Film Info8 minutes
Abby Kent Available for Free AND Ticketed events Synopsis: Transistors is a short animated film about the history and science of the tiny devices that brought about the Information Age. You interact with billions of transistors in your phones and computers every day, so why not learn more about them? |
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Filmmaker Q & A
Answers by Abby Kent, Producer/Animator/Writer/Editor
What inspired this story?
At Thanksgiving in 2014 I mentioned to my family that I wanted to make a film about a complicated scientific process using animation. My Father immediately suggested transistors -- the tiny electronic devices that make our phones, computers, and even toasters work. When I asked how small they were, he told me that if you took a transistor and scaled it up to the size of an apple, then an iPhone would then have be the size of the planet earth in comparison. I knew from that moment this would be a great subject for animation.
Describe some of the challenges faced while making this film
My biggest hurdle was figuring out the balance between an accurate portrayal of the science, while not getting too bogged down in the nitty gritty details. Oh, and I had to learn Javascript for some of my After Effects work.
How do you approach science storytelling?
I think there’s really something about the metaphor that my Father told me about the apple and the transistor. I think it’s good to keep close to that place, using metaphors to get the audience to connect to amazing and complex concepts. I also think humor goes a long way towards making scientific concepts easier to digest.
What impact do you hope this film will have?
I hope the film encourages people to appreciate the many amazing scientific processes happening before their eyes every day.
Were there any surprising or meaningful moments/experiences you want to Share?
While making this film, I was rock climbing with a few friends and the subject of transistors actually came up because they were a bunch of engineering graduate students. I asked if one of them would look over my film, and he agreed. After seeing the rough cut, he admitted that although I did “gloss over” a few things, I had in fact succeeded in portraying the processes correctly. It was both surprising and meaningful to have an official engineer’s stamp of approval.
What inspired this story?
At Thanksgiving in 2014 I mentioned to my family that I wanted to make a film about a complicated scientific process using animation. My Father immediately suggested transistors -- the tiny electronic devices that make our phones, computers, and even toasters work. When I asked how small they were, he told me that if you took a transistor and scaled it up to the size of an apple, then an iPhone would then have be the size of the planet earth in comparison. I knew from that moment this would be a great subject for animation.
Describe some of the challenges faced while making this film
My biggest hurdle was figuring out the balance between an accurate portrayal of the science, while not getting too bogged down in the nitty gritty details. Oh, and I had to learn Javascript for some of my After Effects work.
How do you approach science storytelling?
I think there’s really something about the metaphor that my Father told me about the apple and the transistor. I think it’s good to keep close to that place, using metaphors to get the audience to connect to amazing and complex concepts. I also think humor goes a long way towards making scientific concepts easier to digest.
What impact do you hope this film will have?
I hope the film encourages people to appreciate the many amazing scientific processes happening before their eyes every day.
Were there any surprising or meaningful moments/experiences you want to Share?
While making this film, I was rock climbing with a few friends and the subject of transistors actually came up because they were a bunch of engineering graduate students. I asked if one of them would look over my film, and he agreed. After seeing the rough cut, he admitted that although I did “gloss over” a few things, I had in fact succeeded in portraying the processes correctly. It was both surprising and meaningful to have an official engineer’s stamp of approval.
