Synopsis

An animated, short, comedic mockumentary style film in which two characters, one stop motion and another CGI, comment about various aspects of life 'on set' and give us filmmakers and film lovers / watchers an idea of what it's like behind the scenes from a unique perspective.

Treatment

The film begins with a stop motion character waiting to be interviewed, as the camera (from an audience perspective) is being set up and adjusted by an unseen crew behind the scenes. When everything is ready, the director calls to begin shooting and we hear an interviewer, again from behind the camera, question the character about their enjoyment of life on set. The character responds accordingly, revealing that they enjoy their job.

At this point the next character, a CGI animation, is introduced in his own separate computer generated environment from the stop motion set. He proceeds to answer the same question previously asked attempting to brag about his freedom, however it is clear he is more focussed on adjusting his hair to perfection in a handheld mirror than paying attention to the crew / audience.

We cut back to the Stop motion set, where Clay comments about the friendliness of his environment and his good relationships with the animators on set. However he does suggest that life on set isn’t always fun, indicating that he gets fed up with being pushed around and feels manipulated at times.  He proceeds to look irritated as animator’s hands position him, but starts to relax as he remembers it’s nothing personal, just part of the job. We see a series of flashback photos showing him in various ridiculous and funny poses from previous shoots.

Back in the CGI universe, Chip is still discussing his freedom and how he isn’t constrained by anyone. However the interviewer questions this further in reference to the cursor, much to the dismay and anxiousness of Chip who abruptly puts down his mirror to quieten him. Chip quietly asks for confirmation that the interviewer was meaning the cursor. When this is established, he panics but begins telling a story of a past experience with the cursor. We see a flashback of this in which he complains about wearing the same outfit everyday. He steps outside, realising that his bottom half consists only of a wire frame and embarrassed, he covers himself and waddles off screen.

Clay shows off his handmade, tailored clothes to the audience, commenting that it is one of his favourite parts of the job. In a B-roll style, we see him flicking through a rack of outfits, picking out his favourite.

Chip is now relieving himself with some coffee, stating that at least in his universe they have the best lattes around. He lifts it up to his mouth to take another sip when the cursor appears and clicks on the coffee, making it disappear. Frustrated, Chip lashes out verbally at the interviewer, blaming him for angering the cursor with his previous discussion, and expressing his desperation for the coffee. Immediately something changes and Chip, along with the camera, look upward into the sky where hundreds of coffee cups are hurtling down towards them. A chaotic coffee cup battle ensues, with coffee exploding everywhere as Chip and the crew try to take cover. Unfortunately a cup explodes over Chip’s head, leaving his hair coffee stained and him panicking over not looking perfect as a result. He immediately takes out the mirror from earlier and begins trying to fix his hair in the middle of the coffee attack. Throughout this we also see the relaxed and calm stop motion set.

In the stop motion set, Clay is commenting about how when they aren’t shooting they get to relax on set. In B-roll style again, we see the animators having lunch, socialising and chilling around the set, with Clay motionless in the background.

The interviewer asks if he ever feels lonely, while Chip attempts to dismiss the idea but lets slip a hint of sadness. He looks to the right, and we see emptiness and grid lines where the boundaries of his universe are. He again tries to dismiss the idea, by saying his friends have to be loaded into the scene first. In a flashback, Chip is flexing for the camera when another anonymous character is loaded behind him without any textures. The unknown character begins complaining about this, but is then abruptly picked up by the cursor and thrown into the distance, appearing only as a shine in the background. Chip looks towards the camera again, with a blank but concerned expression.

In stop motion, the interviewer asks about whether there is anything else Clay would rather do. He comments that it is hard work, but he loves every second of it, while in B-roll it shows him posing as the camera flashes, taking a frame of him.

Chip also continues to answer the question, saying that every day is a different adventure.

Both of them reflect how a project may develop and change over time, before saying that neither is going to be doing anything different any time soon. They both smile to the audience.