Animation as Communication: Finding a Means to Address Difficult Themes with a Broad Audience

Abstract

This thesis studies the use of animation as a means to communicate about difficult topics surrounding mental health and the challenges of living with chronic anxiety. The creative artifact that results from my study is a 2D short film about a young woman struggling to cope with her anxiety, particularly social anxiety, as she goes about the ordinary tasks of daily life. She has challenged herself to get out of the house and complete her work day in a coffee shop. But for someone with chronic anxiety, even something as simple as going up to the counter and ordering feels like battling a dragon. Many people struggle to perform ordinary tasks due to their mental health challenges. I have always felt that the average self-help resource focuses on ways to help someone complete the big goals in their life and neglects the day-to-day. What seems menial and easy to some can be a mountain to someone with anxiety or depression. For example, brushing your hair in the morning only takes a few seconds if you maintain it, but matting is a common result of people with depression not even having the energy or motivation to brush their hair. I want to show people who struggle that they are seen and heard, and I want to show people who don’t struggle what it can be like for others in their lives. Animation has been used more recently as a means to bring awareness to difficult themes in an easy-to-swallow format. A short film is much easier for a wider audience to sit down and invest time in than a somber documentary. This is why I have chosen to use my creative background and abilities to address a topic I hold so near to my heart. Most of the people in my personal and professional life either personally struggle or know some close who struggles with their mental health, and it’s an issue that no one is immune to. My research will mostly focus on how to effectively tell a story, what mental health looks like in numbers post-lockdown, and how to animate and create a 2D short film from Pre to Post-production.