ToInfinityAndBeyond
Well-Known Member
Okay. Still on the road, but I'll type this from my phone. Forgive the lack of media, but my computer is in the middle of a packed up moving truck.
Ears:
The story is told from a first-person perspective. It is animated in the style of Paperman, but in color. There is no soundtrack during the short. Ambient sound and clever sound effects are used to help tell the story.
The story begins in darkness with the sound of tape being ripped open and suddenly the screen floods with light. The scene before you is out of focus until a pair of hands lifts you up. You see a quick, bright glimpse of a Victorian shop interior as you are placed up high onto a shelf in front of a window that faces the bright sun outside. As you move to your window space, the image is slowly brought into focus. For a few seconds, all is peaceful and you can hear ambient sounds of the shop and the tweeting of birds.
You hear sounds of a fanfare and cheers in the distance. Suddenly, a crowd rushes by outside your window in a flash. Then more and more people flash by, the sound of joyous screaming, laughing, and hundreds of footsteps drown out the sounds of the shop. You can see the faces of the children, but you can't see the faces of the adults. (In general, you don't see the faces of adults throughout the short). In the foreground, a small boy runs up in front of your window and stares up at you. He points and runs off camera to grab a hand of a tall parent (whose face you cannot see) and pulls them into frame, pointing frantically at you, his enthusiasm muted as he is on the other side of the glass. You see him jump up and down happily, moving off frame with his parent.
You can hear tiny footsteps growing louder behind you. (All the while, you're still looking out the window at the enormous crowd flowing like a sea in front of you). Suddenly, you're being taken from the window and you flip around to face a close-up of the young child. He says: "This one," and he flips you around.
The only music (besides music in the background) begins to play softly through a montage. The montage is a series of scenes (each lasting 5-10 seconds) throughout a day at Disneyland, focusing on the many different sounds. Your viewpoint, is from on top of the young boy's head. Examples of scenes would be screaming on Big Thunder with the wind rushing by, the goofy music and happy haunts in the Haunted mansion, a Pirate air cannon whooshing by, Small World and it's unforgettable theme, the sounds and sights of the ice cream parlor, etc.
The day ends with a view of the Main Street Electrical Parade and an epic fireworks show. The montage ends in a shot of a slow walk down Main Street, with one last glance at your old window from the outside, your spot empty. You see pairs of Mickey ears on either side of your empty spot.
(On a side note, this is the first time you get a direct hint that you are a pair of ears. You see the shadow of the ears and other pairs off in the distance, but this is the first clear shot).
A shorter montage with 3 second cuts shows key moments of your trip all the way home, still on the boy's head. You are placed on a shelf in his room and are subjected to very short glimpses of time passing by, the boy growing into a teenager: video game sound effects to rock music, etc. The last scene (about as long as the first) is a scene of you being taken from the shelf by the boy. He is much older now, about 16, and you hear some other boys make disparaging comments and snickers. The boy looks at you with a look of pain and conflict and places you into a box. The box closes, you fade into darkness, and the sounds of tape seal your fate.
About four minutes have gone by at this point. You are in compete darkness for a few pregnant seconds. You hear soft sounds of muffled shuffling and a few resounding booms and you are blinded by light as the box rips open. You are lifted out of the box by a middle-aged man, who coughs as dust flies into his face. As the dust settles, you see a vaguely familiar face of the once young boy, now a grown man. He looks at you with curiosity that morphs into the look of a man who found his long-lost treasure. He smiles brightly.
The soft music plays again and the scene fades. The scene fades in to a familiar, yet different window (the shop has changed a bit over time, no longer displaying hats, but t-shirts and plushies instead). This time, you're looking in and two small girls are dragging the arms below you. You see a brief, blurred reflection of yourself as you walk into the shop. The two girls drag you to a mirror. This is the first glimpse of yourself. You are a pair of Mickey Ears on top of the head of the middle-aged man. He admires you in the rejection, and you see the same twinkle in his eye that he had when he was a kid. The short ends with two little girls walking up next to your reflection, wearing modern-day renditions of a Mickey Hat (like the glow with the show and princess themed ears). The man gives you one last satisfied look and the scene cuts to black.
(Sorry. Hope I didn't miss the deadline. We've been driving for two days. Almost to our final destination!)
Ears:
The story is told from a first-person perspective. It is animated in the style of Paperman, but in color. There is no soundtrack during the short. Ambient sound and clever sound effects are used to help tell the story.
The story begins in darkness with the sound of tape being ripped open and suddenly the screen floods with light. The scene before you is out of focus until a pair of hands lifts you up. You see a quick, bright glimpse of a Victorian shop interior as you are placed up high onto a shelf in front of a window that faces the bright sun outside. As you move to your window space, the image is slowly brought into focus. For a few seconds, all is peaceful and you can hear ambient sounds of the shop and the tweeting of birds.
You hear sounds of a fanfare and cheers in the distance. Suddenly, a crowd rushes by outside your window in a flash. Then more and more people flash by, the sound of joyous screaming, laughing, and hundreds of footsteps drown out the sounds of the shop. You can see the faces of the children, but you can't see the faces of the adults. (In general, you don't see the faces of adults throughout the short). In the foreground, a small boy runs up in front of your window and stares up at you. He points and runs off camera to grab a hand of a tall parent (whose face you cannot see) and pulls them into frame, pointing frantically at you, his enthusiasm muted as he is on the other side of the glass. You see him jump up and down happily, moving off frame with his parent.
You can hear tiny footsteps growing louder behind you. (All the while, you're still looking out the window at the enormous crowd flowing like a sea in front of you). Suddenly, you're being taken from the window and you flip around to face a close-up of the young child. He says: "This one," and he flips you around.
The only music (besides music in the background) begins to play softly through a montage. The montage is a series of scenes (each lasting 5-10 seconds) throughout a day at Disneyland, focusing on the many different sounds. Your viewpoint, is from on top of the young boy's head. Examples of scenes would be screaming on Big Thunder with the wind rushing by, the goofy music and happy haunts in the Haunted mansion, a Pirate air cannon whooshing by, Small World and it's unforgettable theme, the sounds and sights of the ice cream parlor, etc.
The day ends with a view of the Main Street Electrical Parade and an epic fireworks show. The montage ends in a shot of a slow walk down Main Street, with one last glance at your old window from the outside, your spot empty. You see pairs of Mickey ears on either side of your empty spot.
(On a side note, this is the first time you get a direct hint that you are a pair of ears. You see the shadow of the ears and other pairs off in the distance, but this is the first clear shot).
A shorter montage with 3 second cuts shows key moments of your trip all the way home, still on the boy's head. You are placed on a shelf in his room and are subjected to very short glimpses of time passing by, the boy growing into a teenager: video game sound effects to rock music, etc. The last scene (about as long as the first) is a scene of you being taken from the shelf by the boy. He is much older now, about 16, and you hear some other boys make disparaging comments and snickers. The boy looks at you with a look of pain and conflict and places you into a box. The box closes, you fade into darkness, and the sounds of tape seal your fate.
About four minutes have gone by at this point. You are in compete darkness for a few pregnant seconds. You hear soft sounds of muffled shuffling and a few resounding booms and you are blinded by light as the box rips open. You are lifted out of the box by a middle-aged man, who coughs as dust flies into his face. As the dust settles, you see a vaguely familiar face of the once young boy, now a grown man. He looks at you with curiosity that morphs into the look of a man who found his long-lost treasure. He smiles brightly.
The soft music plays again and the scene fades. The scene fades in to a familiar, yet different window (the shop has changed a bit over time, no longer displaying hats, but t-shirts and plushies instead). This time, you're looking in and two small girls are dragging the arms below you. You see a brief, blurred reflection of yourself as you walk into the shop. The two girls drag you to a mirror. This is the first glimpse of yourself. You are a pair of Mickey Ears on top of the head of the middle-aged man. He admires you in the rejection, and you see the same twinkle in his eye that he had when he was a kid. The short ends with two little girls walking up next to your reflection, wearing modern-day renditions of a Mickey Hat (like the glow with the show and princess themed ears). The man gives you one last satisfied look and the scene cuts to black.
(Sorry. Hope I didn't miss the deadline. We've been driving for two days. Almost to our final destination!)
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I appreciate the effort you took to turn something in inspite of the difficult circumstances. 
