Glass Half

Glass Half is a short film written and directed by Australian artist Beorn Leonard that deals with people’s vastly different points of view in the way they perceive and appreciate art, using a comedic approach.

I wanted to make the point that (…) many of us are totally convinced of our own perspectives and that even when two perspectives conflict they can still both be right (or wrong) at the same time.

The film presents three characters, an external conflict and a focus on art. Staged in an art gallery (urban area), it uses a stylized aesthetic with playful self-reflexive elements (frames from paintings to reframe and fragment the image, and for creating montage within the frame). A fun clash of art aesthetics, subjects and color palettes is enacted by the two main characters.

Since a generic language is used, motion graphics are employed within the image to help transmit meaning, along with character’s facial and body expressions, together with sound. Motion graphics, combined with reframing, turn into animated paintings themselves.

Cameras are mostly static, with prevalent frontal, medium wide shots. The film is shot from the POV of the paintings, there’s heavy use of off-screen space, which is effectively used to unveil the surprise ending.

Highlights of the short include the playful staging, emphasis on humor and the way it addresses art and personal taste (which helps connect it with a wider audience).

Glass Half was produced at the Blender Institute using the Blender open source software.

 Don’t miss 

Interview – Beorn Leonard on the making of Glass Half