Laurie Hill
My Life At 40
About the artist
The main area of my practice is moving image. Generally speaking, the drama of Control Vs. Unruly Forces is usually bubbling away at the heart of my work and this can fly off in any number of directions. There is also a tension between the desire to create narrative and another to dissolve it. A healthy dose of (dark) humour and a sense of absurdity are also crucial ingredients in the mix. If I can make myself laugh I know I'm on the right track! With 'My Life At 40', the script is a genuine document written when I was 12, rediscovered many years later. My strategy here and elsewhere in my work is to take this unaltered text and interpret / negotiate it as an adult. In doing so, I'm working with, sometimes against the text, even teasing out unexpected meanings and injecting psychological depth. It's also a personal exploration and self-conscious construction - the conceptual underpinning is laid out from the start and the 'flat-yet-3d' style reinforces the idea. As with a lot of my work, it dramatises a conflict between pragmatism and idealism.
About the work
Synopsis: 'I'm not 40 yet but I'm forward-thinking. A special collaboration between the director, aged 12 years, and his 34 year old self, both looking forward to a glorious future as a 40 year old conservation hero and Lamborghini owner. Made with six years to go!' 'My Life At 40' is a film made at the Royal College of Art, London, where I studied for an Animation MA. It uses a variety of techniques: real and computer animated cutouts, drawing, photography and time lapse. No moving image cameras were used - just digital stills cameras. The voiceover is provided by my father, Denys Hill.
Additional credits:
This work isn't really a collaboration as such - it is conceived, written, directed and animated by myself. However there are some additional production credits: - Voiceover by Denys Hill - Animation Assistance by Eleonora Rosatone and P. Shirley Hill - Music: Symphony No.5 by Gustav Mahler. My Life At 40 appears courtesy of Laurie Hill and RCA | Royal College of Art. dazzle ShortFilmLabel.