If you work in animation you must know this iconic animator, Don Hertzfeldt.
and probably also some of his award winning work from college and even prior that put him on the map such as Billy’s Balloon and Ah L’Amour (I challenge you to find the latter online, it truly seems to have been completely abducted. BUT YOU CANT ABDUCT MY MEMORIES) His earlier films were photographed using 16mm cameras which gives them their unique look, and his latter films utilized a type of 35mm camera from the 1940s, believed to be the same camera that photographed many of the Peanuts cartoons of the 60s and 70s. There’s simply too much to say and learn about this legend for this space, but you can see and purchase much of his work here, and he is one of the most awarded and unique animators of the present day. I particularly appreciate how life sort of navigated him towards animation, and his perspective as a filmmaker, and storyteller:
While at film school, Hertzfeldt was drawn to animation as it was a less expensive form to work in. He could not afford to buy the numerous rolls of 16 mm film required to shoot live action. He has stated, “I think I’ve always approached animation from a strange angle, a bit like a regular filmmaker who just happens to animate. Editing, writing, sound—those are the things that usually come first in my head. Animation is often just the busy work I need to get through to connect the dots and tell the story.