our kind

"our kind" is about three mysterious beings who are endowed with magical powers. Each of them is a master of magic, but they all master a different area. They are similar in size and stature, differing in their various abilities and their unusual skin structure. They are united by their religion and the corresponding obligation to wear a wooden mask with their symbol of magic. As they do not talk to anyone, their existence is a great secret. Rumor has it that they communicate with each other. They symbolize the self-destruction of mankind. They all have powers that make them superior to others. Just as humans have superiority over all other living beings on earth. However, they use these powers too lightly, acting out of various emotions without thinking about the consequences.

The first mage, named Riko, can make objects float, break apart and crumble into dust. The second, called Oro, controls the powers of water which he can create and turn into all kinds of shapes. The last magician goes by the name of Kinoko. He can trigger a fungal infestation but can also make plants bloom and grow.

Instead of using their magic for something meaningful, they only think of themselves and are interested in using their powers to put themselves above others.

All three magicians get the bad adult when they realize that their powers are getting out of hand. In the final scene, we see how they failed to use the magic wisely and how this ultimately meant the end for the three magicians.

The title "kind" is ambiguous. On the one hand, it means something like "species" or "race", which refers to us as a human race. On the other hand, it can also be read as the German word "Kind" which means “child”. This stands for the magicians' childish, unthinking use of their powers. It is therefore a reflection of our own species, which does not know how to deal with its powers without destroying themselves.

This animation is my bachelor's degree project, so I was able to work on it intensively for three months. On the one hand, I wanted my animation to deliver beautiful images with interesting landscapes that make you want to pause or rewind to take a closer look. On the other hand, I wanted to create an understandable story in which you immerse yourself in the action for a short time and observe the magicians in their actions until you understand that their actions were wrong and that they are now suffering the consequences. The light plays a central role, creating highlights and focusing on the most important points of the scenes. The characters also contain a lot of detail, with small color accents on the skin, dirt and irregularities and symbols on the masks.

For this project, I set myself the goal of learning something new. So I worked a lot with X-Particles to better understand simulations. Rigging and character animation were also new to me, so I faced many new challenges during the course of the project. I modeled the characters in ZBrush and then added motion capture shots with Rokoko. I was able to integrate my passion for shading and lighting well and also worked on a larger story on my own for the first time. 

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