‘Sign of the Fox: A Zorro Adventure’ is an independent student animated short film produced by the graduates and students of Pulse College, Dublin. With the permission of Zorro Productions Inc., ‘Sign of the Fox’ adapts the opening chapter of ‘The Mark of Zorro’ or ‘The Curse of Capistrano’ by Johnston McCulley, the story which first introduced the world to the character of Zorro. Aesthetically the film takes its inspiration from the Douglas Fairbanks films of the 1920s silent era of film, which first adapted and brought Zorro to the big screen. Although inspired by the films of the 1920s, the very latest in animation software and techniques were used in the production of this short film. Environments were created using the video game engine Unreal, with character rigging and modelling created using Maya. Traditional 2D effects were utilized in the incorporation of the caption cards, and the film’s fight sequence was inspired by the rotoscope technique pioneered during the Golden Age of Animation of the 1930s. An original score was composed in the historic Windmill Lane Recording Studios (the home of Pulse College) by a BA in Music Production learner. The animation students who contributed to this project ranged from first year and certificate based students who completed only 24 weeks of classes (some having never animated before) to year three students and graduates of the BA in Animation. Zorro (R) and (C) are used with permission of Zorro Productions, Inc.
