About
Interviewing Li Cunxin
Queensland Ballet’s School & Community Matinée Series is designed to bring the magic of dance to young Queenslanders of all ages. To launch the program, Bigfish created an animation that captures the spirit of a student's first trip to the ballet.
We conducted an intimate one-on-one audio interview with Li Cunxin (Mao’s Last Dancer), inviting him to share his insight on the artform and its influence on young people. The result? A compelling and honest account illustrating the powerful and universal language of dance.
Episode 2: Lyndon's Story
The next film shares the perspective of one of these young audience members. We interviewed high school student Lyndon Steele, who recounted memories of watching his first Queensland Ballet performance.
Inspired by the dancers’ dedication to their craft and ability to tell a story through movement, Lyndon describes an immersive and surreal experience that transcends reality. This helped inform the film’s visual style and storytelling.
The Animation
Animation enthralls, engages and etches itself in our memory. We chose this medium to accompany these narratives and captivate audiences of all ages. By juxtaposing reality and fantasy in this way, our intention was to create a series of pieces that reflected the enchanting nature of ballet itself.
The animations were produced using traditional 2D techniques. After initial artwork was created by our talented illustrator/animator Sem Han, each frame was meticulously hand-drawn by our wider design and animation team. To complement the finished pieces, original soundtracks were composed by Sheldon Lieberman.
