#perigee

I had the pleasure of commissioning the lovely @killjo-q for our Call of the Netherdeep campaign poster! We are all over the moon with how beautiful this poster is, and couldn’t be more in love with how it turned out. Thank you so much for everything Kyuu!

Here we go once again! While IndieAnimationDay passed a bit ago, there's still room to highlight some more special projects done by very creative people! As we all know, animation is very expensive & it takes a very long time to complete. It's a format people tend to disregard, disrespect, &/or underestimate thinking it's easy to work with & the constant quote of "It's a cartoon! It's just for kids!" Now is the time to celebrate projects made by individuals who really give it their all to make something all their own. We have four installments this time! Let's go!

1. The Moon And Me🌚🌠🌟

First, we have The Moon And Me created by @elioli-art. A story about a girl named, Maureen who once was a lauded star maker now reduced to a star catcher ordered by the Moon Queen to continuously catch stars as punishment. She's challenged with black holes that are forming around her & now she must figure out what's going on. For those who don't know, The Moon & Me is actually a webtoon currently at 4 seasons with over 100 chapters. I absolutely love how stunning it is! Which makes sense since this story is heavily reliant on a visual narrative. It's currently being made into a short animated film based on the webtoon & I can't wait to see the end result based on all the snippets behind the scenes.

2. Wheels & Roses🌹🗡💕

If you enjoyed Pretty Pretty Please I Don't Want To Be A Magical Girl, then here's another black Magical Girl project in the works called, Wheels & Roses created by Pearl Low (writer in Craig of the Creek & founder of Orange Blossom Studios LLC) in a typical magical yet modern world, a girl named Sahara is considered an outcast amongst her peers at Rose Academy. However, she's an excellent roller skater & dreams of becoming a Magical Roller Derby Champion. The only problem with that is....she can't use magic. That kinda explains the whole 'outcast' thing. Sahara doesn't let that stop her though because she creates the school's first roller derby team determined to take on the repeated champions of Sunflower High. There's currently a 22-minute pilot in the works. It's unapologetically soft, tough, & full of representation! What also makes this project so special is that it takes inspiration from Sailor Moon & sports anime. I'm all for Magical Girls & watching black/dark-skinned/melanin characters reach their goals!

3. Magical Mom💗💕💖

Here's something that'll really warm your heart! You've seen Magical Girls, but what about a....Magical Mom? Originally a CGI animated short film from Ringling College of Art & Design (by Prinn Thongcharoen, Allen Zhang, & Jennifer Yang), the story is about a mother attending her son's class for Career Day. She isn't any ordinary parent. She's the warrior of love, protector of purity, & a full-on Magical Girl now a Magical Mom! Her son is actually shocked by this because he didn't intend for her to show up. It was actually his teacher who invited her (personally) to come. While Magical Mom is happy to present her skills to the class, her son is quite frankly embarrassed & tries to get her to stop. It all comes to halt though when an unlikely foe shows up looking for a fight! Will the love of a mother & son be able to stop this threat?! I've rewatched this short so many times because it's so precious! I love it to pieces! I think you'll also be pleased to know that Magical Mom has been rebooted into a webtoon in the same name (created by Prinnstar, Chunney, & Ikkun) with a completed first season over 60 chapters. While there are some name changes, additional characters, new character designs, & twists on the story, there's still a lot to enjoy from the world of Magical Mom & her Magical Son!

4. Perigee🌕❤🌊

For our final installment, we have a love story! Here's another delightful animated short called, Perigee by @cyanwyrmy! This story takes place in the wonders of Outer Space where The Moon Man is sitting alone on the moon with the stars. He looks down on Earth in an area seemingly full of water where his eyes are set on the handsome Ocean Man & it's practically love at first sight! The two are determined to see each other, but their biggest challenge is getting through the literal space between them. Something I find so captivating about this project is that it's a silent film, but you didn't need words to convey what the characters wanted. The beautiful visuals did all the talking! I love the designs for The Moon Man & The Ocean Man because they definitely give off a sort of "opposites attract" thing. Yet, they look so good for each other! Bonus points for creating a cute M4M story because we love representation in this house! I highly suggest you give this one a watch.