how the teams created the films.
At the entrance to the exhibition, darkness lifts to drafts of characters like Po in Kung Fu Panda, Alex and Marty in Madagascar, and so on, projected as animated images on the screen wall. These characters are vividly presented, creating the illusion that these characters are going to jump out of the screen and interact with the viewers! This exhibition is divided into three main parts: character, story, and world to give detailed information about the works of DreamWorks Animation to viewers.
The character section includes all elements, from the initial pictures of concept and drafts to the final images, and there are abundant vivid models and sculptures of animated characters such as Tulio and Miguel in The Road to El Dorado and Don Lino the vegetarian shark in Shark Tale displayed. There is also some interactive equipment so that people can manipulate different characters’ facial expressions, putting them into a “creator” position temporarily.
The story section has a long story wall that looks like a row of windows, and on each window is a main character from one of DreamWorks famous animated films. As people walk by, they feel like these characters are so real that they can just reach out and touch them through amazing windows! The story section also shows the audience how these animated films were constructed. By a kind of computer 3D technics, the animators ask real people to act and perform, and translate their movements into those of the animated characters, and that is why DreamWorks’ animated characters are so lifelike. One of the most important elements in this section is the storyboarding. There is a stunning abundance of storyboards shown, and videos about the process of making animated films, and how animators came up with scenes and ideas for each film are available.
Finally, the biggest section of the exhibition is the world section, something not to be missed! There are various pictures of DreamWorks animated films displayed, allowing the audience to recall the scenes easily. In addition, this section includes different world views, and people can have a chance to view the entirety of each unique world from different animated films. For example, there are big exhibits such as models of the island of Berk where Hiccup lives, and the Central Park Zoo where Alex and his friends live. Last but not least, the small theatre screens “Dragon Flight,” allowing people to observe the island of Berk from Toothless’s view, fulfilling everyone’s hidden dream of flying with dragons!
At the entrance to the exhibition, darkness lifts to drafts of characters like Po in Kung Fu Panda, Alex and Marty in Madagascar, and so on, projected as animated images on the screen wall. These characters are vividly presented, creating the illusion that these characters are going to jump out of the screen and interact with the viewers! This exhibition is divided into three main parts: character, story, and world to give detailed information about the works of DreamWorks Animation to viewers.
The character section includes all elements, from the initial pictures of concept and drafts to the final images, and there are abundant vivid models and sculptures of animated characters such as Tulio and Miguel in The Road to El Dorado and Don Lino the vegetarian shark in Shark Tale displayed. There is also some interactive equipment so that people can manipulate different characters’ facial expressions, putting them into a “creator” position temporarily.
The story section has a long story wall that looks like a row of windows, and on each window is a main character from one of DreamWorks famous animated films. As people walk by, they feel like these characters are so real that they can just reach out and touch them through amazing windows! The story section also shows the audience how these animated films were constructed. By a kind of computer 3D technics, the animators ask real people to act and perform, and translate their movements into those of the animated characters, and that is why DreamWorks’ animated characters are so lifelike. One of the most important elements in this section is the storyboarding. There is a stunning abundance of storyboards shown, and videos about the process of making animated films, and how animators came up with scenes and ideas for each film are available.
Finally, the biggest section of the exhibition is the world section, something not to be missed! There are various pictures of DreamWorks animated films displayed, allowing the audience to recall the scenes easily. In addition, this section includes different world views, and people can have a chance to view the entirety of each unique world from different animated films. For example, there are big exhibits such as models of the island of Berk where Hiccup lives, and the Central Park Zoo where Alex and his friends live. Last but not least, the small theatre screens “Dragon Flight,” allowing people to observe the island of Berk from Toothless’s view, fulfilling everyone’s hidden dream of flying with dragons!