Faculty of Art

Integrated Media: Digital Painting and Expanded Animation

Atiya Malik

Spawn

Spawn is a short experimental 2D animation about the pursuit of harmony between the body and soul. Through abstract imagery, soundscapes, and digital collage, I aim to visualize the disconnection I’ve often felt from my physical self, like watching my own life unfold from a distance. The animation follows a small worm creature, a symbolic embodiment of the soul, as it navigates a world parallel to its body. This journey reflects the tension between passive detachment and the deep desire to live more consciously.The worm’s birth into a strange, liminal space, manifested as a sketchbook, mirrors my lifelong sense of estrangement from reality. As it encounters glimpses of the body’s experiences, within their own isolated realm of sticky notes, it is drawn closer to the body itself. These moments, initiated by the voices of my loved ones, briefly lift the fog in my mind, reminding me that even when I feel nothing, others care. These moments of clarity are fleeting but powerful, forcing me to confront the need to reclaim an active presence in my own life.The worm’s organic, ambiguous form and fluid movement represent life itself. As the body and soul draw nearer to each other, the environment becomes increasingly unstable, reflecting the discomfort of them being forced to confront their disconnection. Ultimately, the film is less about narrative and more about sensation- the quiet longing for harmony, the tension of self-reconciliation, and the uncomfortable feeling that comes with facing oneself. My aim is to evoke a visceral emotional response, making the intangible struggle of dissociation feel real and embodied.

“A primordial soul, born into a world detached from its body, navigates fragmented memories andhostile landscapes in a desperate pursuit of reconnection and wholeness.”