BOARDS

Storyboards for a section of The Deermother (2024).

DEVELOPMENT

Originally, the story was going to take the majority of it's inspiration from the Celtic version of the folklore rather than the Scandinavian, however, the Celtic cites a female red deer with antlers (which, in reality, rarely exist) compared to the Scandinavian female reindeer with antlers (which are common). Switching to the version more visually rooted in reality.

Early beats and sketches, although aesthetically different, hit the nail on the head rather quickly in terms of pacing, how to navigate through the forest and the general mood of the film.

The process at this stage was sketchy and experimental but one thing became clear very early and that was the importance of wintery and compositionally strong backgrounds with plenty of appeal to retain audience interest in the slow paced film and inspire the wistful but overall calm experience.

Pivoting from Celtic to Scandinavian folklore also inspired another idea, which was to imply the Deermother is connected to the Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights), hence, it is implied that she arrives to the world via the lights and this inspires the colour of her glowing antlers and other magical elements.

After establishing the setting and working out in what way the Deermother should navigate her way through the forest, the next step was storyboarding out all of the acting and action beats as well as editing together the animatic to figure out the timing and transitions from one area to the next.

PROGRESS VIDEO

If you're anything like me, there is something satisfying about watching the progress sketch videos!

THE SCRIPT

THE DEERMOTHER

At only two pages long, this short atmospheric fantasy short film is told entirely without dialogue.