Tracer, an animated film currently being developed by the Providence studio The Story Hat (TSH), is a pioneering project in many ways. The shared creation of CEO Kevin Mowrer, CCO Rob Travalino and Michael Corrente of Eagle Beach Productions, the film will be the first feature-length CGI-animated horror film produced for wide release in the US adult market. Along with the groundbreaking foray into a new genre, the team is also following an innovative model to produce the film’s content: they’re recruiting members of the target audience (17- to 35-year-olds) to generate much of the movie’s visual narrative, in what Mowrer describes as “a truly open-source approach to filmmaking.” With RISD right next door, the directors didn’t need to look far to find an abundance of talented young artists to start the production process.

In spring 2008, 15 Illustration students are engaged in a sponsored studio dedicated to preliminary work on Tracer. Taught by Critic Shanth Enjeti ’98 IL, the class is focusing on the overall look of the film; students are working with a mix of traditional and electronic media to develop and refine ideas for the movie’s style, characters and locations, with creative guidance provided by the team of directors and a roster of visiting professionals, including art directors and animators. The objective is to bring students quickly up to speed on the creation of a real-world, large-scale commercial animation project.

Travalino wrote the script for the film, which centers on a teenage tattoo artist whose creations come to life and turn on their bearers. As he explains, the concept is perfectly suited to CGI animation — a medium that translates visual narrative onto the screen much more flexibly than live-action filmmaking can. Producer/director Corrente, whose credits include the live-action films Federal Hill, American Buffalo and Outside Providence, says that when he “heard the idea of making an animated horror film that would combine the elements of horror, animation and tattoos, I knew I had to make this film. Having RISD involved adds a very exciting element to a very exciting project.”

Assistant Professor Nick Jainschigg [RISD ’83, Illustration], head of the Illustration Department, has observed that students are clearly rising to meet the high standards of the Tracer team. The studio “has been very valuable already, both in pushing the students to professional levels of production and in introducing them to collaborative ways of working,” he says. Enjeti notes that students “are being put into a unique situation that demands them to be active, responsible members of a team. The generosity of The Story Hat and the support of RISD have created an opportunity that is both valuable and unique for our students.” And as for the results so far: “When our students do fine work, I always say, ‘I am pleased, but not surprised’ — but seeing them mature throughout this process has been truly rewarding.”

With a huge amount of illustration and animation work to be done on Tracer once production gets fully under way, there’s great potential for continued involvement with RISD; The Story Hat team anticipates internships and possible additional studios in the semesters leading up to the projected release at the end of 2009. By opening up the creative process to talented members of the target audience, TSH hopes to generate advance excitement for the film while also honing in on the tastes and preferences of potential viewers. For the RISD students involved, the rewards of this participatory model are clear as well: their names will appear in the film credits, and they’ll have valuable professional experience to add to their resumes. And of course, if everything goes according to The Story Hat’s ambitious plan, the students will be in on the ground floor of a history-making creative venture.