Casting a Leading Lady

"You don't have to do everything on your own. Look to experts when you need help." 
Sketches by Serena Henderson.

Sketches by Serena Henderson.

So, who is Ms. Gimme? 

My original thoughts were...

She's got attitude.

She's relentless.

She's traditionally beautiful... but,

she's also a villain.

When the time came to begin producing, I called on an old classmate, and very talented artist, Serena Henderson, to help mold the character of Miss Gimme, originally named Miss Consumption. I knew she'd be perfect for the job. We went through several rounds of character design before finding the perfect fiery villainess. 

Original notes about the character (January 2016):

This villain is a woman who is fiery, devilish and obsessed with the superficial aspects of life (shopping, brand names, etc.). Some physical characteristics are that she is tall, very long exaggerated limbs, racially ambiguous, high cheek bones, and dressed exquisitely. 

Pop culture also had an influence. 

Popular culture also had its influence on the development of Miss Gimme. The silver hair trend, very popular a few years ago, was the inspiration behind Gimme's long grey locks. Side note: I suppose this was my way of living vicariously through the character as I always wanted to try this style but was never bold enough to take the leap!

Left images courtsey of Google.

Left images courtsey of Google.

Traditional attire still honored. 

One detail that honored the tradition of super villain attire is Gimme's sharp black cape with an added touch of femininity in the pink lining. This piece communicates to the audience that she is a bad-ass, a boss, and truly fearless in her pursuit of getting what she wants.  

Left image from Disney's Maleficent.

Left image from Disney's Maleficent.

Needless to say, a ton of research and thought went into the development of defining this character, and inspired by many things -- pop culture mixed with a little tradition and notes from the likes of character artists Al Hirschfeld and Arturo Elena, the star antagonist of GREED was born.

- Dominique Wilmore

It all started with a song.

download.jpg

In traveling to film festivals, one question continues to surface. What's the inspiration behind GREED? Well, it all started with a song. Sitting in my cubicle at work one day years ago, I was listening to Wynton Marsalis' Plantation to the Penitentiary album released in 2007 - this album, by the way, is still one of my favorite jazz albums to date. After the mellow notes of Love and Broken Hearts came to a close, my spirit was jolted with the upbeat and fast-paced melody of Supercapitalism. Here are the opening lyrics if you've never heard the song:

Gimme this. Gimme that. Gimme that. Gimme that.

Gimme this. Gimme that. Gimme this.

Gimme that. Gimme that.

And That and that and that and that.

Now, this wasn't my first time hearing this song, but my inner voice spoke to me that day and said, "Damn, this would be DOPE as an animation!" 

That was four years ago. 

The goal: There were a few. 

First, the song has such a powerful message. The perfect mockumentary of how we - Americans in society today - have become so consumed with stuff, that it defines most of us. So, how could I get more people to hear this song?

Remember how in La La Land, Ryan Gosling's character Sebastian thought the genre of Jazz was dying and wanted to save it? Well, I'm not quite as passionate about the state of Jazz as his character was, but I do know that the popular music being peddled to the masses today is kind of, well, trash. Trash that promotes low moral standards at that.

I was in college when I first saw Disney's Fantasia 2000 - and one of my favorite animated shorts in that collection was set to George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue. That animation really got me to listen to, and enjoy, a classical composition that I would have never picked up on my own. 

I think the power of storytelling through visuals is immense. And that is why I decided to embark on the journey of visually telling the story of Supercapitalism. 

- Dominique Wilmore