Explore masks from across the globe, across cultures, across time. This excerpt from the short film “Beyond Noh” Masks of our world by animation artist Patrick Smith, races through masks from all around the world, “beginning with the distinctive masks of the Japanese Noh theater and continuing on a cultural journey…”
Beyond Noh is a film that brings worldwide cultures together. Whether used in ritual, for protection, performance, or simply for fun, masks have many meanings in human society. Animated from 3,475 individual masks and touching on politics, gender, religion and consumerism, this rhythmic film uncovers similarity in our diversity.
A rapid-fire hand drum drives the film’s speed. The preview gif below, via Colossal, provides a glimpse of the wide range of featured masks included in the excerpt. The entire film is available on Smith’s YouTube channel via paid membership.
Beyond Noh (2020) has been nominated for over a dozen awards, including the Tribeca Film Festival, the Annecy International Animation Festival, and the Palm Springs Shortsfest.
Watch more mask videos on TKSST, including:
• Cara de Diablo: Felipe Horta’s handcrafted masks
• How to make a Hollow Mask Illusion
• San Francisco’s Kei Lun Lion Dancers
• Zaouli de Manfla: The Zaouli dance of the Ivory Coast
• Brooklyn RobotWorks: Transformers Made of Trash
• HEARD NY in Grand Central: Nick Cave’s Soundsuit performance
Plus, watch a few collections from the archives:
• Ubiquitous bits of rainbow plastic, a stop-motion elegy
• Arena, a fast-paced look at the earth from above
• Ball, a collection film by The Mercadantes
• Yawns, a collection film by The Mercadantes
• People In Order (2006)
• Sign Songs from PBS’ The Electric Company in the 1970s.
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