Pupa
Assigned to community service, a suicidal teen helps a terminally ill widower who, struggling to face his own death, hopes to restore his late wife's overgrown garden. A pitch made by Sandhya Chandrasekaran, Keira Azzopardi and Jacqueline Qin
Pupa was selected for the 2026 Annecy International Animation Film Festival MIFA Student Pitch.
It is a short film about an unlikely friendship between a cynical teenager and a terminally ill elderly man who reconnect with life by restoring an overgrown garden together. Inspired by my personal experiences with grief, mental health, and relationships, the film explores transformation through symbolism of the butterfly's life cycle and the five senses.
Using watercolor-inspired visuals, 2D animation, and environmental storytelling, Pupa is ultimately a life-affirming story about choosing to care, even in the face of loss.
Rough concept explorations were developed collaboratively by the entire team. The final art direction and finished illustrations were created by Jacqueline Qin.
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