Analysis of "Teddy and Anna"

When I first viewed the web page that displayed Teddy and Anna, I wasn't sure what to expect from the small video series. It seemed, from the title, that it could be some cute and cuddly video for young children. However, when I began to watch the actual videos, it grew clear to me that the Teddy and Anna episodes were far from cute and cuddly in a childish sense. Somehow as I continued to watch the episodes, they seemed more and more dark by nature.

One definite recognition of Teddy and Anna is the use of color. They seem to be very monotone and pastel like. One color is no more dramatic than the other, meaning they are similar in brightness and in pallet. There isn't that sort of over done usage of color.

Unlike the other three animation series I had to choose from, Teddy and Anna does not have those dark outlines around the characters. They are hidden from the animation, this may just have to do with the animators preference or style.

Another notable characteristic with this animation series is the way in which the characters move. They seem to have more of what I call "natural" movement. As the viewer you see the characters move from one pose to another, they look as though they are moving like a real human being. The only exception I can note is their fingers, there is no movement, the hands or fingers simply changes from scene to scene to give the illusion of movement.

The speach, or lack there of is done in a sort of old fashioned way. The dialoge is shown in a separate box between scenes, perhaps playing on the old school style (music in the forfront with displayed text) that was used by film in its early history. I find this method to be very creative and effective in adding to the apparent dramatic style of Teddy and Anna.

Many of the shapes involved in creating this animation seem to be very basic and simple, the only exception being the human figures themselves. If you notice, the city is a series of squares and rectangles with some other basic shapes here and there, nothing seems to be too complex. I believe that what gives the city and all of the animations some form of complexity is the usage of color... there isn't a large array of color as expressed previously, but they still seem to be the entity which gives Teddy and Anna "life."

When I first viewed the series I thought it was simple, but as I cycled through each episode and scene, the dynamics became more clear, right down to the very details of each characters face.

One last detail I find important to note is HOW the old style of dialogue was used. When the father or adult is talking the text is bigger and bolder, yet when the child or adolescent is talking the text is thin and smaller... I find this an interesting characteristic of this series.

Teddy and Anna