“I used to move in silence, but now the wind has a melody and my footsteps have a voice. There is a hidden pulse in the air that carries my emotions when my words cannot.”

Production Note: A special tribute to Victoria Wolfersberger, whose sound design and music provide the emotional backbone of Bloom. This collaboration highlights how sound doesn’t just accompany the image – it gives the film its depth and soul, creating a symbiotic relationship between what is seen and what is heard.

“I look back at the trail of flowers I’ve left behind over these past two years. The last speck of dust has been brushed away, and the world is finally still, quiet, and complete. I am ready to step out.”

Production Note: April 2026 marks the official completion of Bloom. The final steps involved meticulous corrections to nearly four minutes of 2D animation, ensuring every movement contributed to the story of Mi’s self-liberation.

In an era where AI-generated content is becoming omnipresent in the animation industry, I consciously chose to stay true to the craft. There is something deeply fulfilling about finishing a project where every character rig was built, every scene composed, and every keyframe placed by a human hand.

“Sometimes, the story I’m telling has to wait because real life is louder. For a while, I wasn’t sure if I could keep going or if I would just lose my way in all the noise. I was just trying to keep my head above water.”

Production Note: The start of 2026 was very difficult for personal reasons. For two weeks, I had to stop working completely, followed by a lot of chaos. I was desperately trying to stay on track with my final deadlines while dealing with grief and a lot of exhaustion. Looking back, I’m not even sure how I managed to get anything done. It was a time of just functioning and taking it one day at a time.

“Movement is a language of its own, and sometimes you have to change the alphabet to say what you truly feel. I realized that to let Mi truly breathe, I had to rethink the way she was built from the inside out.”

Production Note: In early 2026, I made a pivotal decision. Although I had already built a rig in Duik, it didn’t allow for the fluidity and expressive range I envisioned for Mi. Even though I was deep into the timeline, I decided to step back and transition the character into Moho.

A huge thanks to Alex Wilhelm for his expertise here. As a true Moho master, he built a complex new bone structure and constraints in a matter of hours. This technical shift was the key to moving to a character capable of truly seamless, organic movement. It was a leap of faith so late in the process, but it changed everything for the animation.

“The air is getting thin. I am moving faster than ever, trying to hold onto two worlds at once. By day, I share my knowledge with others; by night, I pour my remaining soul into every movement, every shadow, every shot. My edges are sharpening, but the cost is high. I can feel the exhaustion in my bones, yet the story of Mi demands to be told with more strength than I ever imagined.”

Production Note: Late 2025 was a brutal balancing act. I spent every free second in the making of Bloom. This phase was about raw execution and visual power. I realized the scenes from the original storyboard weren’t enough; the story needed more depth, and more emotional impact. I pushed myself to the absolute limit, refining the composition and animation of every single frame. It was a race to give Bloom the visual intensity it deserved.

“A letter arrived end of May, and with it, a heavy silence. This was the third funding application I had submitted. While I already knew the second one was a long shot – this rejection hit differently. It was the one I had pinned my hopes on.

Suddenly, the vibrant world of Bloom felt gray. I found myself at a painful crossroads: do I let this project die, or do I find a way to breathe life into it using my own resources and a tiny fraction of support?

I’ll be honest – I fell into a hole. The summer of 2025 became a season of shadows and creative blocks. When the doors keep closing, it’s hard not to hear a voice whispering: ‘Is your story even worth telling?’ I spent months questioning my craft, my vision, and whether I had the strength to carry this weight on my own.”

Production Note: This was the most difficult chapter of the journey. Deciding to continue with minimal funding meant committing to immense personal effort and self-reliance. But looking at Mi, I realized her story of self-liberation was also my own. I chose to move forward – not because it was easy, but because I realized that a story’s worth isn’t defined by a committee, but by the necessity of its existence.

Mi

“I am Mi. I float because the world feels light when I create. My colors are my voice, and my flowers are my gifts to the world. “

So

“Beside me stands So. We look like a harmony. But beneath his stony shell, there is a coldness I didn’t want to see – a weight that slowly pulls my feet toward the ground.”

Production Note: Designing Mi and So was a process of visual metaphors. Mi represents creative resilience; her ability to float is a symbol of her initial light-heartedness. So was designed with a ‘petrified shell’ to visualize emotional rigidity and control. The spark between them in the beginning suggests a perfect match, but the story reveals the truth: So doesn’t support Mi’s light – he feeds on it. This entry marks the moment their character arcs and visual designs were finalized, setting the stage for their emotional conflict.

“In the beginning, there was only a flicker – an idea of a world that needed to be painted. I felt the first stirrings of life, a hopeful pulse that promised something beautiful. But as the months passed in silence, the path grew lonely. A collaboration that was meant to be shared fell apart, and I feared the spark might go out before the world could see its light.”

Production Note: The journey of Bloom began in early 2024 with my first submission to Land Oberösterreich. Originally, this was envisioned as a shared project with Victoria Wolfersberger. However, due to changing life and work circumstances, she had to step back, leaving me to carry the vision alone. It was a period of uncertainty and long silence from funding agencies. 

Note from the future: While I felt alone then, the story has a happy ending – Victoria eventually returned to the project to create the incredible sound design, bringing the journey full circle.