Flee, 250(+) words
Flee is an 2022 Animated Documentary Film documenting the story of Amin Nawabi and his family’s escape from Afghanistan and the Soviet-Afghan war. It tells his story utilising a mix of animation styles and archival footage. Flee makes use of multiple animation styles/visual mediums in order to express a different mood or idea at any given time. The three main visual styles are coloured, clean animation; sketchy rough animation; and archival footage.
Coloured clean animation is the base style, used to show the characters “normal” at any given time. It represents the “real” for the characters, subbing in for the non-existent footage of Amin's life experiences. It's use of colour is sometimes exaggerated from what realistically may have been there, but that's because these moments are also tinted by the emotions and feelings and personal worldview of Amin at the time.
The sketchy rough animation is utilised as a clear contrast to Amin's “normal”. It appears whenever Amin's world is in danger or Amin or his family is experiencing great fear or struggles, something traumatic or otherwise world-shaking in an already shaken up life. It allows the audience to see and feel that without explicitly stating it, and reflects the tone of film in those moments. Conversely, It first appears as an innocent reference to the music video of “Take on Me”, the song a young Amin listens to in the first moments of the film. This is important to note as this is before young Amin truly understands the struggles around him, before he and his family are forced to flee Afghanistan to escape persecution.
Finally, Archival footage. It appears the least in the film, but its purpose is just as important. It often highlights important historical moments that Amin and his Family were present at, but without the personal connection to their family. It juxtaposes the main animation style, as it often features locations and large unknown crowds, an almost depersonalisation. Its what we as an audience would consider most “real”, as it is in fact the real world documented directly, yet it fails to properly document the experiences of Amir's family. Its serves two purposes: Two “prove” to or remind the audience that, yes, this is something real that happened, but also criticises the live action documentary due to how its “wide view” doesn't allow for an audience to fully connect with or understand what is truly happening in the moment.
406 words lol