This is an award-winning short animated film directed by Crystal Tai and Simon Paluck, with elements of horror and surrealism that also functions as a love letter to Hong Kong in the 80s. I developed both the music and the sound design in tandem, as elements from one would often bleed into the other due to the heavy, foreboding atmosphere of the film. The music fuses atonal drones and electric guitar played with a cello bow, while the sound design uses field recordings I took from a ceramics store in the New Territories of Hong Kong, city ambience from the shopping district near my apartment, and the wind blowing through the trees at Victoria Park.
25th DigiCon6 ASIA Awards - Merit Award (Hong Kong)
Anifest 2023 (Hong Kong)
World Festival of Animated Film Varna (Varna, Bulgaria)
Chaniartoon International Comic & Animation Festival (Chania, Greece)
Great Canadian Film Festival (Toronto, Canada)
After Sunset Festival (Hong Kong)
Renergy Media Film Festival (Toronto, Canada)
Synopsis
A once famous porcelain artist is haunted by a giant monkey.
It’s 1980 and Jade Xiao, a once famous porcelain artist, is struggling to make ends meet. She is no longer the rising star of the Hong Kong art world and the pressures to stay relevant are pushing her towards a breakdown.
As Jade works late into the night, she suddenly finds herself face-to-face with a giant monkey who leads her through a terrifying journey into her psyche. Inspired by their own experience with burnout, director-writer team Crystal and Simon explore the complicated relationship creators have with their work. MONKEY ON MY BACK is for anyone who has turned their passions into a career, and struggles to maintain a healthy balance amongst the self-doubt.
