What is the film about?

It Starts With is a mixed media animation short about characters making tiny teacups and also falling in and out of love. Made using digital tools and hand painted backgrounds, it’s a watercolour ode to love and friendship.
Short film commissioned by Channel 4 Random Acts for Season 6.

What influenced it?

“It starts with” takes place in a slightly surreal school environment – those who have been to certain types of art school may recognise that vibe. It’s also the kind of school you tend to find in certain Anime, where the setting is a little bit impossible, a somewhat theatrical microcosm, exacerbating certain feelings and motifs: here the characters make tiny teacups, which is an embodiment of searching for their artistic selves.
The 1997 anime ‘Revolutionary Girl Utena’, with its somewhat impossible school setting, visual metaphors, heightened emotions and occasional use of black and white silhouettes was a big inspiration. Anime and cartoons that pay a lot of attention to emotion and anxiety were an important influence in general, such as Masaaki Yuasa’s Kaiba or Rebecca Sugar’s Steven Universe.

A little background information...

It starts with was made based on a certain time where I literally felt like broken glass, trying to hold the pieces together. The visual image stuck, and I was wondering if it was possible to make a film to try and communicate that precise feeling – as well as the gratitudeI felt towards the small acts of kindness that helped get through.

How was the film made?

The backgrounds were all painted by hand in coloured inks. The characters were animated on TVPaint. Simple design principles were used for the two techniques to blend well visually : both the characters and the backgrounds have white outlines/shading, helping to create a sense of visual cohesion.
Korean composer Narae Chung created the score, while Jake Williams did the sound design.