The Backwater Gospel

The Backwater Gospel is a BA film project by The Animation Workshop.

 

 What caught me about this animation imparticular was the aesthetic, achieved using 3D software combined with some 2D elements. It creates a very rustic aura which complements the horror core running throughout. 

The characters have a very wooden aesthetic, wood that looks rotten and decaying, with jagged destroyed edges. When they move, it feels as if you would hear creaks because of its rotten state. The movements aren't fluid, they are clanky and jumpy, to enhance the horror rather like Tim Burton's style of animating.

 The wood I think stands as a motif to reflect the coffins of the undertaker which we see at the end in the credits scene as they shut on all the characters that died.

 

 The film starts off with a very dark aura and austere feeling, set entirely in monochrome. The colour pallette changes brighter somewhat as the animation progresses but still maintains a bleak tone to reinforce the horror element and unsettle the audience with a dull atmosphere. The Undertaker is strongly correlated with the grim reaper, the people claim that he is the one that takes the dead when in reality he deals with the dead after death. We see scary subliminal flash visuals off him having wings like grim reaper which make you jump, yet again antagonsing the dear aspect.

 

 Pathetic fallacy is used to further fuel the horror, the introduction of the rain makes this scene more powerful and dramatic. The shards of rain interfere with the visuals. Intercepting our vision making it  frustrating as we feel restricted because we cant see the action clearly, which in turn further grips the audience as we strive to see clearer.