Impossible Journey
Short Film
Lead Illustrator | Concept Artist
Impossible Journey is an animated short film that sheds light on the urgent maternal health care crisis in the U.S.
My role was to shape the visual identity of the human figures, translating the established art direction into character form and designing the full composition and layout of each shot where they appear. The goal was to maintain emotional clarity while reinforcing the film’s delicate balance between realism and stylization.
My main character design task was to develop the visual concept for the baby shown above — a Black newborn who has already endured a long journey even before birth.
I focused on capturing tenderness and vulnerability in the baby’s expression and shapes, while keeping its design consistent with the stork that accompanies it throughout the film.
As I was also responsible for the style frame of this scene, I crafted the full composition to enhance the emotional weight and visual storytelling the moment required.
After designing the main baby of the story, I was also responsible for the previous scene, set in a maternity ward. The sequence begins by focusing on a white newborn before the camera pulls back to reveal the Black baby whose journey we follow throughout the film.
This moment required great sensitivity, and developing the visual concepts and designs for such a meaningful sequence was a truly special part of the project.