Lord of the Rings: The Animated Musical | Flashbacks
This essay is about flashbacks, one explanation for how humans perceive time and memory. Unlike some of my diatribes, the post is blessedly short for those of you without much spare time. Flashbacks have been used on stage and in film for over a century, but new techniques continue to appear. Medical professionals now use the term “flashback” to describe a symptom of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), although not all experts agree if this is a required symptom for diagnosis. As for its connection to The Lord of the Rings , characters use flashbacks when attempting to recall what has happened to them or to people in their communities. Despite the presence of an actual timeline in “Appendix B: The Tale of Years” , the timeline in the dialogue portion is shaky. Characters frequently misremember the past, receive glimpses of the future, and even become confused about the current date in the present. My goal in the animated musical is to preserve these flashbacks while drawing ...