by Bridger Moss
Artist’s Statement
It has taken me quite some time to do so, but over the years that I have spent studying the
many ways that cinema can deliver a heightened narrative experience, I have come to realize in
part that filmmaking owes much of what it has to offer in terms of narrative quality and
characteristics to its predecessors dated throughout the long history of the arts. Just as Sergei
Eisenstein states in his article “Dickens, Griffith, and Ourselves [Dickens, Griffith, and Today],”
I, too, “have always derived comfort from repeatedly telling myself that our cinema is not
entirely without an ancestry and a pedigree, a past and traditions, or a rich cultural heritage from
earlier epochs.” For this project, I took great inspiration from two unrelated pieces of rock music
that date back over four decades.
For some time now, these two songs from a generation or two before my own time have
been circulating through my consciousness and providing me with certain visions that I can only
see the medium of animation bringing to fruition. Taking inspiration from both the lyrics and
instrumentals of “Crystal Ball” by Styx and “Purple Rain” by Prince, I created the surrealist yet
minimalistic collection of GIFs I call Crystal Rain.
The first two thirds of this collection reflect largely on the lyrics of “Crystal Ball” where
we see a squiggly figure “walk the straight and narrow line” and “think that everything was
fine.” These periods of time can last however long the viewer wants or feels like they should.
Eventually, the ball of crystal that the figure has been seeking is born from his breaking heart and
aching body. Overall, this song by Styx is one of existential distress, which is why I made these
first few GIFs to give the feeling of hopelessness. Though, after destroying the object that left
him empty in his center, a storm is summoned, filling the void within, making him firm and truly
whole.
Head Editor
Spencer Norton
Project Manager
Laura Calkins
Section Editor
Lille Knudsen
Faculty Review
Benjamin Thevenin
