Deep Fears, Directed by Ryan Chu (California) - A sea otter who is afraid of the ocean is challenged to face his fears when he loses his precious pink shell necklace at sea. Deep Fears is radically different from what I prefer working with since I'm more into the action genre. I wanted to attempt this film because I wanted to see if I'm capable of handling a different genre that deals with something more emotionally-appealing without requiring dialogue before I leave college. Despite Deep Fears having a cute art direction, the film addresses dark themes such as death and grief. There are a lot of subtle hints that appear throughout the film that explain who's the protagonist, what's his past, and where his fear originated from. Aside from the film's story, Deep Fears is a proud production of CSULB. Everyone directly involved behind the scenes are all students of CSULB: musicians, editors, sound designers, and animators. There was no help outside of CSULB, no digital tricks/filters/After Effects used, no roto-scoping, and no tracing of any kind. Everything in this film: illustrations, backgrounds, animation, and music were done all by CSULB talent. I am currently developing another short film featuring an Asian cast with confidence after experiencing the recent success of Deep Fears.
Oregon Short Film Festival - Winter 2021 Official Selection
