Service Bus

Service Bus is a short film about a man traveling by bus who presses a service button and finds himself immersed in a wacky action-packed ride. The short was created as a graduation project by seven artists at The Animation Workshop.

Two main characters, external conflicts, non-realistic staging that takes place in a bus (and on the highway), and an emphasis on speed and comedy are the key elements of the short. The story is based on a personal experience of one of the artists, Elmer Lødemel, who on a bus trip to Copenhagen noticed a service button and the fact that there was only one person on duty at the time, the driver himself.

Service Bus employs a stylized aesthetic that mixes 2D and 3D animation. Great work has been dedicated to environment design and creating amusing characters, as well as to the bus itself, with particular effort invested in recreating its interior and the experience of traveling. Color and lighting are employed to highlight the main characters and direct viewers’ attention to them.

The short makes use of contrasting narrative points of view to create comedy. Only the Rolf character and those outside the bus are aware of the bus speeding out of control, all other characters inside the bus are oblivious to or unfazed by this. For the driver it seems to be business as usual. Non-realistic staging adds to the comedy (such as the driver serving coffee while the bus is tumbling and the liquid falling perfectly on the cup). The momentary transition to a documentary format at 1m37s is also worth noting.

Wider shots are used for portraying the bus and its journey (extreme long shots, long shots), tighter ones are used within the bus to describe the interior and passengers as well as to show the main characters’ expressions and actions (full, medium shots and close-ups). Some close-ups are used to further accentuate the action.

The cinematography places special emphasis on creating an impression of speed. Visual rhythm is high, handled through editing, motion within the frame, dollies, tilts, zoom-ins, camera shakes, rolling cameras, changes in lighting, etc.

What makes Service Bus work so well? Creative script, expressive main character that helps build tension, good use of surprises and humor, effective directing, tight editing and playful non-realistic staging.