End Times with Shane Acker

The director of "9" on his post-apocalyptic animated epic and how we're all turning into cyborgs.

So you’re ready to take that technological plunge?

In some ways, we already have become cyborgs. When I put a contact lens in my eye, I’m cheating the evolutionary path I was on. If it were 10,000 years ago, I’d be toast. The saber-toothed tigers would’ve gotten me because I can’t see more than ten feet in front of my face. We are already so dependent on technology, even the internet. It’s not that far away. We’re already embracing it and using it. Once it becomes a part of our body… you know, if you walk around with a pacemaker, you’re a cyborg. The deeper question is: How do we maintain our humanity?

You’re a talkative guy so I’m not implicating you, but considering how much time is spent working alone and patiently on these ritualistic endeavors, are animators socially awkward?

I find animators to be very gregarious and outgoing, especially animation supervisors. It’s true, we sit and work at computers ad nauseum, and we’re worried about 1/24th of a second, so we’re all a bit anal retentive. But animators are actors at the end of the day. We know the technology, how to set key frames and smooth curves and all that stuff, but we’re really actors. We go out and rehearse the performances in front of cameras, and try to find those genuine little nuggets that make a performance feel real. In some way, you’re trying to distill reality down to its purest form because it’s a shorthand. It’s abstract.

What are the greatest animated films you’ve seen that not enough people know about?

Recently, there’s an amazing anime film called “Paprika.” I don’t know how many people got a chance to see that, but from a technical standpoint, that had some of the most astounding animation — the complexity of those shots, and the pure imagination, the way it straddles this realistic world and the virtual fantasy it goes in and out of. The animation is so fluid. I think it’s a lost art, in a lot of ways. We’re so [reliant] on computers and 3D animation, that to see that rigor and artistry hand-drawn, the draftsmanship is incredible.

The Brothers Quay have some of the most haunting work. There’s a film called “In Absentia.” When I saw that, the experience I got was so visceral. For a long time, I was frustrated by their work because I was always trying to find the narrative in it. I was used to traditional storytelling. I realized that what they’re doing is a kind of time-based sculpture — you just have to watch it and let the imagery and emotions wash over you. Once I let myself go and allowed myself to experience their work in that way, it became really affecting.

“9” opens wide on September 9th.

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