Marcella Martin

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Thoughts on Turning Red

One of my favorite movies is Disney/Pixar’s Turning Red. When I first saw the movie last year, I instantly fell in love with it. The whole movie has a nostalgic feel all throughout. Its beautiful pastel palette is reminiscent of 90s anime. The movie’s score also has a clear influence of early 2000’s boy bands which was very refreshing to hear in 2022. It was moving to see how the main character Mei develops by the end of the film. The scene where Mei finds her mother in the forest has to be one of the most emotional scenes in animation that I have seen so far. The emotion brought out by the two characters is so raw and genuine.

Last but not least, Domee Shi serves as an inspiration for all. Not only was she able to make a movie that reflected her own experiences, but she did it in a way that can be relatable to all who have been through the highs and lows of being a teenager. I also loved that Shi paid homage to her Chinese culture. As an aspiring animator who is Latina, I aspire to one day pay homage to my culture through the world of animation.

The fact that this is just only Domee Shi’s first feature film makes me excited to see what she comes up with next.

Wanda Maximoff Fanart

Wandavision is a show that really is one of a kind. My favorite part of it is that it pays tribute to the old-style sitcoms from past decades. I grew up watching a wide variety of shows. My parents would let me see shows that they watched from their childhood like I Dream of Jeannie, Bewitched, The Flintstones, etc.. Seeing the first episode of Wandavision transported me back to when I was a little kid watching old reruns of Bewitched. What also resonated with me was the development of Wanda throughout the show. She is a well-written character that makes you feel her emotions in the moment.

Kagome Higurashi Fanart

Around middle school, I started to become interested in anime. One of the first anime that I watched was Inuyasha. What I love about the show is that it nicely balances comedy, romance, and action. The show also features lovable and memorable characters. The creator of Inuyasha is Rumiko Takahashi. The show motivated me to further explore other works done by her. I have come to admire the way that she isn’t afraid of venturing into new genres and not letting one genre define her work. The drawing shown here is of Kagome Higurashi, the show’s main protagonist.

Sophomore Animation II Final

In the past couple of weeks, I have been working on my final project for my Animation II course at Drexel University. It is a group project that involves creating a story using robots. For the first half of the term, my project partner and I have been modeling, texturing, and rigging our own robots. The video shown above is a turntable of my robot, Celeste. Modeling and texturing are skills that I have been building on since my first year, but rigging is a whole new world that I hadn’t fully explored before this course. The intensive work that goes into the rigging process is something that I have found an appreciation for. After a few stressful weeks of rigging, I am glad to say that my robot is fully functional and moveable! Now we are in the final stages of the project – animating our robots. So far it has been fun working with my partner on bringing this story to life. With a few more weeks of animating and rendering still ahead of us, I can’t wait to see the final product!

**Early Concept Art for “Celeste” Robot Model**

Thoughts on Howl’s Moving Castle

Scene from *Howl’s Moving Castle* (2004)

Howl’s Moving Castle is another favorite movie of mine. As a kid I had been exposed to other Studio Ghibli films such as Ponyo (2008) and The Secret World of Arrietty (2010), but back then I was not as familiar with Japanese animation and Studio Ghibli. Around middle school was when I started to become more interested in the world of Japanese animation. In addition to watching anime, I decided I wanted to start watching Studio Ghibli films. Howl’s Moving Castle is a charming story with well-rounded characters that can be enjoyed by all ages. The visuals in this film were so breathtaking that it took a couple of watches to fully grasp it all. The best scene in my opinion is when Howl takes Sophie to stroll through the sky. The animation plus the music just transports you to another place. The movie’s score is just as beautiful as the visuals. Overall, this movie is truly a masterpiece of its ow. Every time I rewatch it, I never fail to be amazed.

Thoughts on Silk Sonic

*An Evening with Silk Sonic* (2021) Album Cover

Ever since Silk Sonic released An Evening with Silk Sonic, it has been a staple of my everyday playlist.

I guess you could say I’m an old soul. Growing up, my parents immersed me in 70s/80s music. Listening to artists such as the Bee Gees and Queen made up a big part of the soundtrack of my childhood. Even today, I have a whole playlist dedicated to my favorite songs from that time period.

Besides listening to music from the 70s/80s, one of my favorite artists is Bruno Mars. Although his style has changed from time to time, he has always stayed true to himself while paying homage to the greats who came before him. I love that his music ranges from making you want to dance along to suddenly feel nostalgic of a broken heart.

So when Bruno Mars and Anderson Paak announced that they were forming Silk Sonic, I was beyond excited to listen to their debut album. My favorite songs from their album are “Leave the Door Open” and “Skate”. Those songs have that soft, dreamy feel of 70s R&B music, which is not seen a lot these days. Silk Sonic is the first group that I personally feel has successfully achieved that nostalgic 70s sound in their music. Another thing that I love about the group is the effort they put in other non-musical aspects of the group. Whenever they perform live, they usually dress up with typical 70s outfits and dance in coordinated routines as it was done back then.

I hope I can see them perform live one day if they ever decide to do a national tour 🙂