Critical Writing Index

Tales from the Creeped: The Animated Films of Barry Doupe

by Lee Henderson

Border Crossings, 2010, v. 29, no. 113, pp. 66-74

Henderson describes the work of Vancouver based filmmaker Barry Doupe, an animation artist who works on the 32-bit home computer software of video games of the '90's. The films are character driven, with a strange narrative of the characters playing out their roles. "Doupe's animations play with the creepy aesthetic of the video game anti-narrative", emphasized by the unnerving quality of 32-bit animation. The usability of the software enables Doupe complicated, super-experimental narratives that reference a hack aesthetic, with awkward pauses, exploiting the broken-down quality to contribute to the overall effect.

ITEM 2010.013 – available for viewing in the Research Centre

Videos, Artworks and Artists Cited

ThaleBarry Doupe

A Boy on a Dock Blowing His NoseBarry Doupe

Distraught Mother Reunites with her ChildrenBarry Doupe

At the Heart of a SparrowBarry Doupe

PonytailBarry Doupe

Whose ToesBarry Doupe