"Eloise in the Middle"
Prospect Park Productions is producing the play “Eloise in the Middle”, written by Dunedin playwright Emily Duncan. Director Jordan Dickson approached lecturer Jon Wilson, who teaches Communication Design at Otago Polytechnic, about a possible collaboration on the production. The play is about a child, portrayed by an adult actor, who is caught in the middle when her parents separate. The production needed projected content, both animated and filmed, to help communicate the story to both adults and children. A team of nine students worked on this project with Jon.
The short film they produced shows the wedding of Eloise's parents, her mother pregnant, and Eloise as a baby. It needed to be of professional standard, as the character of Eloise's father is a professional film-maker.
Throughout the story, projections of animations will be placed alongside the actor to help enhance the experience and show the perspective of the two characters, Eloise and her mother. The goal was animations that flowed naturally along with the actor and story.
"Eloise in the Middle" will be performed at the Dunedin Public Art Gallery, with the season opening on 29 September and running until 6 October.