This was the first time I had ever heard about the Story of Stuff project and I really enjoyed checking it out. At first glance the website’s appearance was really unique. The design was cohesive and clear. I saw the hand drawn technique used throughout the page but I wasn’t really sure of its significance. Then I opened the first movie and realized the project addresses topics that are controversial and more intellectual than everyday citizens are used to. The producers use basic animated drawings and sound effects to illustrate the narrative. As the viewer you are almost forced to ignore the women narrating…you just focus of the drawings that supplement her main arguments.
The topics Story of Stuff’s website address are thought provoking and in a lot of ways intimidating to the viewer. Most of the themes they discuss shed light on the ignorance of our society all while using pictures to dumb down the information even more. Maybe the topics seem more relatable when they are drawn out into fun easily digestible cartoons? I don’t know…but what I do know is this technique allows the producers the ability to emphasize important issues or topics within the movies. For example in the Story of Stuff they use the golden arrow graphic to convey to the viewer information that was really important. It is the first time in the cartoon where color is used and a specific sound effect is used. Later in the animation when the women references the same information the sound effect plays again reminding the viewer that this aspect of the narrative is related to the golden arrow info. Another way the drawings convey the narrative is by zooming in to focus on specific aspects of the narration and then zooming out to show the big picture.
Overall the design as a whole is consistent and the hand drawn cartoons complement the projects critical tone.