I am a Horse
I am a horse was a sculpture by David Salkeld. Derived from Halysites and siderite fossilised corral, which is expressed in a delightful free flowing ocean like style in its sense of play and movement.
The project was to recreate the sculpture as something new - an experimental animation. Working with the sculptor to recreate I am a horse in 3D animation as close as possible to the original sculpture, where the allusion of complex interlocking shapes was created out of one solid piece of wood in a series of components forming the impression of a horse.
The animation depicts the the sculpture forming out of the coral and fossilised formations and sea, and will express the natural flow of the shapes and sense of fun of the original design, before dissolving back into the sea.
'identities' charts the multicoloured, multicultural transgender community in Ireland. Five personal stories give shape to the vibrant, parallel worlds of Transvestism, Transsexualism, Drag, Sexual identity, and Gender Dysphoria.
Intercutting black and white interviews with fly on the wall footage, each character's daily experience is laid bare. Vivid art performances offer more abstract and deeply personal self-representation. Opening our eyes to the potential of existing in fantasy, reality is thrown into sharp relief. At its heart, this is a film about the human spirit. Overcoming stereotype and categorisation, the gender construct breaks open, allowing personality and human emotion a path to expression.
Passenger planes and tall buildings. A contemporary haunting. We are constantly reminded of the horrors of such real events in the recent past and are regularly forced to revisit them.
Landing Lights is more of a dream than a nightmare and as such could be read as something of an antidote to the prevailing politics of fear.
Several diverse characters recite part of a poem called Gold From the Stone written by Lemn Sissay. Each character is in a different location and time zone but the same country and the same City. We jump from one character to the next fragmenting their monologues further isolating them- are they real people?
The secret lives of invisible magnetic fields are revealed as chaotic ever-changing geometries. All action takes place around NASA's Space Sciences Laboratories, UC Berkeley, to recordings of space scientists describing their discoveries. Actual VLF audio recordings control the evolution of the fields as they delve into our inaudible surroundings, revealing recurrent 'whistlers' produced by fleeting electrons. Are we observing a series of scientific experiments, the universe in flux, or a documentary of a fictional world?
A story of ritual, sexuality and relationships, through the life and work of one of the UK's most exciting dancers. Classically trained, Bharatanatyam in India and ballet in London, Mavin Khoo is a household name in many of the international opera houses and clubs of London through his diverse work.
Mental Block depicts the journey of a young freerunner (Ali) striving to find his own personal route through life using the discipline of parkour, but all motion stops when he reaches the inevitable mental block. Set within inner-city estates Ali discovers the hardest obstacles to overcome are in the mind.
Having never left the ship when Nora, a service android, is given the oppertunity to leave her life of menial labour and take part in an mission to save the human species, she believes her dream of freedom will be fullfilled. Narrowly avoiding destruction she crash lands on a desolate planet finding herself stranded and without means of communication. Her journey quickly turns to one of survival both for herself and her fellow androids.
North Circular - An experimental abstract animation by Michael Salkeld.
Utilising video 2d and 3d animation, as an experimental visual poem, interacting with an ambient improvised musical soundtrack.
Animation and music by Michael Salkeld
