LONGSHOREMAN

LONGSHOREMAN is a hand-drawn animation exploring hidden worlds which lie just beneath the surface of our streets and our skins. Transport from the dead of night in a 1950s neighborhood, beyond flesh and blood and deep into the core of existence in a journey through creation, transformation and the lingering aftermath. LONGSHOREMAN features Brooklyn-based musician Aaron Hodges, and took 250+ hours to hand-draw and edit all the visual elements.

  • William S. Davis
    Director
    'Blood Letting' (music video)
  • William S. Davis
    Animator
  • Tracy L. Cummins
    Animator
  • Derek Donovan
    Cinematographer
  • Project Type:
    Animation, Short
  • Genres:
    Drama, Sci-Fi
  • Runtime:
    1 minute 47 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    June 1, 2015
  • Production Budget:
    400 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Black & White
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - William S. Davis

William S. Davis was born and raised in the Appalachian Mountains of North Carolina. He grew up in a small town surrounded on all sides by rolling foothills and soaked in an outsider history of moonshine, murder, outlaws, and entrepreneurs. His self-taught filmmaking began with borrowed cameras and VCRs. His work has shown at festivals and galleries worldwide and focuses on the unique connections that both build and destroy individuals and communities. Davis has served on a variety of community-based film boards and projects and is currently Festival Director of the Joedance Film Festival, an Adjunct Faculty member in the Film Studies Program at UNC Charlotte and works full-time as CEO of production company Small Creatures. In addition to film work, Davis is an Eagle Scout, fine artist, and musician. For him, art exists to challenge, inform, and reinforce shared and individual belief systems.

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Director Statement

I made the LONGSHOREMAN animation for two reasons. The first was out of a love for film's past and present. Only through animation do I feel a bridge can be built between the most basic elements of cinematic creation and future-reaching concepts and insights. The second reason was to create a visual dossier of my own worldview and philosophies regarding the hidden language of time and interactions of worlds that are built on top of other worlds. For me, this conversation was only able to be had and explored through animation. For both reasons, I love the immense amount of time taken to slowly build and consider the world of this film. In some ways, I found the process to be hopeful and illuminating, a microcosmic example of our time here on earth, wherein a small token of our love, pain and directed energy can hopefully be found in this film.