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THE MASTERPIECE OF TAMAGATA (extract)
A secret child, a powerful adversary & a boundless painted world
UK | 36 mins | 2027 (in production)

Since 2019, we have been working with artist @ilonasuschitzky to develop an extraordinary short story into a hand-painted animation: The Masterpiece of Tamagata.

Desperate to save their childless marriage, a master painter and his wife retreat into an imagined world, painting the daughter they cannot have. With each brushstroke, the line between fantasy and reality blurs, until a dangerous confrontation with the Shogun threatens to tear it all apart.

The project has become an experimental testing ground, rooted in traditional ink painting and frame-by-frame animation, expanding into blockchain and AI. As we enter 2026 and develop more of the film, we have some exciting partnerships to announce.

🎬 Directed by @leocrane77 @ilonasuschitzky
🖌 Lead artists & animators: @leocrane77 @ilonasuschitzky @natcet
✒️ Script by @fromtheliferoom after a short story by Betty Misheiker
🎵 Original music by @@anna.r.ice
⭐️ Shikishi performed by @natsumi_kuroda
⭐️ Tamagata performed by @heki_blue
⭐️ Emissary performed by @yuyayuya.yay
😎 Executive Producer: Celia Atkin
📽 Produced by @figurationco @pckdlnch
🙏 With support from @aceagrams
🏠 Made at @coopersyardstudios
🔗 Full cast, crew & credits: www.figuration.co/tamagata

Follow @figurationco for news
#tamagata

L’AMOUR REBELLE (extracts)
Love, conflict and technology in the first live opera on the blockchain
UK | 4 mins | 2022

“A stunning, intriguing, completely unique, animation. Has a sense of timelessness to it whilst at the same time being very modern in its themes”
🏆 Best International Experimental, @bloomsdayfilmfestival 2023

“Merav Eldan, Leo Crane and Zachary Whitney are doing fascinating things blending opera, animation, and immersive experiences.”
🕊 @cozomomedici 2022

L’amour rebelle launched with a live performance in Los Angeles on 29 March 2022, featuring mezzosoprano Merav Eldan, dressed in couture designed by Rami Kadi Maison de Couture. Zachary Whitney conducted players from the LA Philharmonic under Leo Crane’s charcoal animation in a 360-degree projection dome. The film was then reformatted for theatrical release, premiering at the Oscar-qualifying @ptownfilm Festival in June 2022. It has since been exhibited and screened at numerous festivals and museums around the world, from a giant billboard in New York to a six-screen installation in Paris.

Directed & animated by @leocrane77
Musical arrangement by @steijnaem55
Vocals performed by @merav_eldan
Carmen modelled by @fromtheliferoom
Couture for the live performance by @ramikadi

Watch for free at www.figuration.co/lamourrebelle (link in bio)

A @figurationco / Electrifying Opera co-production
Made at @coopersyardstudios with @pckdlnch

#charcoalanimation #charcoaldrawing

NUDE TRIUMPHANT (extracts)
Expose your true self
8 mins | UK | 2020

Jay rushes to get ready for another frantic day. Armoured against the sights and sounds of the City, he races against time until a chance encounter propels him into a strange watercolour world. Here, three Nudes reveal their truth and an enigmatic Professor directs time. But will Jay dare to expose himself in order to find the clarity and connection he seeks?

🏆 Best Animated Short, Provincetown International Film Festival 2021
🏆 Best Art House Film, Cambio International Film Festival 2021
🏆 Global Shorts Winner, 2020
⭐️ Finalist, Seoul International Cartoon & Animation Festival 2020
⭐️ Finalist, New Shoots 2021
⭐️ Finalist, South London Film Festival 2021
⭐️ Highly Commended, Ealing Film Festival 2021

“Stunning craft across both the visuals and sound design in this short, which gives a fascinating insight into the experience of life modelling.”
- New Shoots, @shootingpeople @pranobaileybond

“Best Animated Short for its original animation that takes the viewer on a revealing adventure with robust characters.”
- @ptownfilm Festival 2021

“A delightful study of letting go”
- @zippy.frames

“A spectacular & exquisite visual quest”
- Liberally Quarterly

Watch for free at www.figuration.co/nudetriumphant (link in bio)

Director @leocrane77
Writer @fromtheliferoom
Animation @komation17 @leocrane77 @patrick_yates_animation @aaronjacobjones
Music @andrew.one.thousand
Sound @andysoundguy @barkandeclectic
Featuring @fromtheliferoom @jocalderwood @high_priestexx @popuplifedrawing @valentinarock77
Produced by @animateprojectsuk with @coopersyardstudios @pckdlnch
Exec Producer Celia Atkin
Supported by @aceagrams

Full cast & crew at www.figuration.co/nudetriumphant (link in bio)

First glimpse of Turning Back, a new series of drawings and animations. Work in progress on three life-size figures featuring @justdusu
.
Made at @figurationco @coopersyardstudios
.
#charcoaldrawing
#portraitartist
#figuredrawing
#charcoalanimation

The Masterpiece of Tamagata: Four Seasons

Four Seasons is a short sequence from the hand-painted film The Masterpiece of Tamagata (Act II, scene 10). Here, we see Tamagata's imagined world fully realised, as the child grows up against a backdrop of the passing seasons.

The production combines traditional ink painting (suiboku-ga) with computer animation and experimental AI. For more information, please visit www.figuration.co/tamagata

Four Seasons has been released as a limited edition artwork via @seditionart x @ariaprotocol . By collecting this work, you are supporting the continued production of the film.

Collect here: https://seditionart.com/collections/522

Principal credits:
🎬 Directed by @leocrane77 @ilonasuschitzky
🎨 Lead Artists: @ilonasuschitzky @leocrane77 @natcet
🎻 Original Music: @anna.r.ice
📃 Script: @fromtheliferoom based on a short story by Betty Misheiker
🌟 Executive Producer: Celia Atkin
😎 Produced by @figurationco @pckdlnch
🌲 Made at @coopersyardstudios
🎁 With support from @aceagrams

Full credits atwww.figuration.co/tamagata

With thanks to the collectors on Sedition:
@deblakes @mel_m8 @alvindhall @thomas_petrelli_jr @ilonasuschitzky @petdoc @helen_mantzis & others not on IG

The Masterpiece of Tamagata: Hana

Hana is a short sequence from the hand-painted film The Masterpiece of Tamagata (Act II, scene 10). In it, we see Hana come of age, just before Tamagata paints his final masterpiece.

The production combines traditional ink painting (suiboku-ga) with frame-by-frame animation and experimental AI. For more information, please visit www.figuration.co/tamagata

Hana has been released as a limited edition artwork via @seditionart x @ariaprotocol . By collecting this work, you are supporting the continued production of the film.

Collect here: https://seditionart.com/artworks/214341

Principal credits:
🎬 Directed by @leocrane77 @ilonasuschitzky
🎨 Lead Artists: @ilonasuschitzky @leocrane77 @natcet
🎻 Original Music: @anna.r.ice
📃 Script: @fromtheliferoom based on a short story by Betty Misheiker
🌟 Executive Producer: Celia Atkin
😎 Produced by @figurationco @pckdlnch
🌲 Made at @coopersyardstudios
🎁 With support from @aceagrams

Full credits atwww.figuration.co/tamagata

With thanks to the collectors on Sedition:
@deblakes @mel_m8 @alvindhall @thomas_petrelli_jr @ilonasuschitzky @petdoc @helen_mantzis & others not on IG

The Masterpiece of Tamagata by Leo Crane is now live.

Set in a fictionalised Japan long ago, the animated film follows the master painter Tamagata and his wife, Shikishi. In the absence of a child, Tamagata paints a boundless fantasy where they can live with a daughter, Hana. Painting by painting, the imagined world grows more real, until an ultimatum arrives that forces art, desire, and reality into conflict.

Leo Crane is a major figure working at the intersection of animation, fine art, and experimental technology. Trained in both figure painting and computer animation, his practice spans moving image, fine art, and landmark technological experiments, including the first live opera on the blockchain. His work has been exhibited, screened, published, and performed internationally, from the Southbank Centre in London and the Grand Palais in Paris to galleries and institutions across Hong Kong, Seoul, and New York.

Alongside his studio practice, Leo Crane is deeply embedded in the global art ecosystem. He is currently directing and producing The Masterpiece of Tamagata at Figuration, his production studio in London. He is co-founder of AIFA Ventures, an International Advisor for the OmenaArt Foundation, and a board member of Animate Projects, Pangaea Sculptors’ Centre, and the Art Voyage Biennial. He also speaks internationally on creativity, technology, and leadership, and teaches across leading institutions including Sotheby’s Institute of Art, WIRED Education, and V&A Academy.

The Masterpiece of Tamagata is co-directed by Leo Crane and @ilonasuschitzky

Now available to experience on Sedition.

We're delighted that our watercolour animation NUDE TRIUMPHANT returns to the big screen at @queerfestnorwich on 22 February.

Come along and experience the journey of a life model!

Link in bio for more on the film, including full credits.

🙏 @psychicvision.s @sam.the.psychic
#nudetriumphant #watercolour #watercolor #aquarelle #aquarela #desnudo #life model

We're delighted that our watercolour animation NUDE TRIUMPHANT returns to the big screen at @queerfestnorwich on 22 February.

Come along and experience the journey of a life model!

Link in bio for more on the film, including full credits.

🙏 @psychicvision.s @sam.the.psychic
#nudetriumphant #watercolour #watercolor #aquarelle #aquarela #desnudo #life model

We're delighted that our watercolour animation NUDE TRIUMPHANT returns to the big screen at @queerfestnorwich on 22 February.

Come along and experience the journey of a life model!

Link in bio for more on the film, including full credits.

🙏 @psychicvision.s @sam.the.psychic
#nudetriumphant #watercolour #watercolor #aquarelle #aquarela #desnudo #life model

We're delighted that our watercolour animation NUDE TRIUMPHANT returns to the big screen at @queerfestnorwich on 22 February.

Come along and experience the journey of a life model!

Link in bio for more on the film, including full credits.

🙏 @psychicvision.s @sam.the.psychic
#nudetriumphant #watercolour #watercolor #aquarelle #aquarela #desnudo #life model

We're delighted that our watercolour animation NUDE TRIUMPHANT returns to the big screen at @queerfestnorwich on 22 February.

Come along and experience the journey of a life model!

Link in bio for more on the film, including full credits.

🙏 @psychicvision.s @sam.the.psychic
#nudetriumphant #watercolour #watercolor #aquarelle #aquarela #desnudo #life model

We're delighted that our watercolour animation NUDE TRIUMPHANT returns to the big screen at @queerfestnorwich on 22 February.

Come along and experience the journey of a life model!

Link in bio for more on the film, including full credits.

🙏 @psychicvision.s @sam.the.psychic
#nudetriumphant #watercolour #watercolor #aquarelle #aquarela #desnudo #life model

Ink paintings for @vamuseum
🖌
These paintings combine my experiments with sumi-e with my approach to watercolour. They are the basis for the techniques developed with @ilonasuschitzky for our ink-painted animation The Masterpiece of Tamagata.

Thank you to @akemilucas for introducing us to this wonderful medium 🙏

Produced as live demonstration paintings during my 6-week course Introduction to Watercolour at the V&A Academy

www.figuration.co/tamagata

Ink paintings for @vamuseum
🖌
These paintings combine my experiments with sumi-e with my approach to watercolour. They are the basis for the techniques developed with @ilonasuschitzky for our ink-painted animation The Masterpiece of Tamagata.

Thank you to @akemilucas for introducing us to this wonderful medium 🙏

Produced as live demonstration paintings during my 6-week course Introduction to Watercolour at the V&A Academy

www.figuration.co/tamagata

Ink paintings for @vamuseum
🖌
These paintings combine my experiments with sumi-e with my approach to watercolour. They are the basis for the techniques developed with @ilonasuschitzky for our ink-painted animation The Masterpiece of Tamagata.

Thank you to @akemilucas for introducing us to this wonderful medium 🙏

Produced as live demonstration paintings during my 6-week course Introduction to Watercolour at the V&A Academy

www.figuration.co/tamagata

Ink paintings for @vamuseum
🖌
These paintings combine my experiments with sumi-e with my approach to watercolour. They are the basis for the techniques developed with @ilonasuschitzky for our ink-painted animation The Masterpiece of Tamagata.

Thank you to @akemilucas for introducing us to this wonderful medium 🙏

Produced as live demonstration paintings during my 6-week course Introduction to Watercolour at the V&A Academy

www.figuration.co/tamagata

Ink paintings for @vamuseum
🖌
These paintings combine my experiments with sumi-e with my approach to watercolour. They are the basis for the techniques developed with @ilonasuschitzky for our ink-painted animation The Masterpiece of Tamagata.

Thank you to @akemilucas for introducing us to this wonderful medium 🙏

Produced as live demonstration paintings during my 6-week course Introduction to Watercolour at the V&A Academy

www.figuration.co/tamagata

Ink paintings for @vamuseum
🖌
These paintings combine my experiments with sumi-e with my approach to watercolour. They are the basis for the techniques developed with @ilonasuschitzky for our ink-painted animation The Masterpiece of Tamagata.

Thank you to @akemilucas for introducing us to this wonderful medium 🙏

Produced as live demonstration paintings during my 6-week course Introduction to Watercolour at the V&A Academy

www.figuration.co/tamagata

Ink paintings for @vamuseum
🖌
These paintings combine my experiments with sumi-e with my approach to watercolour. They are the basis for the techniques developed with @ilonasuschitzky for our ink-painted animation The Masterpiece of Tamagata.

Thank you to @akemilucas for introducing us to this wonderful medium 🙏

Produced as live demonstration paintings during my 6-week course Introduction to Watercolour at the V&A Academy

www.figuration.co/tamagata

Ink paintings for @vamuseum
🖌
These paintings combine my experiments with sumi-e with my approach to watercolour. They are the basis for the techniques developed with @ilonasuschitzky for our ink-painted animation The Masterpiece of Tamagata.

Thank you to @akemilucas for introducing us to this wonderful medium 🙏

Produced as live demonstration paintings during my 6-week course Introduction to Watercolour at the V&A Academy

www.figuration.co/tamagata

Ink paintings for @vamuseum
🖌
These paintings combine my experiments with sumi-e with my approach to watercolour. They are the basis for the techniques developed with @ilonasuschitzky for our ink-painted animation The Masterpiece of Tamagata.

Thank you to @akemilucas for introducing us to this wonderful medium 🙏

Produced as live demonstration paintings during my 6-week course Introduction to Watercolour at the V&A Academy

www.figuration.co/tamagata

THE MASTERPIECE OF TAMAGATA
A secret child, a powerful adversary & a boundless painted world

Based on a short story by Betty Misheiker
Co-directed by Ilona Suschitzky & Leo Crane
Screenplay by Roy Joseph Butler
Animation leads: Ilona Suschitzky, Leo Crane & Natasha Cetner
Original music by Anna Rice
Performance (this extract) by Natsumi Kuroda & Yojiro Ichikawa
Executive Producer: Celia Atkin
Cover painting by Ilona Suschitzky

Full credits via link

This extract is work in progress

THE MASTERPIECE OF TAMAGATA

"A long, long time ago, in a certain province of Japan, there lived a famous artist called Tamagata."

So begins The Masterpiece of Tamagata, a short story by acclaimed author Betty Misheiker, too powerful to be published when it was originally written 60 years ago. Today, Ilona Suschitzky, Misheiker’s daughter, is bringing the story to life as an animated feature film, co-directed with Leo Crane and produced by London animation studio Figuration.

Shikishi and Tamagata launches the Tamagata Collection, a series of digital artworks on Makersplace to support the film’s production. This piece adapts an immersive installation curated by Iham Gallery in Lisbon, June 2023. It introduces the two main characters in the landscape of the inky world. The music is from the pre-production demo by Anna Rice, a record of the evolution towards an orchestral score.

The project began in 2019 with funding from Arts Council England and generous private investors. By collecting Tamagata NFTs, you are invited to join us as we complete the funding, produce the animation and release the film. Every Tamagata NFT supports independent cinema and the #film3 movement. Holders of these tokens will have special access to production insights and events.

Along with Shikishi and Tamagata, we are releasing The Escape, a 1/1 artwork showcasing the film’s striking aesthetics of hand-painted inks, digital manipulation and orchestral score.

For full credits and the latest information, please visit www.figuration.co/tamagata

L'AMOUR REBELLE is now live!
This mini-opera was born in the chatrooms of an NFT bull market in late 2021. Since then, it has become an immersive live performance with players from the LA Philharmonic, an award-winning film, a Manhattan billboard, & a six-screen gallery installation.

Watch the film at www.figuration.co/lamourrebelle

Created by @steijnaem55 @merav_eldan @fromtheliferoom & @leocrane77

"Merav Eldan, Leo Crane and Zachary Whitney are doing fascinating things blending opera, animation, and immersive experiences.”

- @cozomomedici #MediciMinutes

Thanks to everyone who has helped make this happen @cozomomedici @fewocious @film3squad @ihamnft @grida @ptownfilm @brightonanimation @tiefestival @filmpride @citizenvinyl

#film3 #charcoalanimation #queerfilm #opera #carmen #nfts #musicnft