Paperman: a dramatic analysis
Animation: Weekly assignment, week 5
For a 3 weeks long period of time, we’re having drama classes in our animation class, to learn the significance of acting in animation! Today was the 2nd lesson, where we learned more about body language as a form of communication.
So, for this assignment, we were asked to write an analysis of the short film Paperman by Disney, based on the different dramatic elements we’ve learned about in drama class so far.
It was quite a challenge, as the deadline we were given was pretty short, and I personally had only 2 hours at my leisure, so I didn’t have time to go over it, proofreading it or editing it. We were asked to upload it to our blog, so, regardless, below is my unpolished, amateur analysis for anyone who’d like to see it :)
Paperman dramatic analysis
The short film Paperman is a roughly 7 minutes-long animated short, released by Disney on the 2nd of November, 2012 . It follows the journey of two strangers trying to find their way back to each other by the help of paper planes. In this analysis, I will be looking at how dramatic elements are used in this short film.
The story takes off when a man and a woman cross paths while waiting for the train. One of the papers the man is carrying hits the woman in the face, leaving a lipstick stain. After the woman is gone, the man keeps the paper. Later on, he sees her in the building opposite his work desk, and he sends a bunch of paper planes towards her window to grab her attention. He sent the lipstick stained paper as a last resort, but it is caught by the wind. The story takes another turn as the paper planes he sent come alive, sticking to him and leading him to her, while the lipstick stained one finds its way to the woman he admires, leading her towards him and resulting in their reunion.
The story is set in a city landscape. The protagonist of the story, the man, meets the woman, the secondary character, at a train station. Later on, we see the protagonist working in an office, while the woman is in a building nearby. The rest of the story takes place on the ground, through traffic, between buildings, as the two characters are led through the city by the paper planes. The story takes place in a modern society, since there are cars and trains.
There is no dialogue used in this story. The emphasis relies heavily on the body language of the characters, the movements and the visual storytelling as a whole. The music in this short is calm and doesn’t change much throughout the story, generally not taking up much space, but rather emphasizing what is already happening. The music comes in the moment our protagonist spots the woman, however, signalizing the beginning of his journey to catch her attention.
The use of colour is also very meaningful in this story. The scenery is all black and white, giving the story a nostalgic, old-timey feel, at the same time as contrasting strongly with the one element that has colour: the woman’s lips and the lipstick stain she left on the paper. This suggests how important the lipstick stain is as an element in the story, as this particular paper plane is what brings the two characters together in the end, and also symbolises their meaningful meeting and potential relationship. The protagonist thinks of her whenever he looks at it, and the woman recognizes this particular paper plane, too, and follows it with glee.
The characters of this short are few, but still meaningful. While the story is driven forward mostly by the paths of the paper planes, who in the end become alive and follow the girl around, the human characters also have their place in the short. The protagonist is a seemingly young man with dark hair and eyes, a big nose and a lanky body, dressed formally. We know he works at an office from the beginning, as he is carrying a stack of paper, some of which hits the woman next to him in the face. The story follows him as he attempts to regain contact with the woman he met by chance at the train station.
The woman is the secondary character of the story. We don’t see her much, despite her being the end goal: the protagonist has to get her attention and reunite with her again. She is a small woman with soft edges and shapes, big, warm eyes and overall a calm spirit. She seems like a more optimistic and eager type, as she in the end follows the paper plane with glee.
Then there are other characters we see that help drive the story forward: a stockily built man dressed in a suit, presumably the manager of the company, is always trying to stop the protagonist from sending paper planes and wants him to do his job instead. Therefore, this character serves as an antagonist of this story, though the protagonist doesn’t let himself budge. He ends up sending off the lipstick stained paper as a final resort, as he has no more worksheets to use.
STATUS: The status of the characters can be identified throughout their actions and behaviour in the story. The protagonist, for example, has a low status. He moves jerkily, his gestures are sudden and uncontrolled, and he seems to undermine himself by the way he gives up so easily. He also seems to withdraw into his own body whenever he’s not in control of the situation.
The secondary character, the woman, is of a higher status, however, as she moves very calmly and is in control of her gestures. She keeps her head held high and still and she is confident of her movements.
The boss is clearly a high status character. He holds his head high when addressing the protagonist, his chest out, and he keeps eye contact with a piercing glare. He takes up space within the environment of the work office by giving commands and keeping all the workers on edge.
The two main characters in this story are in contrast to each other. The man emits a shy, nervous and awkward aura. The woman, on the other hand, is calm, graceful and seems more controlled and confident. The man is also easily defeated, having given up his pursuit even as he’s being led by multiple paper planes, while the woman needs only one paper plane to be convinced and follows it with confidence and with a smile.
EXPRESSIONS/GESTURES: There are lots of expressions and gestures used to signalize how the characters are feeling. After the man fails to grab the woman’s attention, for example, we see him walking down the street, angry and defeated, his hands in his pockets and leaning forward while strutting angrily. He has clearly given up his pursuit, especially as he resists and struggles against the paper planes trying to push him in the opposite direction. The woman shows clear determination and joy as she follows the single paper plane down the street with a smile, running and moving with confidence.
Despite being a story with no dialogue, it is still very impactful and direct, using expressions, gestures, symbols and colour to tell the story. These are very well implemented and we can easily interpret the characters’ personalities based on what their behaviour is telling us, making this short film yet another wonderful example of how much body language matters in a story and in animation.