#academic research tends to wipe a bit of the feeling away sometimes

[karnaca78]

Wes Anderson's Asteroid City reminds me why I became a film history scholar and why I love this art form so much. I feel like (at least) half of the movie is now permanently engraved in my brain and in my heart for me to treasure forever.

How unprepared I was to be so deeply touched by a funny comedy today. And how grateful I am for it.

I love art and cinema so much.

(and my bf loved it too which is an incredibly cool added bonus)

[animatedminds]

Splash Mountain, Br’er Rabbit, and the Tragedy of Being Represented By Other People.

So, this is probably going to be the realest post I’ll make for a while - or at least until The Boondocks arrives, but it seemed apropos. Immediately after this I’ve got rants about sci fi and Star Wars and other unrelated things coming up, but for now we have my earnest opinions on a decision I feel should have been better thought out than it was. This is going to read more like an article or an essay than a review, but I think it needs to be said.

It hasn’t come up too often on this blog, but I am African American. It’s my life and my perspective. And as an African American, a lover of animation and - though this definitely doesn’t come up on the blog - a passionate folklorist in what you could call an academic sense (in that I’m a writer and a student, and folklore is the subject of most of my research), people I know in real life have asked me more than once what my opinion on the removal of Splash Mountain in favor of Princess and the Frog, how I must be glad it’s finally being removed, what my take on the history there was, and…

Well…

To really give that opinion, I’ve got to start at the beginning. Not Song of the South - that, if anything, is the very middle. We have to start with Br’er Rabbit and who that character was. Sit back students, info dump incoming.

Br’er Rabbit is an folklore character of African American origin with - like many folkloric figures - a difficult to place date of origin, but he was known to have existed at least since the early 19th Century, He has obvious similarities to the far older figure of Anansi - with several Br’er Rabbit tales even taking elements of Anansi stories verbatim - though with a the notable difference that unlike Anansi, Br’er Rabbit was more often a heroic figure: an underdog and seemingly downtrodden figure who used his wits and his enemies’ hubris rather than physical force to win the day. The meaning of that kind of figure to an enslaved people is obvious, especially when you compare Br’er Rabbit to another, contemporary trickster figure in African American history by the name of John. Br’er Rabbit’s stories could even arguably be seen as a more child-friendly version of the John tales, in which a human trickster pulls the same kind of momentum turning ploys on villains - but those villains tended to be explicitly slave masters or overseers, and John’s payback often came with explicitly deadly results. The existence of John as escapism for the enslaved or just-post-enslaved (IE Reconstruction) populations is clear: a person who with no power who could fight back with nothing but their mind, preying on the fact that their enemies see them as incapable and helpless, and the connection of Br’er Rabbit to that message is difficult to deny. If anything, Br’er Rabbit comes off as a somewhat more child-friendly version of the concept.

But the most important thing to glean from this is who and what Br’er Rabbit is: a product of the African American community and its history, as a means of those people to express themselves and their values in the face of oppression.

Now we fast forward to 1881, and along comes Joel Chandler Harris: a white Georgian. Harris was a folklorist himself, and travelled the country collecting stories - most famously Br’er Rabbit stories. His stated reason was to bridge African American and white communities by sharing stories, but he was tainted by the perspectives of his world and his place in it, infamously creating a framing narrative for those stories in which the character telling them exuded the imagery of subservience and simplicity that was typical of perceptions of African Americans from the post-Civil War Southern environment in which he collected them: Uncle Remus, in other words. Harris is hardly the only white curator who adapted stories of black or brown peoples in a way that played up the people the stories came from as something of a theme park piece, as if noble in unintelligence and simplicity, but he’s one of the most famous ones to do so - and that’s because of the adaptation. To note, when people criticize cultural appropriation, this is the kind of thing that really triggers the outrage. Not any situation in which a white person is inspired by someone who isn’t white and creates something accordingly, but situations where someone else’s creation is taken and used for the fame and profit of others, to the detriment of the people who made it. It’s these situations like the one Joel Chandler Harris created centuries ago, specifically, that people are trying to draw attention to - even if sometimes social media gets a bit trigger happy sometimes, that’s the real, underlying problem. With that in mind, let’s put that aside and move forward.

Fast forward again to 1946. Walt Disney Productions, then less the company of grander, wider scale stories of epic quests and emotional upheaval that make us all cry and more a company more known for folktale adaptations in general, were looking for a but of American folklore to headline a live action, animation mix - a medium that allowed a bit more financial benefit, as straightforward animation was not always particularly profitable those dates. This wouldn’t be the last time they produced an adaptation of an American folktale or short story - their version of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow a few years later being actually one of the more faithful adaptations of that short story put to film. Disney, who evidently read Chandler Harris’ stories, put together a project to see if they could adapted. Which they did. Pretty much verbatim. This is actually worth pointing out: the actual Br’er Rabbit stories in the films are very accurately adapted, and the actors involved in the story (including James Baskett, how also played Uncle Remus) did a fine job characterizing them. The issue is that Disney also adapted Chandler Harris’ stereotypical and offensive framing device pretty much verbatim, bringing Uncle Remus. And therein lies the problem.

To put the issue with Song of the South in perspective, the movie - with the framing device - can be categorized as something called Reconstruction Revisionism - which is basically a genre of post-Civil War media meant to present the pre-war South was perfect and idyllic, and that people are racially more natural in that environment’s dynamic and never should have left. One of the most infamous movies in history, Birth of a Nation, is the crowning example of this genre. Obviously, Song of the South is nowhere near as awful and inflammatory a movie as that, but there’s a degree to which it was seen as the straw the broke the camel’s back for black depictions in media, only a couple of years after Disney’s Dumbo also did the same. The end result, an African American creation was used in a film that ultimately demeaned the African American community, a decision that Disney has been ashamed of ever since.

Fast forward to now. Disney is removing Splash Mountain, the sole remnant of Song of the South that focuses exclusively on Br’er Rabbit - a choice we’ve had reason to suspect was coming for about a year now, but which was unveiled conspicuously in the middle of protests and campaigning for better treatment of people of African descent worldwide. The reveal was a rousing success, with people applauding the decision to finally wipe away the rest of that movie - though remember that for later, that the response relies on the perception of Br’er Rabbit as something that starts with Song of the South - and replace it with something else. Surely, as a black person I should be happy that they’re finally getting rid of that racist character for good and replacing him with something more positive? And again, well…

To put short, Br’er Rabbit has finished his journey from African cultural symbol to discarded pariah, all because others used the character in racist ways that they themselves now regret. And for that… let’s be clear, I’m not angry so much as saddened. I’m not railing against the company for making the choice, since I can see how from their point of view it was the wisest and most progressive thing to do. Song of the South is a badly old fashioned movie that they’re right to want to move on from, and it’s their right to downplay characters within their purview if those characters reflect badly on the company. I’m just outlining the tragic waste of it all.

For now, compare Princess and the Frog - the thing they’re replacing it with. I do love the movie, or at least any problems I have with it have little to do with representation, and I definitely don’t have anything against Musker and Clements and their beautiful visions and creations, but it’s difficult to deny that its an adaptation of a European story, adapted by a collection of mostly white creators (with Rob Edwards comprising but one third of the screenwriting team, but not of story conception), that’s ultimately just dolled up with African Americans characters and a very Hollywood-esque depiction of a African diaspora religion (Voodoo, which unfortunately has a long history of such portrayals). If we’re talking about representation specifically - which this move had definitely been presented as a champion for - it’s not the perfect example, more of a story with a surface covering of the black experience than one with an especially strong connection. That wouldn’t necessarily be a problem (Tiana and her story do well depict strong black characterizations, and approach an interesting (if light_ implication about racism and hardship during the 1920s) if Disney had yet created any other franchise that was another actual adaptation of an African or African American tale or story (with involvement from such actual people), but Song of the South is actually it. They legitimately have nothing else to call on.

This is something I feel we should do more to remedy. I am a writer/prospective screenwriter myself, and trying to put more stories out there is one of my primary focuses and goals should I ever truly enter the industry, but at the moment we just don’t have very many options.

This is hardly the only time that people of color have had little control over depictions of their own culture - literary and film history is full of such situations in both minor and terribly major ways - but it’s something that stings especially hard due to being such a current example, and because of sheer irony of the end result. Now we have a situation where African Americans are being told that something their people created to represent themselves is negative and wrong, because years ago other people appropriated that creation and used it to paint a negative picture of the people who actually held claim over it, and now the enterprise that those people created wants to save face: another example of culture being treated like a possession of the ones who are poised to make money of off it. And what’s worse, while the culture is used and abused like trash, the people are now presented with this removal like it was a prize - like they’re finally being given something - when little has really changed.

Ultimately, the Splash Mountain news - though it had been coming for a while - made me rather upset for that reason. As a studier of folklore, I suppose I knew better than most where these things came from, and so the buzz around the move being a belief that Br’er Rabbit was an intrinsically racist character just highlighted the tragedy of how African Americans and their culture tended to be tossed about by American media. So no matter what, I can’t feel particularly happy about it.

Let me iterate, in the film industry, being represented by people who aren’t of your culture group is basically inevitable. That’s essentially how the industry works. I’m not saying we should rail against anyone who would try to represent cultures that aren’t their own. The people who produce and create are few, and eventually the truth is that you have to be represented by other people - at least for the moment. We shouldn’t be railing against representation by others in general, as that wouldn’t be cognizant of the situation and thus self destructive. What I’m saying is that we - both we trying to be represented, and those doing the representing - should be aware of the problem there: that when others choose to represent you in media, you essentially have to trust them to have a real interest in you and your best interests when doing so, and when they don’t that depiction is there forever. So it behooves us to try to be the ones who are representing ourselves as much as possible, and in situations where we can’t, to remind those who want to represent us that they have a responsibility to do so effectively.

This is Animated Minds for Animated Times, and really this blog is ultimately about emphasizing what makes animated media work, what makes it fun, and what makes it worthwhile no matter how old you are. And so in several years of sporadic and infrequent reviews, reactions and fandom posts it’s been rare for me to get this real about a topic, but this is something that is a serious issue feel was overlooked. Representation is complicated. And more often than not solutions that are handed to us are more band-aids that look like cures than necessarily being actually helpful, and that’s what happens when ultimately the decisions about how you’re represented lie in the hands of other people. Representation is one of the biggest things we need to work on in coming years, especially with stories and adaptations - which refer to history and culture that are often not widely known or accepted. Ask someone if they think there should be an African princess, and they’ll tell you they didn’t even have kings and queens in Africa - something that’s bluntly wrong, but is widely believed simply because those elements of culture are never represented.

And that’s the sum of my thoughts on the subject. I hadn’t updated the blog in months because this whole thing was stewing in me, and I couldn’t really go back to cheerful posts about new things until I got it out. I’ve got great thoughts about the Owl House, Amphibia, the new seasons of BH6 and Ducktales that are totally coming up soon. But for now, just a few sobering thoughts from someone who grew up loving cartoons, and desperately wishes people like me had more to look at in that field beyond apologies and promises.

[repeatedceesaw]

Teen Wolf

Welcome to a friend / roommate request for Sadie based off Teen Wolf. Ultimately this all just comes down to found family and everyone (or almost everyone) living in the same building being rented to them by the resident 'old man hangs out with young adults' landlord. Most of the characters will have known each other since 18 if not before, but while I've written mostly actual information about the characters, they're definitely more of guidelines in some parts due to the different universe mechanics. I've given three ideas for classes for each character but they're definitely suggestions and make the characters your own.

CONTENT WARNING This request contains references to family death, child abuse, and just generally shitty backstories.

( find part 2 here )

Stiles Stilinski

Open ✖ 22-24 ✖ Hexes & Cursebreaking / potions / alchemy ✖ open

✖ Occupation: Student

✖ Short Bio: Hyperfocused, sarcastic, witty, loyal to his friendships but not the best influence due to his own boredom and curiosity. mother died when he was younger and father has a 24/7 job basically so he raised himself, and maybe an 11 year old with an insatiable and dark curiosity shouldn’t have been left to his own devices. definitely got warned several times for his underage magic experiments but due to his age never really got in real trouble. honestly doesn’t really like most people and once you’re in his friend group and he accepts you, you are his prime priority. unfortunately sometimes his loyalty turns dark, and he’s more than willing to cause harm to those who cause harm to his group. is tempered a lot by the rest of the group but rarely should be left alone with Erica because they have the same sort of feelings about that. there’s a faint rivalry between isaac and stiles since scott adopted isaac into the group and stiles still harbors insecurity and a grudge for how easily isaac got scott’s attention when scott used to be stiles’ best and only friend. huge ex crush on lydia but now they they actually know one another, they are a terrifying duo of puzzle solving and thinking outside the box.

Scott McCall

Open ✖ 22-24 ✖ Cryptozoology / animal magic / combat ✖ open ✖ Occupation: Student / After class job ✖ Short Bio: puppy ™, sees the good in almost everyone but also sees situations as what benefits people the most (if he doesn’t like you, might sell you for a cornchip if it gets someone he likes out of a sticky situation), is way too trusting and cares about almost everyone, thinks with his heart. definitely works outside of class with either kids or animals… or both. the sort of help out afterclass with cryptozoology and then tutor younger students if he knows the subject. lowkey dumb, but is a hard worker. raised by a single mom (and sort of stiles’ dad), he begrudgingly goes along with stiles’ schemes because who else is going to make sure stiles doesn’t go looking for a dead body and gets murdered? exes with allison, bromance with isaac and childhood friends / are they gay with stiles. kira and scott together are pure and great, even if his he still hasn’t gotten over his first love

Lydia Martin

Open ✖ 22-24 ✖ oneiromancy / necromancy / alchemy ✖ open ✖ Occupation: Student / Possibly a TA? ✖ Short Bio: #betterthanyou, brains and beauty, she used to dumb herself down in when she thought popular girls couldn’t be smart but quickly got bored of it and chose to dominate in class. stiles could probably give her a run for her money if he bothered to study at all but best he could do is second place to her first. intends on winning academic awards and wiping the floor with absolutely everyone. entirely possible she’s finished half the courses offered by now, multilingual to the extreme especially in various spell languages and is most likely to create new spells or be doing research into some half forgotten art. struggles a little with her ability but is determined to master it like everything else. best friends with allison and was on and off with jackson in the past. not here for any women vs women bullshit and well beyond the years where she ever thought she needed a man on her arm for status. as much as it’s really not her job to improve and change a man, she knows jackson better than anyone and does go to bat for him occasionally and helps him unlearn all his bullshit posturing, sometimes with understanding and sometimes with tough love.

Allison Argent

Open ✖ 22-24 ✖ combat / healing / folk magic ✖ open ✖ Occupation: Student / Head of Family Business ✖ Short Bio: beautiful smile, dimples, sunshine. is genuinely just a nice person with a pretty big physical training background from her family and was so lovely when they all met. now though, she’s learned more and more of her family’s backstory and cruelty, and the horrors have changed her. Older now, she works hard to be the best leader she can and guide her family to the right path. although her naivety has gone now, she’s still just Good ™ . Callous when she needs to be, she’s worked hard to get through her issues and find her own morals. wants to help people but is more in the middle of stiles and scott’s ideals, more suspicious and careful than scott, but less cynical than stiles. used to date scott and they were pure and in love until she found out her family secrets and pushed him away. dated isaac for a bit and there was always a weird feeling between the three of them, with both loving her and her loving them both. after erica and her buried the hatchet, she’s just happy to have more friends and tries not to get jealous when she sees kira and scott but first loves can be hard to let go even when the timing isn’t right anymore. jackson is definitely an ass, but he’s her swimming partner and an excellent person to talk to when you just want to bitch (specifically about scott or stiles)

Derek Hale

Open ✖ 26-30 ✖ herbology / healing / rural/folk magic ✖ open ✖ Occupation: Local Ghost (completely open, he can even be a student again if you want) ✖ Short Bio: the older friend who missed out on some of his teenage years due to tragedy, it’s a little weird that he’s always hanging around these younger adults. still, he’s mostly harmless and even a little pitiful and soft when you get through his aggressive defence. definitely a major concern when they first met, it was stiles who really dragged him into the group and showed compassion for the shitty things derek went through. historically has had a really shitty relationship with allison’s family but the two of them have worked through most of their issues. lost most of his family when he was a teenager and hasn’t entirely worked through his survivors guilt so although he likes to think he’s the dad of the group, he’s really just the somewhat incompetent older brother who tries his best. erica, boyd, and isaac tend to humor him but other people not so much. he progressed from leather jackets (he, erica, boyd and isaac all had matching ones that they sometimes pull out from retirement) to sweaters. progressed from a camaro to an suv. big literature nerd. with part of the life insurance payout, he bought an old apartment building they all live in and is doing it up, everyone else’s apartment first while his stays untouched.

Erica Reyes

Sadie van der Ven ✖ 22 ✖ illusion magic, scrying, healing ✖ cerise ✖ Occupation: student ✖ Short Bio: part one of the ‘didn’t used to have power and then suddenly came into their own’ squad. was once bullied for her looks and left out of things due to her health. always deeply concerned with proving herself, even if it’s dangerous for her. with an original family who didn’t know how to handle her, she kept pushing herself until she pushed too far. when she eventually had her power glowup, she let it go to her head and wanted to take revenge on those that teased her before. definition of ‘bullied girl glows up, seeks revenge’. big proponent of girls vs girls until she eventually settled and found out that teaming up and having fun was much more satisfying. huge crush on derek but who knew he wasn’t into teenage girls as a grown adult? just wants to feel powerful and uses magic and looks like armor against all her insecurity. big movie and comic nerd with stiles and had a crush on him throughout much of their first meeting before she joined the gang. listens almost exclusively to boyd in terms of being told not to do the thing, but if he’s not around… definitely up for getting into trouble. just insecurity in a pretty cover.

Vernon Boyd

Open ✖ 22-24 ✖ elemental magic, defense, cleromancy ✖ open ✖ Occupation: student ✖ Short Bio: part two of the ‘didn’t used to have power and suddenly came into their own’ squad, boyd is the only one who didn’t become a goshdarn nightmare when he started using magic properly. with how quiet he is, you’d think he wasn’t interested in being friends with anyone, or wanted to be anywhere else. this isn’t true. he loves being around people, he’s just silently judging all of them for bad choices. having spent a lot of his time looking after his younger siblings, he didn’t really have time to hang out after school and eventually ended up just sitting alone at lunch. worked hard after his siblings’ bedtime, he had a job to try bring more money into the family. he’s probably the only one who realises that derek chose him, erica, and isaac because they were lonely and insecure and while he thinks that’s super fucked up, he also realises derek is super fucked up too and gives him a break for it. while he’s not the absolute closest to derek in terms of sharing past trauma over lunch, is definitely derek’s favorite and probably best friend. big brother who keeps people in line but disappears into the shadows when it’s not really needed. big on his found family. you think he’s quiet but he’s just the only one who can control himself when it comes to actually saying the snarky things out loud…. mostly