Bugbottle

Is it possible to trap an ant within a closed bottle in such a way that it can simply walk out? Bugbottle explores the possibilities in constructing structures that extend beyond our traditional three-dimensional space.

  • Beau Janzen
    Director
    Educational work: Mesh, Reason for Math, Quantus ; VFX work: Westworld, Game of Thrones, Stranger Things, Batman vs Superman, Life of Pi
  • Beau Janzen
    Writer
  • Beau Janzen
    Producer
  • Tina Janzen
    Key Cast
    "narration"
  • Konrad Polthier
    Content Advisor
    Mesh
  • Project Type:
    Animation, Documentary, Short
  • Genres:
    Animation, Science, STEAM, Math, Mathematics, Education, Educational
  • Runtime:
    15 minutes 45 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    January 6, 2020
  • Production Budget:
    150 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    digital - computer rendered
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Beau Janzen

Beau Janzen has created a unique background for himself in education and animation production.

He has over twenty five years of experience in visual effects production and has served on such projects as Game of Thrones, Westworld, Stranger Things, The Walking Dead, Batman vs Superman, Man of Steel, the VFX Oscar-winning Life of Pi, and won an Emmy for his CG supervision on the show Gotham.

In addition, Janzen has a strong background in education and math with a Master’s Degree in Instructional Systems Design, nearly ten years of classroom experience teaching mathematics, and a position as guest researcher at Berlin’s Techniche Universitaet Department of Special Research Projects in Differential Geometry and Quantum Mechanics.

He has written and animated internationally-acclaimed educational videos including Mesh, Quantus, and The Shadows of Alexandria.

Janzen currently serves as Education Lead for the VFX program at the Gnomon School for VFX and Animation for Film and Games, which in 2020 was ranked the #1 Visual Effects school in the world by the Rookies Awards for the fourth consecutive year

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Director Statement

In my educational work, I strive to bring an artist’s sensibility of storytelling and connecting with an audience. All too often, educational media is driven by a sense of reductionism to compress information into simple bite-sized chunks to memorize. I believe that concepts in math and science, which are too often viewed as dry and lifeless, are in fact compelling, personally relevant, and hold a special beauty. Learning should not be the mere consumption of random empirical facts, but a lifelong process of engaging with powerful ideas, and I see my role as an artist and filmmaker is to draw in an audience to these powerful ideas and establish an intellectual as well as emotional connection. Ultimately, I hope the impact of my work transcends the specific topics covered and helps spark in my audience new ways of seeing the world and a broader sense that complex ideas are palpable and beautiful.