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Set within a drifting memory of childhood, CICADA CLOUDS moves through a moment of loss, wonder, and quiet awakening, where reality begins to blur with imagination.

Directed by @iamthedeerman , the film returns to a formative summer in Korea, following a boy caught between isolation and discovery. Through dreamlike images, painted textures, and moments of play, the story traces how grief, awe, and joy can exist at the same time. Nature becomes both witness and response, guiding the boy back toward curiosity and life.

Blending animation, watercolor textures, and layered sound, the film unfolds like a visual poem, gentle and immersive, capturing how memory reshapes itself as we grow.

Watch and read our exclusive Q&A with director @iamthedeerman – link in bio 👆🏽

Set within a drifting memory of childhood, CICADA CLOUDS moves through a moment of loss, wonder, and quiet awakening, where reality begins to blur with imagination.

Directed by @iamthedeerman , the film returns to a formative summer in Korea, following a boy caught between isolation and discovery. Through dreamlike images, painted textures, and moments of play, the story traces how grief, awe, and joy can exist at the same time. Nature becomes both witness and response, guiding the boy back toward curiosity and life.

Blending animation, watercolor textures, and layered sound, the film unfolds like a visual poem, gentle and immersive, capturing how memory reshapes itself as we grow.

Watch and read our exclusive Q&A with director @iamthedeerman – link in bio 👆🏽

Set within a drifting memory of childhood, CICADA CLOUDS moves through a moment of loss, wonder, and quiet awakening, where reality begins to blur with imagination.

Directed by @iamthedeerman , the film returns to a formative summer in Korea, following a boy caught between isolation and discovery. Through dreamlike images, painted textures, and moments of play, the story traces how grief, awe, and joy can exist at the same time. Nature becomes both witness and response, guiding the boy back toward curiosity and life.

Blending animation, watercolor textures, and layered sound, the film unfolds like a visual poem, gentle and immersive, capturing how memory reshapes itself as we grow.

Watch and read our exclusive Q&A with director @iamthedeerman – link in bio 👆🏽

Set within a drifting memory of childhood, CICADA CLOUDS moves through a moment of loss, wonder, and quiet awakening, where reality begins to blur with imagination.

Directed by @iamthedeerman , the film returns to a formative summer in Korea, following a boy caught between isolation and discovery. Through dreamlike images, painted textures, and moments of play, the story traces how grief, awe, and joy can exist at the same time. Nature becomes both witness and response, guiding the boy back toward curiosity and life.

Blending animation, watercolor textures, and layered sound, the film unfolds like a visual poem, gentle and immersive, capturing how memory reshapes itself as we grow.

Watch and read our exclusive Q&A with director @iamthedeerman – link in bio 👆🏽

Set within a drifting memory of childhood, CICADA CLOUDS moves through a moment of loss, wonder, and quiet awakening, where reality begins to blur with imagination.

Directed by @iamthedeerman , the film returns to a formative summer in Korea, following a boy caught between isolation and discovery. Through dreamlike images, painted textures, and moments of play, the story traces how grief, awe, and joy can exist at the same time. Nature becomes both witness and response, guiding the boy back toward curiosity and life.

Blending animation, watercolor textures, and layered sound, the film unfolds like a visual poem, gentle and immersive, capturing how memory reshapes itself as we grow.

Watch and read our exclusive Q&A with director @iamthedeerman – link in bio 👆🏽

Set within a drifting memory of childhood, CICADA CLOUDS moves through a moment of loss, wonder, and quiet awakening, where reality begins to blur with imagination.

Directed by @iamthedeerman , the film returns to a formative summer in Korea, following a boy caught between isolation and discovery. Through dreamlike images, painted textures, and moments of play, the story traces how grief, awe, and joy can exist at the same time. Nature becomes both witness and response, guiding the boy back toward curiosity and life.

Blending animation, watercolor textures, and layered sound, the film unfolds like a visual poem, gentle and immersive, capturing how memory reshapes itself as we grow.

Watch and read our exclusive Q&A with director @iamthedeerman – link in bio 👆🏽

Set within a drifting memory of childhood, CICADA CLOUDS moves through a moment of loss, wonder, and quiet awakening, where reality begins to blur with imagination.

Directed by @iamthedeerman , the film returns to a formative summer in Korea, following a boy caught between isolation and discovery. Through dreamlike images, painted textures, and moments of play, the story traces how grief, awe, and joy can exist at the same time. Nature becomes both witness and response, guiding the boy back toward curiosity and life.

Blending animation, watercolor textures, and layered sound, the film unfolds like a visual poem, gentle and immersive, capturing how memory reshapes itself as we grow.

Watch and read our exclusive Q&A with director @iamthedeerman – link in bio 👆🏽

Set within a drifting memory of childhood, CICADA CLOUDS moves through a moment of loss, wonder, and quiet awakening, where reality begins to blur with imagination.

Directed by @iamthedeerman , the film returns to a formative summer in Korea, following a boy caught between isolation and discovery. Through dreamlike images, painted textures, and moments of play, the story traces how grief, awe, and joy can exist at the same time. Nature becomes both witness and response, guiding the boy back toward curiosity and life.

Blending animation, watercolor textures, and layered sound, the film unfolds like a visual poem, gentle and immersive, capturing how memory reshapes itself as we grow.

Watch and read our exclusive Q&A with director @iamthedeerman – link in bio 👆🏽

Set within a drifting memory of childhood, CICADA CLOUDS moves through a moment of loss, wonder, and quiet awakening, where reality begins to blur with imagination.

Directed by @iamthedeerman , the film returns to a formative summer in Korea, following a boy caught between isolation and discovery. Through dreamlike images, painted textures, and moments of play, the story traces how grief, awe, and joy can exist at the same time. Nature becomes both witness and response, guiding the boy back toward curiosity and life.

Blending animation, watercolor textures, and layered sound, the film unfolds like a visual poem, gentle and immersive, capturing how memory reshapes itself as we grow.

Watch and read our exclusive Q&A with director @iamthedeerman – link in bio 👆🏽

Set within a drifting memory of childhood, CICADA CLOUDS moves through a moment of loss, wonder, and quiet awakening, where reality begins to blur with imagination.

Directed by @iamthedeerman , the film returns to a formative summer in Korea, following a boy caught between isolation and discovery. Through dreamlike images, painted textures, and moments of play, the story traces how grief, awe, and joy can exist at the same time. Nature becomes both witness and response, guiding the boy back toward curiosity and life.

Blending animation, watercolor textures, and layered sound, the film unfolds like a visual poem, gentle and immersive, capturing how memory reshapes itself as we grow.

Watch and read our exclusive Q&A with director @iamthedeerman – link in bio 👆🏽

The music behind "CICADA CLOUDS"

~

One of the main compliments I've received on my latest film is the music, and all credit goes to Yiyang Zhou and DoubleSharp Production. Yiyang and I worked intricately to create an intimate and gentle finale that carries a sense of awe and release. Having the main strings melody be live-recorded was one of the best decisions made for the film, and much gratitude goes to Stefano and Federico Tiero at DoubleSharp Production for helping orchestrate the process, and to the string quartet musicians for bringing more life out of the composition.

Both the full final mix and a string quartet-only version will be available as an EP to listen to on Spotify and Apple Music. If you've enjoyed the film and the music, it would be sincerely appreciated by all of us involved in creating this piece if you could share it with others.

Links to the music in our bios.

~

1. live-recording edit
2. final music mix edit
3. "CICADA CLOUDS" EP album cover

music composed by YIYANG ZHOU @yiyangzhou_ins

audio post-production by OVERLAP STUDIOS INC. @overlapstudio_ins

live-recording and production by STEFANO & FEDERICO TIERO @doublesharpproduction

string quartet:
violin 1 - ALINA MARIA TASLOVAN
violin 2 - ISABELLA MASTROENI
viola - LEONY DELGADO
cello - GIULIA SANGUINETTI

The music behind "CICADA CLOUDS"

~

One of the main compliments I've received on my latest film is the music, and all credit goes to Yiyang Zhou and DoubleSharp Production. Yiyang and I worked intricately to create an intimate and gentle finale that carries a sense of awe and release. Having the main strings melody be live-recorded was one of the best decisions made for the film, and much gratitude goes to Stefano and Federico Tiero at DoubleSharp Production for helping orchestrate the process, and to the string quartet musicians for bringing more life out of the composition.

Both the full final mix and a string quartet-only version will be available as an EP to listen to on Spotify and Apple Music. If you've enjoyed the film and the music, it would be sincerely appreciated by all of us involved in creating this piece if you could share it with others.

Links to the music in our bios.

~

1. live-recording edit
2. final music mix edit
3. "CICADA CLOUDS" EP album cover

music composed by YIYANG ZHOU @yiyangzhou_ins

audio post-production by OVERLAP STUDIOS INC. @overlapstudio_ins

live-recording and production by STEFANO & FEDERICO TIERO @doublesharpproduction

string quartet:
violin 1 - ALINA MARIA TASLOVAN
violin 2 - ISABELLA MASTROENI
viola - LEONY DELGADO
cello - GIULIA SANGUINETTI

The music behind "CICADA CLOUDS"

~

One of the main compliments I've received on my latest film is the music, and all credit goes to Yiyang Zhou and DoubleSharp Production. Yiyang and I worked intricately to create an intimate and gentle finale that carries a sense of awe and release. Having the main strings melody be live-recorded was one of the best decisions made for the film, and much gratitude goes to Stefano and Federico Tiero at DoubleSharp Production for helping orchestrate the process, and to the string quartet musicians for bringing more life out of the composition.

Both the full final mix and a string quartet-only version will be available as an EP to listen to on Spotify and Apple Music. If you've enjoyed the film and the music, it would be sincerely appreciated by all of us involved in creating this piece if you could share it with others.

Links to the music in our bios.

~

1. live-recording edit
2. final music mix edit
3. "CICADA CLOUDS" EP album cover

music composed by YIYANG ZHOU @yiyangzhou_ins

audio post-production by OVERLAP STUDIOS INC. @overlapstudio_ins

live-recording and production by STEFANO & FEDERICO TIERO @doublesharpproduction

string quartet:
violin 1 - ALINA MARIA TASLOVAN
violin 2 - ISABELLA MASTROENI
viola - LEONY DELGADO
cello - GIULIA SANGUINETTI

- link in bio to watch-

~

Back in 2020, I set out to reignite my creative practice by pushing my newfound skills in VFX, and drove myself to create one short film per year, for at least the next five years. With each endeavor I strived to do just a little bit more, whether by refining and expanding my technical execution or by building more depth in the storytelling and themes.

My pursuit wasn't to create something comprehensible or technologically ground-breaking, but to discover a personally unique form of expression through the power of animation, and to find a place for all the ideas and unspoken parts of myself that have been stuck in creative limbo.

My new film, CICADA CLOUDS, is the latest culmination of this journey. While it may feel unresolved, the film's artistic making has in many ways reminded me of life's own ambiguities and non-resolutions. Coming to terms with that reality has been a big party of my last five years, and this film is an attempt to offer myself a brief moment of closure.

~

A huge, huge thank you to everyone who helped to create this. To Yiyang, who I've worked with for three films now and who I trust entirely for the musical guidance; to Tyrelle for the visceral sound design and foley; to June and Claire for bringing narrative life to the film's voice; and to Stefano and Federico Tiero with the string quartet at Double Sharp Production for the final music production and live recording which added another layer of magic to the film. Special thanks to Voquent for the voice actor support, and to Andrea Adams, my forever mentor.

#films #animation #iamthedeerman #deermanart #vfx #cicada #clouds #animated #memory #shortfilms #artistsoninstagram #cgi #3danimation #shortfilm #cicadaclouds #film

“It’s a death and rebirth of the soul, contextualized in this childhood memory that was initially too large to process for a young boy.” —Dennis Tae Wook

CICADA CLOUDS — Directed by @iamthedeerman

Our exclusive interview with director Dennis Tae Wook goes live this Wednesday on Curation Hour 🌘

“It’s a death and rebirth of the soul, contextualized in this childhood memory that was initially too large to process for a young boy.” —Dennis Tae Wook

CICADA CLOUDS — Directed by @iamthedeerman

Our exclusive interview with director Dennis Tae Wook goes live this Wednesday on Curation Hour 🌘

“It’s a death and rebirth of the soul, contextualized in this childhood memory that was initially too large to process for a young boy.” —Dennis Tae Wook

CICADA CLOUDS — Directed by @iamthedeerman

Our exclusive interview with director Dennis Tae Wook goes live this Wednesday on Curation Hour 🌘

“It’s a death and rebirth of the soul, contextualized in this childhood memory that was initially too large to process for a young boy.” —Dennis Tae Wook

CICADA CLOUDS — Directed by @iamthedeerman

Our exclusive interview with director Dennis Tae Wook goes live this Wednesday on Curation Hour 🌘

One of my favorite shots and sequence to make for my latest film "CICADA CLOUDS". Putting together the animation of the struggling cicada with the reckless movements of the boy and the camera was a fun storytelling process. I also had a blast recreating the 90's video camera overlay, stylistically matched with the aesthetic of the film.

The intricate sound design and audio is done by Tyrelle Massey and Yiyang Zhou, using a mix of foley and abstract elements, with post-production audio by Overlap Studios Inc.

You can watch "CICADA CLOUDS" in the link in my bio~

@tyrellemassey @yiyangzhou_ins @overlapstudio_ins

#cicadaclouds #iamthedeerman #deermanart #cicada #clouds #shortfilm #animation #cgi #painting #film #memory #3danimation

"Origin Species 3"
Digital painting 2025

"Everchanging, shapeshifting - the unseen and the formless materialize once observed."

"Origin Species 2"
Digital painting 2025

"Everchanging, shapeshifting - the unseen and the formless materialize once observed."

"Origin Species 1"
Digital painting 2025

"Everchanging, shapeshifting - the unseen and the formless materialize once observed."

"Primordial Fish"
Digital painting 2025

#painting #digitalpainting #fish #primordial #primal #cavepainting #iamthedeerman #deermanart #energy

"Lantern Kirin"
Digital painting 2025

"On the eve of the spring equinox, the Lantern Kirin descends upon the land to gather the lost souls of those unable to pass on properly into the afterlife."

1. Painting
2. Sketch

#painting #digitalpainting #art #artist #light #lanternkirin #iamthedeerman #deermanart #kirin

"Lantern Kirin"
Digital painting 2025

"On the eve of the spring equinox, the Lantern Kirin descends upon the land to gather the lost souls of those unable to pass on properly into the afterlife."

1. Painting
2. Sketch

#painting #digitalpainting #art #artist #light #lanternkirin #iamthedeerman #deermanart #kirin

📸: @minniemjk

#banff #banffnationalpark #banffcanada

📸: @minniemjk

#banff #banffnationalpark #banffcanada

#selfportrait