A concept for a short film, loosely based on the lesson from Aesop's fable, the Lion & the Mouse. A honeybee proves he’s able to help out by finding the courage to overcome his self-doubt when a fairy is kidnapped by the garden’s bug catcher, learning that size does not equate to significance or strength.
painted in photoshop / pencil sketches
character exploration
After conceiving the story, I explored the character's visual designs. This process included getting to know the characters from the inside out. By first understanding their wants and needs, I explored different concepts through silhouettes, expressions, action poses, and a final turnaround.
story development
The purpose of this story is to demonstrate that anyone can make a difference in their community as long as you persevere, have courage, and possess kindness.
Universal Truth: Appearance and the perceptions of others do not dictate who we are or what we are capable of
story breakdown:
Once Upon a Time, there was a little honeybee named Hubert that lived in a garden with the other honeybees.
Everyday, Hubert would contribute to the growth of the hive. He would do his part to aid in pollinating & producing honey.
One day, a fairy named Azalea visited the garden looking for a new start that was more peaceful from the bustling fae city she just moved from.
Intrigued by her arrival, Hubert wanted to meet someone from beyond the confines of the garden. Hubert flies towards Azalea and asks if she needs help moving in. Azalea declines and asks him, “How can you help, you’re so small—I can do this myself silly?”
Hubert sadly buzzes off, when all of a sudden, he hears something rustling in the bushes. It’s Ollie, the bug catcher, who is notorious for kidnapping bees and bugs that are never seen again! Hubert flies back to Azalea to warn her.
As Azalea tries to flee, she is captured by Ollie in a mason jar. Hubert zips around Ollie to set her free. But to no avail- he’s not scared of one small bee. Hubert frantically flies over to the hive to persuade the bees to help him save Azalea.
The bees decline at first because Azalea is not a bee and begin to panic. So they begin packing to flee the garden. Hubert ultimately convinces them of a plan to scare Ollie away from the hive by swarming around him and to teach him a lesson for torturing bugs.
After gathering the bees, Hubert leads the swarm of bees towards Ollie to scare him off and to save Azalea from his clutches. Meanwhile, Azalea is being shaken around in the jar and inspected by the curious bug catcher.
Hubert and the swarm buzz around Ollie, surrounding him. He is so terrified by the storm of bees that he lets go of the mason jar as he swats at them, causing it to break, setting Azalea free.
Ollie runs off, back up to the porch where his mother can be heard screaming, “Oliver! What did you do this time?!”
After Azalea thanks Hubert, she realizes her wing was torn on the broken glass in the commotion, rendering her unable to fly. Hubert and the other bees carry her up to the hive, for her to stay until she is healed.
Everyday since, Hubert knows he can make a difference even though he is small, through kindness and determination. Everyone can make a difference, reguardless of how others can view you.
