Mr. Rabbit
Director: Bryan Lee
United States, 2023, 22 min
Shooting Format:Photoshop
Festival Year:2024
Category:Animation
Genres:Drama, Dark Comedy, Faith, Science, Greek Tragedy
Cast:Bryan Lee, Brandon McNeil, Sam Lane, Wolfgang Woodcock, Tom Lane, Kesiah Manival
Crew:Writer: Bryan Lee. Composer: Dylan Kanner; 3D Artist: Julian Gallese; Audio Engineer: Wolfgang Woodcock; Sound and Mix: Paul Michael Cardon
Email:15bryan.lee@gmail.com
Web:bryanlee.love/
Synopsis
Don't believe in yourself Mr. Rabbit, believe in Science!
About the director
Born 1997 in Los Angeles, Bryan Lee is a Taiwanese-American animator and director. His short film, Cage Match, has won awards and been screened internationally at GLAS (US Competition Winner), Fantoche (Best Sound), Zagreb, Ottawa, Ann Arbor and more. He enjoys exploring the many flavors of animation and film, telling stories that often delve into the surreal with sprinkles of humor. His work seeks to find meaning in the in-between moments of life, riding the line between complete absurdity and attempting to scratch the surface of the divine.
Filmmaker's note
Mr. Rabbit is a film that explores themes of personal anxiety, perception, and the pursuit of truth. Built off of the director's tendency to construct a whole narrative after overhearing random conversations or seeing something strange in the distance, the film tackles 'how people perceive the world' and 'how perception leads to belief' and 'how belief leads to action' and 'how those actions can sometimes be benign... and other times, much more sinister'.
The film seeks to close the gap between perception and reality, attempting to find meaning in the in-between. Also exploring, how seemingly contrasting ideas can be quite similar as well. Naturally, Science and Faith were themes that fit well in this world. Often seen in contention, Mr. Rabbit explores the relationship they have to one another.
Mr. Rabbit is a product of the times. Living in an age of a flood of information and overstimulation, the question remains: What is true? Is there truth? How can one find truth in a world that is a sea of noise? Mr. Rabbit attempts to scratch the surface of these questions, as truth is often much more nuanced and complex than any one person can ever be able to fully grasp.
With all these themes and ideas in mind, Mr. Rabbit was birthed. The film's narrative weaves them together in a silly tale of a silly rabbit doing silly things!