Hi all! How are we today?
Today, I want to talk about this short called ‘Pit Stop’ by Raship Trika!
It was part of a 4th Year independent film project at Sheridan College, Canada and has been nominated for numerous awards and festivals [2].

This playful, comedic film features two men in space – both with very different physical appearance as well as personalities. While one is trying to fix what seems to look like a toilet cubical, the other attracts multiple little aliens. In the end, the aliens fly off their spaceship and they’re stranded with just a toilet cubicle.

It is a 3D animated film, that is carefully planned from the storyboard stage. It gives a great example of how to follow through and really play in the storyboard stage. This is something that I want to improve on and be more organised in.
In his ‘Making Of’ video, we can see how each stage evolves more and more into the final piece.
What I like?
– It’s an easy watch: nothing that requires too much thought. Just simple, character animation. Very enjoyable.
– The overall look: At first i thought it was maybe 2D animation. I would love to achieve something like this, as I feel that 2D animation has a very unique charm in terms of aesthetics.
– Characters are distinct. The narrative is clear and we understand what’s going on straight away. The director gives each character their own roles and uses visual cues to enhance the difference between the duo also.
– It’s very short! I like that because it’s just a quick enjoyable watch. Given the story, any longer may have made it less snappy and effective.
– Character animation: The performance is incredible here. Everything is very fluid and so much that I thought it was hand-drawn! Something I struggle within 3D animation, is that my animations often look very computerised and not organic. However, this is not the case for this film at all!
Here is the full video of the ‘Making of’ – it’s really useful for animators to watch and see how precise he progresses from each stage.
Let me know what you think! 🙂
Until next time,
Katie
References:
[1] Trikha, R., 2019. Pit Stop. [ Video ] Available at: <https://vimeo.com/331495729> [Accessed 30 April 2020].
[2] Trikha, R., 2020. The Making Of Pit Stop – Student Film. [ Video ] Available at: <https://vimeo.com/405266016> [Accessed 30 April 2020].