A Labor of Love: Disney Artists Work After Hours to Create ‘Weeds’ Short | ANIMATIONWorld
AnimationWorld Magazine — November 14, 2017
A Labor of Love: Disney Artists Work After Hours to Create ‘Weeds’ Short
Weeds is the story of a little Dandelion struggling to get from the dry, barren side of a driveway to the other side, where water is plentiful and the grass is greener. After watching neighboring weeds wilt and die, the dandelion faces a decision — take action or suffer the same fate.
Completed over the course of 18 months, Weeds is directed by Walt Disney Animation Studios artist Kevin Hudson, who has worked on some of the studio’s recent biggest hits including Big Hero 6, Zootopia and Moana. The five-minute short, which premiered at Latino Media Fest in Los Angeles and also screened at the inaugural Palm Springs International Animation Festival, was produced by Brad Simonsen. Animation supervisor Hyun Min Lee oversaw a group of nearly 40 other Disney artists, all of whom contributed their work to the project in their spare time.
The story for Weeds came to Hudson during the summer of 2016, when there was so much anger directed towards Syrian refugees and Mexican immigrants. He felt a great desire to say something through his art about the need to have greater empathy for people, who by no fault of their own are stuck in a terrible situation and want nothing more than to have a better life if not for themselves, then for their children.
“First Kevin pitched the movie to Jean-Claude Poulain (our layout artist) and he jumped in and got to work, then we pitched the movie in the layout phase to different departments,” Simonsen recounts. “We found that those who had a connection with the theme came forward and volunteered their personal time, before and after work. It was a bit challenging and unpredictable, but super inspiring to see people give so much of their talents to bring our little flower to life.”
This group of Disney artists — claiming heritage from more than 30 different countries of family origin — wanted to help create empathy for immigrants and refugees. They felt that if they could make people feel compassion for something as tiny and insignificant as a little dandelion, perhaps they could make people feel more for their fellow human beings.
