Hannah Howard

Shoulder Devil

Rex, a self-deluded shoulder devil, has convinced himself that not only does he love his job but he’s great at it too.

“Shoulder Devil, is a 2D animation about an impish little devil, named Rex. He's not bright, not good at what he does, not at all humble, and all-around an unlikeable guy. I based him on myself, my own shortcomings, and feelings of inadequacy. Rex is the embodiment of faking it until you make it. And as the personification of the bad in all of us, his story encourages viewers to have a good laugh at Rex, and at ourselves. I am intrigued by the strange and bizarre art of some of my favorite creators: Sarina Nihei, Jaun Lage, and Nelly Michenaud. Their work is full of personality and has an inane sense of humor that draws me in. Humor is intrinsic to my art and makes its way into everything I create. I value not taking things too seriously, so naturally, there is nothing serious about Shoulder Devil except my approach to creating it. I animated digitally in Photoshop but worked to create a visual style that emulated the textures of pencil, crayon, paint, pen, and paper. I leaned into a hand-drawn aesthetic, accentuating rough and wobbly line animation. I used After Effects to bring it together, incorporating an animated paper texture overlay. By compiling these aspects, I attempted to create an energetic and dynamic visual style that worked with the animation to emphasize the playfulness and humor of Shoulder Devil.”