Animation Theatre: Ji Barta

26th November 1948- Present

Fig. 1 Ji Barta

Ji Barta is a Czechoslovakian stop-motion animator who has won many awards for his fresh and inventive work. He is known for combining real-life and stop motion into his animations and for his sculpted character quality especially when he is at work with wood to produce his pieces. He has however also worked with cut outs in his early work, perhaps his colour take on Lotte Reinigers work. He has truly made his mark on animation; adjusting it to his tastes just look at the contrasting techniques of his early work such as Disc Jockey (1980) and his later work In the Attic (2009).

Fig. 2 Disc Jockey

Barta shares a lot in common with fellow Czech animator Jan vankmajer in that his work is highly fantastical and relates to child tales and stories. Where vankmajer did his own adaptation of Alice in Wonderland, Barta takes The Pied Piper of Hameln to add his mark to. His work is also in ways highly surreal such as strange objects moving across the screen for no reason what so ever. However, unlike vankmajer, Barta is more optimistic with his work for example, there could be this

big mayhem filled event unfolding but by then end Barta has tried to include a somewhat moral solution. That is something that makes him stand out; he gets his messages across through evocative and shocking imagery but then closes with scenes that are more cheerful and upbeat. Like Svankmajer, Barta leans towards the grotesque in his imagery; sound is heavily emphasized, whether it is blood sloshing or a guttural, nonsensical tongue, providing a tactile quality to his characters and their universe. (Jediny: 2007) What with the lack of dialogue in his animations this vivid imagery is complementary to Bartas style of storytelling. He lets images do the talking rather than relying on a real voice, the voices of the characters are heard through their design and sets. In a way this is better for the stories Barta tells because it allows the audience their own interpretation of any messages Barta may be telling rather than being fed it through direct noise. Yes morals play a major role in Bartas work but he has such a unique way in applying them which is perhaps why his version of The Pied Piper of Hamlyn (1986) is so effective. He fills his characters and stories with corrupt emotions but really feeds on the deterioration of society and being civil with each other. It is as if he uses fantasy worlds to reflect on problems of our real one allowing his audiences to be unbiased and take in an interpretation they wouldnt normally allow themselves. For example, the uncanny of elements in his The Pied Piper of Hamlyn are metaphors for the other side or the devils sins residing in us whereas, gentleness in elderly and young represent hope for our race. A great scene showing Bartas expressive way of telling his morals is when two humans are angrily trying to barter. Their heads stretch out at each other and getting redder, a striking contrast to how Disney interprets the morals of the Pied Piper and Ivana Kouliov has picked up on Bartas inspiration from the selfishness of our world. In these films, Barta creates mysterious horror worlds full of sinful, grasping humans who reflect the decay of human society. Apocalypse for human kind comes from the uncanny beings yet, there always remains some hope: in elderly wisdom. (Kouliov: 2002)

Fig. 3 The Pied Piper of Hamlyn

Bartas work serves a purpose of teaching us that the world as it is is disturbing and his ideologies mixed in with his original character and set design, combination of animation techniques and a range of camera work adds depth to highly ambitious works which overall have a huge impact on the audience. Barta continues to engage whether it is through humour or deep serious thought but no matter what he makes it his mission to take the level of his work above that of childrens tales. Revered as one of the worlds most significant figures in animation, Czech filmmaker Jiri Barta has made a career fashioning stunningly gothic worlds of horror and fantasy that are

infused with sublime humour and intense moral examinations. Mixing the aesthetic traditions of such artists as Gaudi, Kafka, Poe, Fritz Lang, The Brothers Quay and Jan Svankmajer, Bartas films are wondrous creations. (Unknown: 2009)

Bibliography
Jediny, Jenny, (2007) The Animation of Jiri Barta http://www.notcoming.com/features/jiribarta/ (Accessed 25/03/2012) Kouliov, Ivana, (2002) The Morality of Horror http://www.kinoeye.org/02/01/kosulicova01_no2.php (Accessed 25/03/2012) Unknown, (2009) Cinema of the World http://www.worldscinema.com/2009/10/jiri-barta-labyrinthof-darkness-1978.html (Accessed 25/03/2012)

List of Illustrations
Fig. 1. Ji Barta. [Online image].On bioillusion.com http://www.bioillusion.com/data/pictures/perex/jiri-barta-165104681.jpg (Accessed 25/03/2012) Fig. 2. Disc Jockey. [Online image].On notcoming.com http://www.notcoming.com/animation/images/barta_design.gif (Accessed 25/03/2012) Fig. 3. The Pied Piper of Hamlyn. [Online image].On dvdtalk.com http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/images/reviews/177/1158722964.jpg (Accessed 25/03/2012)