#what i wanted: temeraire but in an academy setting

[boltlightning]

i could fix her (the world of fourth wing) but i want nothing to do with her

[recurring-polynya]

go places addenda

Earlier this week, I finished posting go places, a 28k fanfic about Rukia and Renji getting ready to go take their Academy entrance exams. I started this story in 2019. It sat in a hot mess amongst my WIPs, and nevertheless informed a lot of flashbacks and memories that show up in various parts of my The Heart is a Muscle series. I made reference to a number of these throughout the writing, which my beautiful beta reader @diademchiofthetripod said worked fine as “textual ruins”, but I thought someone out there might be interested in actually finding the cross-references.

Additionally, this story contained a lot of world-building, just *bags* of worldbuilding, much of which started life as, or was inspired by various Tumblr posts, and I wanted to link those, too. Some of them are mine, but many came from other wonderful, thoughtful people, or came from us riffing off each other’s ideas. I am always grateful to the community on this website, and I just wanted to give credit to all the goofin’ around over here that inspires and informs my writing.

[cut for spoilers and also length]

Chapter 1

Settings are deeply important to me, and I felt like if I was going to set this entire thing in District 70, it deserved a name. Shiotsuka, 塩塚, means “salt mound,” because I wanted to invoke the imagery of barriers, like a town that sees itself as the last bastion of civilization, despite the fact that there are ten more districts to the south, including the home our protagonists have just left. In some ways, they are correct, though: Shiotsuka has the last post office on the South Road, the last shinigami recruitment station. I think all the ends-in-zero districts try to associate themselves with the ten above rather than the ten below. I realize this sort of thing is important mostly to me, but it sets the tone of the story as Rukia struggles to hold on to what she knows and who she is against the overwhelming message to focus her eyes onward and upward.

Mr. Mochida has been part of this story from the beginning. In fact, the opening scene of the original version was from his POV. I think that if I had started the story fresh in 2023, he would have been a very different character, but he was already *there*, and it didn’t feel right to replace him, which turned out to be a very good decision, actually. The actual point of this note is that I named him back before I got really into custom, bespoke character names, so it is likely that his name came from the Wikipedia list of Japanese Olympic weightlifters or something like that. I honestly don’t remember. It is a fairly common Japanese surname and, written 持田, means “hold or have” and “rice field.” An ordinary name for an ordinary sort of guy.

The bit about watered-down soy sauce came out of this post where I was wondering why they even had 55-gallon oil drums in Inuzuri and @bleachbleachbleach came up with a nicer answer than mine (which was Squad 12 toxic waste, although I am still fond of @snurtle 's idea from the tags that Rukia and Renji have glow-in-the-dark bones)

Chapter 2

The main reason there are couriers in this story is very simple: I have been re-reading Naomi Novik’s Temeraire series, and I got obsessed with the couriers and wanted some couriers. I realize that there is already the Secret Remote Squad, which is the subdivision of the Onmitsukidou that wears those rectangular hats and delivers messages around town. You know, these guys:

I wanted something tonally different though--a set of shinigami that spend most of their time outside of the Seireitei. Their job is important, but they’re more independent and a bit casual, and I liked the idea of this being one of Renji and Rukia’s first exposures to a shinigami-on-the-job (versus most of the introductions Kubo likes to do, where a character gets a Hollow dramatically slain right in front of them).

In my years of reading Bleach fanfic, I have decided that I do not care for it when people use flash step to travel long distances. This is a personal opinion, please do as you like in your own fanfics, but I just don’t think flash step should work that way. For one thing, my impression is that it basically involves doing a spatial shift from one place to another, which would seem to carry a heavy risk of running into things (or people). Also, it seems like it should take a lot of energy. Also, there are some characters (Hanataro) who can’t use it, which seems like it would cause a lot of problems. That being said, flash step is allegedly a set of techniques within hohou (we just never learn what any of the other ones are). I had some fun making up some that are practical for long-distance, which was both fun and satisfying for me. Ryuupo is written 流歩, where the first character , which means "flow", is also used in the word for jet stream, and then the second character is the same one for “step” that’s used in “flash step.” Hayaashi, 速歩, means “brisk walk” but it’s also the word used for a horse’s trotting gait. I do not actually speak Japanese. I did my best.

Relatedly, I also liked the idea of Mr. Mochida teaching Rukia and Renji a lot of practical, but not flashy stuff, and in particular, things that take lots and lots and lots of practice, but have a great deal of payoff. Unlike some people, who try to teach a kid bankai in three days, he’s more of a “strong foundations” sort of guy. I hope it’s obvious (particularly you’ve read my later stories featuring Renji in sensei-mode) that Renji is imprinting on this guy like a baby duck.

The Seireitei Bulletin makes an appearance, in part because I wanted to make a vague reference to my headcanon that Tousen personally transformed it from a propaganda rag into…um…something more closely resembling a news outlet. I also wanted to drop some hint of some big doings in the city that the reader would recognize, but would, of course, be basically meaningless to Rukia. It is actually right around the time Byakuya became captain, but that was a little too…too. However, Gin also became captain around the same time and you know I never miss an opportunity to do a shout-out to Iba’s mom.

Rukia contemplating a life in the Onmitsukidou is partially a Between Tides joke, but it’s mostly a reference to a Hisana-joins-Squad 2-and-then-adopts-Rukia-herself AU that @alopexplasma and I improv’ed our way to in the comments of section of Call Me Back When the War is Over.

Watanabe Yuuto is one of my Inuzuri irregulars; he also featured in the story Renji tells Chad about Rukia vs. the Bees, which is the next-to-last scene of Chapter 5 of See You on the Other Side.

Renji tells the story about Rukia wrestling the tanuki (or badger) to Byakuya in Chapter 11 of Call Me Back When the War is Over. It’s the second scene down and can be read independently of the rest of the story. Towards the end of the same chapter, Rukia clarifies that it was a badger (definitely not a tanuki).

Chapter 3

Rukia’s bunny print yukata makes two appearances in Call Me Back, once in Chapter 12, proving that Renji was paying attention after all, and once in Chapter 13.

Here’s a six-part video series on how to make your own waraji. I did not know that waraji were for short-term use! That was the second most interesting thing I learned writing this fanfic! The shihakushou headcanon is one I have been working on for a long time and I’m glad that I finally worked it into a fanfic. I wrote out most of my thoughts on the topic here, and here’s the senkaimon transfer protocol post that originally got me thinking about it way back when.

I did a whole post on the “Black Dog of Rondanini” kidou Rukia is trying to read. Thanks to the Bleach wiki for the kanji version of the chant, which was very helpful in writing this part.

Obligatory link to the Renji breaks his arm story.

The poem Renji is trying to write out is the Iroha, a pangram that was used as a kana ordering system prior to 1890. I felt like it was the sort of thing a boy’s mother would make him copy out to practice his writing, analogous to the old "quick brown fox".

Chapter 4

(for realsies, tho, a lot of the dream sequence references this post I made about the symbolism of Sode no Shirayuki taking the form of a yuki-onna)

Chapter 5

I was trying to come up with a list of common items that an Edo era traveler might buy/take with them on a journey when I inadvertently came across the number one most interesting thing I learned while writing this fanfic.

The incident Rukia remembers about thinking Renji didn’t like her until the day she laughed at some sick burn he made is the same incident Renji mentions in Chapter 4 of a little in love, in which he thought she didn’t like him until the day she laughed at his sick burn. What a couple of idiots.

“Rukia even worked in a shop for a bit.” If this seems familiar, it’s because it’s from my unfinished Inuzuri story I Can’t Believe I Found You in that Town and I’m sure I’ve posted excerpts from it on Tumblr. It was a pawn shop. Her job was scamming people. She was very good at it.

Re: the 1000 kan budget Mr. M gives them: For reference, per Color Bleach+, an issue of the Monthly Seireitei Bulletin costs 380 kan. A cosplay Squad 4 nurse’s outfit costs 5,980. City inflation is wild.

“I like the signs they have here,” Rukia says, pointing up at one that shows a pipe with rings of smoke coming out of it. “You can tell what the shops have without having to go in.” I went down a real rabbit hole on Edo era kanbans (and yes, that’s the etymological origin of kanban boards used in agile project management). A lot of them relied on puns, and I read in one article that high-end city shops would make their signs rely on insider knowledge so that only their more sophisticated customers would recognize them, which is the most Seireitei-ass thing I have ever heard.

“I did some arm-breaking for a crooked apothecary for a while,” Renji admits. There were some more details on this in the Renji-breaks-his-arm story, and probably also the upcoming chapter of Heart is a Muscle. If it feels like Renji mentions about six thousand different jobs he had in Inuzuri, I did that on purpose, because I wanted him to feel like a guy who was always on the grind. Most of the jobs were extremely short-lived.

Chapter 6

“I know about wheels!” Renji volunteers. “For a while, I worked at a place that took old carts and swapped their wheels around to make them look different and then sold them again.” Inuzuri is the chop shop capital of Soul Society

“We met a shinigami once, in Inuzuri. We both got real hungry, just from being around them.” I realize that everyone has not watched episode 32 of the Bleach anime 100,000 times, but this happened in episode 32 of the Bleach anime. There’s a screenshot of them in the post above.

Chapter 7 Mr. Mochida’s home district is Zanshien (残紫苑) Lingering Aster. Aster means “remembrance” in hanakotoba. Sometimes I am not subtle.

“There was a girl. That’s a complete story in itself.” Man, you know how I feel about lines like that.

Kaho, written 馨朋, means “sweet-smelling friend” because I was still on my flower bullshit.

Renji clenches one fist. “Our friendship can take this, Rukia. It’s like the book I’ve been reading on bodyweight exercises. The way you build muscle is by tearing the fibers apart, and then more muscle grows in to repair the tears, and that’s how you get stronger.” A lot of times, I have regrets about the name The Heart is a Muscle, but then I write crap like this.

The tapping also shows up in Between Tides.

“when sparrows begin building their nests” is one of Japan’s 72 poetic microseasons. The Japanese school year has begun in April since 1886, so I assume that's when the Shin'ou term starts, as well. I figured the Rukongai kids would try out shortly before then, so that they can just stay if they get in. The idea of official communications from the Seireitei being conducted in the most arcane ways possible was done with love for @bleachbleachbleach

One of the first things I did when I picked up this fanfic again earlier this year was try to calculate how long it would actually take to walk from the Inuzuri to the Seireitei. I have all kinds of notes based on the stuff Yoruichi tells the Karakura kids about how long it takes to walk around the Seireitei, the diameters of Tokyo and NYC, amounts of time I felt would be practical, etc, etc, and in the end, I just used some numbers that felt right in my heart. Time dilation in the deep Rukon is yet another headcanon I picked up from B3, but it’s also how I reconcile the various competing estimates of Rukia’s age. Do not try to follow Mr. Mochida and Hatori’s math, they’re probably using some silly “Thirty days hath September” calculation mnemonics. I think you can take my word for it that Rukia and Renji made it to their tests on time. For the record, they passed.

[littlerit]

I apologise for the asks in my inbox I’ve still not answered. This just happened to be in my activity box when I’d just finished writing so I have the luxury (or lack of excuses…) of being sat at a desk with my keyboard to hand….

Ta for the tag Clem <3

I have 33 works on AO3

Total AO3 wordcount is around 250k I think….. *checks* 278,324 words!

My top 5 fics by kudos…. Yo, I heard him everyday (Encanto oneshot), my very first fic Quake (Umbrella Academy, complete multichapter), my long fic baby The Time Traveller’s Life (Umbrella Academy, 170k WIP), my other will-hopefully-grow-up-into-a-longish-fic Obedience Suite (in A minor) (Umbrella Academy, 30+k) and finally Five’s first displacement (Umbrella Academy oneshot - prologue to TTL)

I do respond to comments! I love getting comments, and I love responding to them. You’ve shared your reaction with me, I want to share my reaction to your reaction! (or at the very least say thank you and let you know I read your comment!) I’ve fallen into the habit now of generally responding to comments on a previous chapter when I upload the next one.

What fic has the angstiest ending…. hmmm…. Farewell and The Hunt both ends in character death, and by default Five in the Apocalypse Sob Stories are all angsty AF

Ooh the happiest ending. Of Ghoulies and Spoons is just fluff, and The Tails of the Umbrella Aquarium has an angsty start and a happy ending

Do I write crossovers? I certainly write AUs / Fusions, those are my jam. For the Umbrella Academy I’ve done Daemon AU, Howls Moving Castle (would this class as a retelling perhaps, putting TUA characters into the HMC world and adapting it to fit?), and Ella Enchanted AU, and of course a Time Traveller’s WIfe AU. Have I writtena strict crossover where characters from two universes meet and interact? No.

I got a book mark on TTL with a trollish note (‘Zzzzzzzzz’) - they had gone through a bunch of fics and given them rude comments. But thats the worst of it.

I do not write smut.

Not that I know of. I hope not.

Somebody once asked if they could translate my fic, but then never responded or let me know if they actually did or not, so I don’t think so.

I have co-written a fic, Klaus’ moving castle with the wonderful @destinyandcoins

My fave ship…. I do read a lot of Zukka. Also ineffable husbands.

A WIP I want to finish but never will….well never say never. I hope to finish all my WIPS I’ve got up as WIPs. But I did post the start of a Everyday AU and labelled it clearly as free for adoption / inspiration as I just don’t see me having the time to ever really get going with that one. But who knows, it could happen.

My writing strengths… Complex timelines and time-travelling shenanigans. My devious mind and organisation skills combine nicely for that. I also can turn my hand to a mean drabble when the inspiration strikes.

Writing weaknesses…I can go pages and pages without including dialogue. I need to remember people do really be saying things to themselves/each other.

Thoughts on dialogue in other languages on AO3… it very much depends on the context for me. The odd word or phrase used sparingly for effect can really aid in and elevate characterisation or world setting for me. But it can be a fine line between an effect and a gimmick. When long dialogue is written out and then translated for me as the reader I personally wish it was just left in english and clarified in the speech tag that it was said in Spanish/Elvish/Whatever-ish.

The Umbrella Academy was my first fandom, and I’m still there now!

I have written a short oneshot for Avatar Last Airbender, but there is a longfic idea bouncing around my brain (another AU….lol) that would be nice to get out one day. I’d also kind of like to write for Temeraire, but I’m really not sure I could nail that old english voice. I am far too modern I think!

The Time Traveller’s Life is my baby. I’ve put so much work into that one. But I have other favourites too for other reasons. But forced to pick, it’s TTL.

@rockinlibrarian @destinyandcoins @booksasfurniture *mild panic as sleepy bedtime brain tries to remember who writes* @in-a-slanted-outhouse @candiliam328 @aye-of-newt …… if you fancy it, crack on, and if you don’t please ignore :)

Author Interview

(This was originally a tag meme that Mod Ragna was tagged in ages ago, so feel free to tag others if you answer it!)

How many works do you have on AO3?

What's your total AO3 word count?

What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

What fic has the angstiest ending?

What fic has the happiest ending?

Do you write crossovers?

Have you received hate on AO3?

Do you write smut?

Have you had a fic get stolen?

Have you had a fic get translated?

Have you co-written a fic?

What's your fave ship?

What's a WIP you want to finish but never will?

What are your writing strengths?

What are your writing weaknesses?

What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages on AO3?

What's the first fandom you wrote for?

What fandom/ship have you not written but want to?

What's your fave fic you've written?

[aroacebones]

20 Questions Writer Edition

Tagged by @lokilenchen 💜

How many works do you have on AO3?

Fourteen, currently!

What’s your total AO3 word count?

43,267

How many fandoms have you written for and what are they?

3 fandoms: Harry Potter, Transformers, and Star Trek

What are your top five fics by kudos?

Gently, Slowly, Take It Easy (Transformers Animated (2007))

make it soft (Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies))

helping hands (Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies))

The Hunt for the Perfect Hug (Transformers Generation One)

Statistical Anomaly (Transformers Generation One)

Do you respond to comments, why or why not?

Sometimes, sometimes not. I think if you look back at my oldest fics I was a lot more responsive in the comments since I was used to always responding when people commented on Livejournal/Dreamwidth. But I am perpetually embarrassed by the things a younger version of me said and did on the internet which is, I think, why I fell out of the habit. I’m trying to get back into it tho.

What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending?

Uhh.... it’s gotta be either What Is One More? or Undercover (both Transformers fics, and honestly I will thank you not to click those links because I am, like I said, perpetually embarrassed by things a younger version of me said or did on the internet.) Why did I even write these. There’s major character death in both of them.

What’s the fic you’ve written with the happiest ending?

I don’t know, make it soft maybe? I’d like to say this shot's on me for the planned ending but I feel like it’s coloured a shade darker by being an Academy fic. We all know what happens next.

Do you write crossovers? If yes, what’s the craziest thing you’ve written?

I never have, no. Theoretically there’s no good reason why Star Trek and Transformers shouldn’t cross over (I mean they’ve done it in canon soooo...) but the closest I’ve come to writing crossover fic myself is heavily considering a Temeraire AU with Jim Kirk as captain of the dragon Enterprise.

Have you ever received hate on a fic?

One time some asshole wrote a longform essay tearing apart everything they didn’t like about an original fic I was publishing on FictionPress when I was 17. Never any rude comments or etc. on fanfic tho, to my recollection.

Do you write smut? If so what kind?

Occasionally, yeah. I don’t even know how to answer the second question lmao like... idk? the smutty kind? I’ve done soft and sensual vanilla, wild kink for the sake of it, and everything in between.

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Yeah my fondest memory of Transformers fandom is that time I wrote a cute little oneshot for a friend and two years later some fucker liked the concept behind it well enough to write a 40 part series currently sitting at over 375,000 words. Which would be cool if they hadn’t plagiarized my author’s note explaining the setting word-for-word, or if they’d ever communicated to me their interest in using my setting, or if at the very least they’d given me some form of credit for it by, I don’t know, linking to the fic I wrote that they took their inspiration from? I recognize that it’s petty to still be mad about this when the fic I wrote was all of 625 words but listen... it’s the principle of the thing. It was my idea.

Have you ever had a fic translated?

I don’t think so, no. That seems like something I would remember.

Have you ever co-written a fic?

When we were in high school my best friend and I wrote the beginning of a fic titled The Moustache of Optimus Prime that was basically just an inside joke about one of our band teachers. It was a lot of fun but we never really got far on it and, aside from years and years of roleplaying experience, my only real foray into co-writing.

What’s your all time favorite ship?

Uhhh. God. It’s... it’s probably Ratchet/Megatron. Judge me all you want but this ship haunts me. I’ve never even written anything for it and yet the way I can never stop thinking about it prolonged my stay in the Transformers fandom by years.

What’s a WIP you want to finish but you don’t think you ever will?

Idk, nothing that I’ve ever posted. Any of my Transformers WIPs I’m sorry to say I have no interest in finishing, and the only Star Trek WIP I currently have up on AO3 I fully intend to complete.

What’re your writing strengths?

Dialogue and characterization.

What’re your writing weaknesses?

Plot, and also having any idea what any of the spaces the characters I’m writing are occupying. Listen, I don’t know, it’s a room or something, you figure it out.

What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in fic?

I’ve seen it done really well, and I think it can be a useful writing tool. I’ve made an occasional attempt at it myself but I don’t think anything I’ve written that way has ever made it into a final draft.

What was the first fandom you wrote for?

The first fandom I wrote for on purpose was Harry Potter. The first fandom I wrote for at all was Aladdin: The Animated Series. I was in kindergarten and I will take no criticisms. And no, I don’t still have it.

What’s your favorite fic you’ve written?

Probably Taking Care. Something about the soft melancholy of it still gets me. It is absolutely tragic that the art I wrote it to go with isn’t around anymore.

And that’s it! Tagging, uh, whoever hasn’t done it yet and wants to, idk, this one’s been making the rounds already.

[viralhottopics]

Man charged over attack on Gainsborough painting at National Gallery

Keith Gregory, 63, charged after 1785 work The Morning Walk damaged in attack that prompted east wing evacuation

A wing of the National Gallery was evacuated on Saturday afternoon after a man attacked a Thomas Gainsborough painting with a screwdriver.

At about 2.15pm in the east wing of the gallery, a visitor attacked the 1785 painting Mr and Mrs William Hallett, better known as The Morning Walk. Gallery assistants and visitors detained the man, who was then arrested.

The wing was evacuated and off-limits for about two hours. On Sunday afternoon police announced they had charged Keith Gregory, 63, of no fixed abode, with causing criminal damage. He has been remanded to appear at Westminster magistrates court on Monday.

The damage is limited to two long scratches which have penetrated the paint layers but not the supporting canvas, a spokeswoman for the gallery said. The painting was removed from display and examined by the gallerys conservators, who are now assessing next steps.

The Morning Walk hangs in room 34, which houses British paintings and was used as the setting for a covert meeting between Daniel Craigs James Bond and Ben Whishaws equipment expert Q in the film Skyfall.

The Gainsborough painting can be spotted over Craigs shoulder as the pair admire a painting by Joseph Turner, The Fighting Temeraire, and discuss the high-tech weaponry Q has prepared for Bond. Turners painting depicts a warship that had fought in the Battle of Trafalgar being towed away to be broken up.

Mark Bills, director of Gainsboroughs House, the museum in the artists former home in Sudbury, Suffolk, told the Guardian the attack was quite shocking … We all prepare for it in museums but its quite unusual.

He was confused as to why this painting was attacked. Its a picture that I cant imagine anybody finding offensive what an odd thing to want to do, he said.

Gainsborough is among Britains most famous artists and was one of the original members of the Royal Academy. Initially a painter of landscapes, he turned to portraits because they paid more.

The Morning Walk was commissioned when Gainsborough was at the pinnacle of his fame, a couple of years after commissions from King George III and the Queen in 1781.

Bills said: Its one of his great masterpieces: he was absolutely at the height of his powers … When we think about Gainsborough, its usually from around these years. When you think of the elegant portraits of the Georgian period, thats the one that comes to mind.

The Morning Walk shows a young couple walking their dog. Photograph: National Gallery/PA

Painted three years before the artists death, it depicts a young couple, William Hallett and Elizabeth Stephen, walking in the countryside accompanied by a dog. They were both 21 when the painting was started and were due to be married in the summer of 1785. Some art historians believe Elizabeth is painted wearing her wedding dress.

The painting, in the British romantic style, captures the 18th-century trend for society portraits to be set in informal, pastoral settings although at over two metres tall, it is on a grand scale and the couple are dressed in all their finery. The gallerys catalogue notes the light, feathery brushstrokes used to describe the landscape and the way Williams hair and Elizabeths shawl almost blend into the landscape.

The painting demonstrates the economy of brushstrokes Gainsborough developed in his later years, when he would use a longer brush to ensure freer strokes, Bills said. By this stage, he was such a confident painter he could capture that moment. It takes a lifetime of experience to do that, he said.

The fact that the canvas was not torn in the screwdriver attack gave Bills hope the painting could be fully repaired. Its amazing what conservators can do, he said. You probably wont see a difference … Im relieved from what Ive read it hasnt caused any permanent damage.

The National Gallery has owned the painting for more than 60 years. It was bought in 1954 for 30,000 about 770,000 in todays money from Lord Rothschild, using a 5,000 contribution from the Art Fund.

The highest price paid for a Gainsborough painting was 6.5m for Portrait of Miss Read, Later Mrs William Villebois, in 2011 at an auction at Christies in London.

Art attacks

Previous artworks that have been vandalised include:

Black on Maroon, Mark Rothko A 5m abstract mural by the US artist was defaced in the Tate Modern by a Polish man, Wlodzimierz Umaniec, who wrote in a corner of the painting. He said it was an act of yellowism, committed to engage with modern art. He was jailed for two years.

Fountain, Marcel Duchamp A version of Duchamps porcelain urinal, considered a key work of early modern art, was attacked with a hammer at the Pompidou Centre in Paris in 2006. The culprit, 77-year-old Pierre Pinoncelli, said the attack was a work of performance art. A judge disagreed and fined him 214,000 (147,000). Pinoncelli had previously urinated on another version of Fountain.

Rokeby Venus, Velazquez Suffragette Mary Richardson attacked the nude portrait with a meat cleaver at the National Gallery in 1914, causing seven cuts to the canvas. She said it was an act of protest over the arrest the previous day of Emmeline Pankhurst.

Mona Lisa, Leonardo da Vinci Leonardos portrait was attacked at the Louvre in Paris twice in one year in 1956: first, it had acid thrown at it, and then an unnamed Bolivian threw a rock at it, chipping the paint on Mona Lisas left elbow. In 2009 the painting now shielded behind bulletproof glass had a mug thrown at it by a Russian woman.

Read more: http://ift.tt/2nSx8u7

from Man charged over attack on Gainsborough painting at National Gallery

[nofomoartworld]

Everything We Know About the Art in 'Nocturnal Animals'

This article contains spoilers for Nocturnal Animals. 

Academy Award nominee Amy Adams stars as Susan Morrow in writer/director Tom Ford’s romantic thriller NOCTURNAL ANIMALS, a Focus Features release. Credit: Merrick Morton/Focus Features

When a nondescript package arrives at the palatial modern fortress of Susan Morrow (Amy Adams), it lands on a sleek black countertop upon which the LA gallerist asks offish husband, Hutton (Armie Hammer), to examine its contents. Inside the box is the titular manuscript for "Nocturnal Animals," the debut novel from her estranged ex, Edward Sheffield (Jake Gyllenhaal).

In Tom Ford's acclaimed second feature film, Nocturnal Animals (Focus Features), Morrow's experience reading Sheffield's story takes her down dark roads both real and imagined. Her inner world mirrors the one that surrounds her: when receiving the book shakes Morrow out of her emotional sopor, a chaotic painting by Sterling Ruby, downtown LA transplant and patron saint of art world ennui, looms in the background. In one of the film's opening shots, a Jeff Koons Balloon Dog sits companionless in the backyard of the Morrow residence, reflecting the expensive, hollow solitude of its owners. 

(l-r.) Academy Award nominee Amy Adams stars as Susan Morrow and Neil Jackson as Christopher in writer/director Tom Ford’s romantic thriller NOCTURNAL ANIMALS, a Focus Features release. Credit: Merrick Morton/Focus Features

Good filmmakers walk the tightrope between visual and verbal storytelling. Great filmmakers understand that quite a bit more can be said by using great art to speak for you. For every Boy with Apple, created specifically to evoke an Old World feeling Wes Anderson's Grand Budapest Hotel, and every Catherine Kubrick painting lining the vaunted walls of Stanley's Eyes Wide Shut, there's a distraught William Turner hanging in Sam Mendes' Skyfall (The Fighting Temeraire), an apocalyptic Picasso in Alfonso Cuarón's Children of Men (Guernica), and an ecstatic Pieter Bruegel the Elder in both Lars von Trier's Melancholia as in Tarkovsky's Solaris (Hunters in the Snow).

Academy Award nominee Amy Adams stars as Susan Morrow in writer/director Tom Ford’s romantic thriller NOCTURNAL ANIMALS, a Focus Features release. Credit: Merrick Morton/Focus Features

They're gifts for art lovers and cinephiles alike, from the work of Calder (23 Snowflakes) to Currin (Nude in Convex Mirror), Hirst (Saint Sebastian, Exquisite Pain), Motherwell (Untitled (Elegy)), Schnabel (Untitled), and of course, Andy Warhol (Shadow), Nocturnal Animals is full of them. In fact, the 15 or so contemporary artworks in the film—and the original works produced by Ford and the film's art department—would be more than enough for their own gallery show. Interested in learning more about the challenges inherent to finding, licensing, and actively using multimillion-dollar masterpieces for a major Hollywood motion picture, The Creators Project reached out to the film's production designer, Shane Valentino, who gave us a crash course in the art of Nocturnal Animals. 

(l-r.) Andrea Riseborough stars as Alessia and Michael Sheen as Carlos in writer/director Tom Ford’s romantic thriller NOCTURNAL ANIMALS, a Focus Features release. Credit: Merrick Morton/Focus Features

The Creators Project: Right off the bat, how important were original artworks in early production design conversations?

Shane Valentino: They were really important. In our second meeting, Tom made it very clear he wanted to have original artwork throughout the film.  The only ones that needed to be ���made” were the opening sequence video installation and the “REVENGE” painting. 

What’s your personal experience staging/curating/handling artworks?

I received an MFA from the San Francisco Art Institute. While I was there as a fine art filmmaker, I had the privilege of curating two shows. Those formative experiences of trying to create a theme or story through a collection of artwork, have informed my approach to production design in film making. I try not to just have the artwork used in the films I design just be set dressing. I feel they can always be another layer to help augment, illuminate, and articulate meaning.

Armie Hammer stars as Hutton Morrow in writer/director Tom Ford’s romantic thriller NOCTURNAL ANIMALS, a Focus Features release. Credit: Merrick Morton/Focus Features

How specific were Tom’s requests for pieces? How were the works obtained? Were there any works you couldn’t get?  

Tom was specific about three pieces in the film, Jeff Koons' Balloon Dog, Alexander Calder's 23 Snowflakes, and the REVENGE painting. The other pieces highlighted in the film for various sets/locations were selected through an ongoing conversation between the two of us. I was fortunate to have a longer prep period, allowing Tom and I the time to really work through how the artwork could help articulate certain themes and tones. Some of the artwork was available through Tom’s personal collection. Others were available from various private collections. The Holt Residence in the film included Tony Smith, Julian Schnabel, Joan Mitchell, Robert Polidori, and Jack Pierson, while the Morrow Residence had Sterling Ruby, Ed Ruscha, Robert Longo, and others that were received by contacting the artists directly or through a clearance/product placement representative. The works received outside of private collections were collected in many different ways.

Academy Award nominee Amy Adams stars as Susan Morrow in writer/director Tom Ford’s romantic thriller NOCTURNAL ANIMALS, a Focus Features release. Credit: Merrick Morton/Focus Features

Some artists sent them directly to the art department—Richard Misrach, Stephen Shore, Larry Fink, Cindy Sherman and Asger Carlson. In the case of John Currin’s Nude in Convex Mirror, his gallery sent us a high-res digital file which we printed on canvas. After filming was complete, we shipped the reproduction back to his gallery so they could destroy it. The one work we couldn’t get was Ellsworth Kelly’s Red Curve. We actually had the painting in our possession, part of Tom’s personal collection, but we were having difficulty getting permission from Ellsworth to use it in the film. We wanted to use Red Curve on the wall opposite Nude in Convex Mirror in Susan Morrow’s Office. We finally did get Ellsworth's permission but we unfortunately had already filmed the scene. Although it doesn’t make the final edit, we were able to use Richard Misrach’s Portrait of Agostino from his Pictures of Paintings series instead. 

Academy Award nominee Amy Adams stars as Susan Morrow in writer/director Tom Ford’s romantic thriller NOCTURNAL ANIMALS, a Focus Features release. Credit: Merrick Morton/Focus Features

Did you have to go through any particularly non-film world avenues (art licensing, hiring outside art handlers) to make the sets come alive? How much did Tom’s personal connections come into play? 

We did have to go through outside vendors for the handling of certain artwork—Mark Bradford, Aaron Curry, Alexander Calder, John McLauglin, and Robert Motherwell. Some of the pieces' values are so significant, we needed to hire outside shippers and installers whose primary function was to handle and manage the artwork from transport to installation. Tom’s personal connections with some of the artists was key. I remember on at least two occasions he reached out to artists to get permission of use—Damien Hirst for St. Sebastian, Exquisite Pain, and Jeff Koons for Balloon Dog. They were both very reluctant when we were using our usual route to get to the artists—gallery reps or licensing collective(s). I think Tom's personal phonecall to explain their works' significances to the film helped secure permission of use. He can be quite persuasive and charming. Those are examples of small, challenging moments, but mostly just the mere mention of Tom’s name would help open doors and provide access to places and people not often inclined to respond to a film’s requests. It was a real advantage!

An interior shot of The Morrow's modern LA home from writer/director Tom Ford's romantic thriller NOCTURNAL ANIMALS, a Focus Features release. Credit: Merrick Morton/Focus Features

What do you think the contemporary artworks do for the movie? Can you give any particular examples of works and their personal relationships to the film, to the characters, or to the sets? 

We were really trying to show how Susan’s world, the art surrounding her as well as her educational experience—art historian—was informing the look and feel for the West Texas storyline. We started asking what objects or ideas surrounding her would inform her imaginary world. It was not an accident that the house Tony walks up to from the highway after his family was taken from him looks like a John Divola photo, or the standoff between Ray and Tony at the end looks like a Richrd Misrach photo. As we oscillate between the “real” and “imagined” worlds of West Texas, the artwork in Susan’s world takes on greater meaning. When Susan pauses in front of Damien Hirst's sculpture, St. Sebastian, Exquisite Pain, the piece reveals how one’s vulnerability allows one to behold beauty. It feels like it is exposing her previous avoidance of love and its grim consequence.

An interior shot of The Morrow's modern LA home from writer/director Tom Ford's romantic thriller NOCTURNAL ANIMALS, a Focus Features release. Credit: Merrick Morton/Focus Features

Do you have a favorite artwork in the film?

My favorite artwork in the film is Richard Misrach’s "Desert Fires #153" photograph in Susan Morrow’s house foyer. It was an early reference on my mood board for Nocturnal Animals' West Texas storyline. Tom immediately responded to the photo, not only because it was a part of his personal collection, but because it captured some of the ideas we were trying to articulate—desperation, confusion, and fear. The photo has a man pointing a rifle at another man who is smiling to the camera. Normally it could be interpreted as a playful moment between two men, the threat of annihilation diffused by a simple smile, but by placing the action or “capturing” the moment within an environment consumed by smoke and fire, the playfulness evaporates and the imminent danger is highlighted. The photo does an incredible job of capturing this tension, a tension almost duplicated in the highway scene between Tony’s family and Ray’s gang.

An interior shot of The Morrow's modern LA home from writer/director Tom Ford's romantic thriller NOCTURNAL ANIMALS, a Focus Features release. Credit: Merrick Morton/Focus Features

To the degree that one ‘interacts’ with an artwork by looking at it, spending time, etc., how much did the actors get to interact with the artworks?

The actor who interacted the most with the artwork was Amy Adams. The irony of the St. Sebastian, Exquisite Pain moment in the film, is that the sculpture was a CGI. It exists at the Goss-Michael Foundation’s permanent collection in Dallas. We had to send a VFX supervisor to map the sculpture in Dallas—photograph it from multiple angles—and then we “placed" it in the scene in post-production. Amy was interacting with a bluescreen mockup during the filming of the scene.  

How has working with art expanded your production design capabilities? Any interest in curating shows now?

I have always tried to incorporate art into my production design practice. You can see it in the film Beginners as well as in The Normal Heart. I will continue to try and “curate” art into the films I do in the future. A real passion of mine! I would love the opportunity to curate traditional gallery shows. I think it is important to continue the conversation of certain themes highlighted in films and find its application in other “significant” places and spaces. Let’s do one! 

The carport at The Holt residence features a large sculpture from their fine art collection in writer/director Tom Ford’s romantic thriller NOCTURNAL ANIMALS, a Focus Features release. Credit: Merrick Morton/Focus Features

Below, a complete list of Nocturnal Animals artworks by location / set:

Morrow Gallery:

Video Projection and Sculptures on plinths - Designed and created by Nocturnal Animals Art Department and Tom Ford

Morrow Residence:

Poolside - Jeff Koons, Balloon Dog, 1994-2000 (Sculpture) Entry - Richard Misrach, "Desert Fire #153 (Man with Rifle)," 1984 (Photograph) Dining Area - Sterling Ruby, Title Unknown Living Room  - Robert Motherwell, Untitled (Elegy), 1950-1956 (Painting) / Aaron Curry, Untitled, 2011 (Sculpture) / Andy Warhol, Shadow, 1980 (Painting) Bedroom - Mark Bradford, Untitled, 2015 (Painting) / Alexander Calder, 23 Snowflakes, 1956 (Sculpture) Morrow Office - John Currin, Nude in Convex Mirror, 2015 (Painting) 

Holt Residence:

Driveway - Tony Smith, Title Unknown, Date Unknown (Sculpture) Entry - Joan Mitchell, Looking for a Needle, 1958 (Painting) / Julian Schnabel, Untitled, 2008 (Painting) Living Room - Robert Polidori, Death of Marat, 1985 (Photograph) / Robert Polidori, Salle de Bain Marle Antoinette, 2006 (Photograph) Dining Room - Jack Pierson, Torse de’Atlete Marble, 2010 (Photograph)

Los Angeles Museum:

Lobby - Damien Hirst, Saint Sebastian, Exquisite Pain, 2007 (Sculpture) Walkway - "Revenge" Painting, Designed and created by Nocturnal Animals Art Department and Tom Ford

An interior shot of The Morrow's modern LA home from writer/director Tom Ford's romantic thriller NOCTURNAL ANIMALS, a Focus Features release. Credit: Merrick Morton/Focus Features

Nocturnal Animals is in theaters now. You can learn more about Shane Valentino's work on his website, and follow him on Instagram. 

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