Case Study: Looky Looky Here Comes Cooky (Feature Documentary)
AIDC Best Documentary (Factual Single) 2021
Steven McGregor, Steven Oliver, Anna Grieve, Steve Thomas, Danielle MacLean, Kath Symmons, Tamarind Tree Pictures & Roar Film.
“Working with Viv on our film Looky Looky Here Comes Cooky was an absolute pleasure. Viv brought not only her considerable technical skills but also brought her sense of story. She took our brief and elevated it through story, tone and comedy.”
The Goals
To create animation using archive images communicating the humour and concepts of writing by Steven Oliver.
The Approach
I undertook some preliminary visual research and in consultation with director Steven McGregor we identified The Fabulous Baron Munchausen /Baron Prášil (1962 Dir. Karel Zeman) and cutout animation by Terry Gilliam as key references. We chose a collage aesthetic to make use of our access to a diverse range of archive images. From there I made some sample looping animations using a digital cutout technique (a hopping Kangaroo, a ship under sale, a mermaid) and shared them with the team to gain initial feedback.
Once the style was established I used a combination of hand drawn sketches and digital placeholders to create animatics. This allowed the team to see an indication of the content before too much time was put into creating each shot. At the stage Steven’s writing was the most important element and my job was to make sure the animation did it justice.
Next, after the animatic was approved I searched through the archive material to find suitable cutout images to use. i focused on etchings, water colours and oil paintings although there are a few photos and even models in there. A small number of elements were drawn from scratch, this included a full hand lettered alphabet in the style of Cook’s own writing.
Challenges
Part way through production COVID-19 hit and the whole operation was completed remotely across three states. Phew! Thank goodness for the internet! The last two months of production were completed and signed off from home with minimum of time lost due to the pandemic.
Software used
Adobe Premiere Pro, Adobe After Effects, Adobe Photoshop, Procreate.
The Results
Looky Looky Here Comes Cooky has been released to critical acclaim. The Sydney Morning Herald commented “Fresh look at Captain Cook among Melbourne Festival Highlights” and The Guardian listed it among five highlights to watch at MIFF.
We are very proud to be a part of the fantastic team. It was a very rewarding project and we hope that it makes a valuable contribution to the national conversation about Australian identity in 2020. Looky Looky Here Comes Cooky was awarded Best Documentary (Factual) at the Australian International Documentary Festival.
You can watch the full film Looky Looky Here Comes Cooky on NITV and SBS VICELAND following the broadcast at 8:30pm Aug 20th 2020.
Looky Looky Here Comes Cooky flips Australian history as. written and revered by the victors and provides an alternative view through music and comedy. The approach invites conversations with ALL Australians . It’s not only a witty, enlightening and highly entertaining documentary, it’s one that focuses on the future of Australia by looking back: how do we move forward as a reconciled country without understanding what it is that we’re reconciling. Looky Looky Here Comes Cooky nails this.
“As the home of Indigenous storytelling, NITV is proud to present Looky Looky Here Comes Cooky. Driven by First Nations filmmakers, this ground-breaking documentary looks to reframe the one-way dialogue surrounding the history and legacy of Cook, particularly in 2020. It’s a bold, entertaining and engaging alternative history from a First Nations perspective; a standout film for Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians and First Peoples around the world.”
Director for Indigenous Content at SBS and NITV Channel Manager, Tanya Orman
