RETURN
Return is a three-minute animated film that explores the Buddhist concept of Saṃsāra, or reincarnation. The film combines a 2D drawn animated character with 3D environments and revolves around a young woman's experience. The main character is a girl who suffers during the journey of reincarnation before learning the joy of being alive.
“I will be a fish afterlife.”
Falling from heaven to the sea, I was so scared that I wanted to escape, and I was reborn after repeated failures, which made me realize the joy of being alive.
“I will be a fish afterlife.”
Falling from heaven to the sea, I was so scared that I wanted to escape, and I was reborn after repeated failures, which made me realize the joy of being alive.
I like to illustrate with fine lines and contrasting colors. Animation has the potential to influence people. It has enchanting visual impact and engaging stories, which are the two aspects that I am always trying to deliver to the audience in new and compelling ways.
I enjoy meditating and clearing my mind. A practice that allows my mind to be its boldest and most imaginative. That is the time when I often imagine what I will look like and where I will go after I die. In my thesis animation short, Return, I used a bookending structure to tell the underwater adventure of my heroine. Thus, it can be interpreted as a girl’s rebirth or a girl daydreaming about her afterlife. Return refers to the fact that the protagonist begins and ends at the exact location in the story. It also implies that life continues to move forward and that change and transformation are a part of that continuance. And that no matter how far my mind travels, I still need to pull back once in a while to keep myself grounded, just like I need to work and animate to bring the world in my mind to reality.
DIRECTOR
I enjoy meditating and clearing my mind. A practice that allows my mind to be its boldest and most imaginative. That is the time when I often imagine what I will look like and where I will go after I die. In my thesis animation short, Return, I used a bookending structure to tell the underwater adventure of my heroine. Thus, it can be interpreted as a girl’s rebirth or a girl daydreaming about her afterlife. Return refers to the fact that the protagonist begins and ends at the exact location in the story. It also implies that life continues to move forward and that change and transformation are a part of that continuance. And that no matter how far my mind travels, I still need to pull back once in a while to keep myself grounded, just like I need to work and animate to bring the world in my mind to reality.
DIRECTOR
Hongying Chen
SOUND DESIGNER
Andrew Savdeyev
SOFTWARES
Adobe After Effects, Adobe Photoshop, Autodesk Maya, ClipPaint Studio, Procreate, Substance Painter
AWARDS
Best Shorts Competition — Award of Merit
LA Independent Film Channel Festival — Best Student Animation
PRIX ROYAL Paris Animation Awards — Best Action Sequence | Rising Star Award
LA Independent Film Channel Festival — Best Student Animation
PRIX ROYAL Paris Animation Awards — Best Action Sequence | Rising Star Award
OFFICIAL SELECTIONS & SCREENINGS
Animation Marathon, Chalandri, Attika, Greece
Animation Studio Festival, Paris
Best Shorts Competition, La Jolla, CA
Changing Face International Film Festival, Sydney, NSW
Chicago Indie Film Awards, Chicago, United States
Dreamer’s Short Film Festival, Bucharest, Romania
Film Miami Fest, Miami, Florida
Flickers' Rhode Island International Film Festival, Providence, RI
Hellbender Student Film Festival, St. Charles, MO
Independent Shorts Awards, Hollywood, Los Angeles, CA
International Short Film Festival Canton, Guangzhou, China
Khem Animation Film Festival, Woodbridge, NJ
LA Independent Film Channel Festival, Los Angeles, CA
Los Angeles Animation Festival, Los Angeles, CA
Los Angeles Student Film Festival, Los Angeles, CA
Mobile Animation Film Festival, Mobile, Alabama
New York Shorts International Film Festival, New York, NY
North London Animation Festival
PRIX ROYAL Paris Animation Awards, Paris, Île-de-France
Supernova Digital Animation Festival, Denver, CO
We, Women Short Film Festival, China
2022 UK Seasonal Short Film Festival, London, England
Animation Marathon, Chalandri, Attika, Greece
Animation Studio Festival, Paris
Best Shorts Competition, La Jolla, CA
Changing Face International Film Festival, Sydney, NSW
Chicago Indie Film Awards, Chicago, United States
Dreamer’s Short Film Festival, Bucharest, Romania
Film Miami Fest, Miami, Florida
Flickers' Rhode Island International Film Festival, Providence, RI
Hellbender Student Film Festival, St. Charles, MO
Independent Shorts Awards, Hollywood, Los Angeles, CA
International Short Film Festival Canton, Guangzhou, China
Khem Animation Film Festival, Woodbridge, NJ
LA Independent Film Channel Festival, Los Angeles, CA
Los Angeles Animation Festival, Los Angeles, CA
Los Angeles Student Film Festival, Los Angeles, CA
Mobile Animation Film Festival, Mobile, Alabama
New York Shorts International Film Festival, New York, NY
North London Animation Festival
PRIX ROYAL Paris Animation Awards, Paris, Île-de-France
Supernova Digital Animation Festival, Denver, CO
We, Women Short Film Festival, China
2022 UK Seasonal Short Film Festival, London, England
