Dakar Dream is a 77 minute feature documentary directed by Alexander Volberding that explores the vibrant, emerging surf scene in Dakar, Senegal.
The project is an innovative POVdoc, which is a film shot in part by some of the surfers themselves from their own perspective, captured through thousands of raw clips over the course of a year. The director then spent three years meticulously cataloging and editing 13,000 files into a seamless, intimate narrative.
Far from a traditional pity documentary, Dakar Dream focuses on the raw talent, command of the ocean, and distinct style that has run four generations deep in the Cap Vert peninsula. It highlights local surfers who, despite limited resources, lack of funding, and zero corporate sponsors, showcase world class skills, including the reigning female Champion of Africa.
Creative Process
I contributed to the film by executing two distinct types of animation pipelines. My work focused on enhancing the natural rhythm of the documentary through both narrative orientation and frame by frame kinetic enhancements.
Hand Drawn Kinetic Motion Lines
In a close creative exchange with the director, we developed a system of hand drawn kinetic accent lines to amplify the energy of specific shots. Inspired initially by the music video The Revelator by Sunbeam, we experimented with animating brand assets and iconography before choosing a minimalist approach. We tested straight, zigzag, and single paths before choosing flowing line bundles that trace real world physics.
Once the style was established, I fine tuned the line work frame by frame in Calipeg on iPad to ensure the animation flowed with the true energy of each shot. This technique was used to accentuate breaking shore waves around a static and emphasize the momentum of fishing boats moving through open water. While most of these overlays utilized bright tones, we also integrated high contrast black and white variations to introduce visual variety. All hand drawn elements were later brought into Adobe After Effects for final compositing, color correction, and contrast adjustments.
Map and Location Animations
To guide viewers through the changing coastal locations and introduce the local surfers on screen, I animated the maps and titles using After Effects. The entire visual identity of the film was designed by very talented Bruna Pétalla.
Inspiration Source
The Revelator music video by Sunbeam, which served as our initial conceptual anchor for the line work.
Director References
Examples of classic speed and action lines provided during our look development phase.
Look Development and Animation Testing
We went through few phases of establishing the right visual language.
Callipeg animation process
The animation process revolved around drawing hundreds of individual frames by hand using Calipeg on an iPad.
The full film, along with additional background on the project, can be found via the link below.