Weathervane by Joaquín Cociña

From the opening moments of Joaquín Cociña’s video animation Weathervane, I was intrigued. I continued watching in an attempt to piece together some form of cohesive meaning from the animation. By the end, I was none the wiser, but then I realised that finding meaning wasn’t really the point. Composed of seven short vignettes made from charcoal drawings, Weathervane is all about marrying the monochromatic eeriness of charcoal drawings with movement.

On the surface, each vignette looks quite cute before a black atmosphere envelops the frame. Appropriating various forms – bath water, tears, smoke, wind and shadows – this atmosphere haunts the animation. What I believe is particularly impressive is the nuances in the detail of both the image and the sound effects, so that every part of the frame embodies this evil apparition. It is incredibly creepy and extremely fascinating to watch.

Danica