“Silvering”
SAFF 2021 Award Winner
Upon discovering a grey hair, a woman becomes entangled in insecurity and fear of the future. The sanctuary of the bathroom takes a turn for the sinister as she spirals into a panic – and the hair becomes her tormentor.
Director Biography
Eilidh Nicoll is a Scottish filmmaker working predominantly in 2D traditional and digital animation, with a love of process and materiality.
'Silvering' is her graduation film, made in the 4th year of her Animation BA(Hons) degree at Edinburgh College of Art
Director’s Statement
'Silvering' follows a woman’s spiral into panic after discovering a grey hair. It takes place entirely in a bathroom, a setting which has an interesting potential as both a place of sanctuary, and one that can feel quite sinister - the narrative sees a ritualistic practice of ‘self-care’ devolve into a sort of claustrophobic self-scrutiny. I’ve drawn on this and some horror tropes to take a stab at the absurd preoccupation many of us have with ageing and our bodies; both in terms of its silliness and the very real sense of dread that can accompany it.
The film was animated predominantly using a frame-by-frame approach in Photoshop. But it also incorporates some under camera stop-motion using handmade, recycled paper with the intention of recalling ‘skin-like’ textures.