SymBionic (Short Film) — Jack Tenbusch

SymBionic (2021)

After clipping her wing on a robotic facility antenna, a Songbird forms an unlikely symbiotic relationship with the robot she inadvertently creates.

SymBionic is my animated short film submitted as a solo thesis project at Columbia College Chicago and is currently being submitted to film festivals.

ACCOLADES
WINNER FOR BEST ANIMATION :
Ambitus Film Festival • Vesuvius International Film Fest • Art Film Awards • 8 & HalFilm Awards • Chicago Southland International Film Festival

NOMINATION FOR BEST ANIMATION:
Love & Hope International Film Festival • Canada's Yes! Let's Make a Movie Film Festival • Standalone Film Festival

FINALIST: Florida Animation Festival
QUARTER FINALIST: Animation Studio Festival
HONORABLE MENTION: Global Shorts • Venice Fullshot Film Festival

OFFICIAL SELECTION:
Palm Springs Animation festival •Beverly Hills Film Festival® • Florida Animation Festival • Animation Studio Festival • Love & Hope International Film Festival • KIDS FIRST! Film Festival • Venice Shorts • Ambitus Film Festival • Vesuvius International Film Fest • 8 & HalFilm Awards • Kalakari Film Fest • Iconic Images Film Festival • Chicago FEEDBACK Film Festival • Chicago Indie Film Awards • Laurus Film Festival • Global Shorts • Art Film Awards • Golden Bridge Istanbul Short Film Festival • Venice Fullshot Film Festival • Canada's Yes! Let's Make a Movie Film Festival • Chicago Southland International Film Festival • Standalone Film Festival • Chicago Onscreen

Animatic

Developed as a final project in my Storyboarding class back in 2020 (and right when Covid hit), SymBionic underwent multiple revisions over the following summer. I knew I had something I had to pursue, and after eight revisions, I was ready to animate!

Clean up & Composite

I had a relatively short time period (about a semester and a half) to complete my film, so I really put my nose to the grindstone.

Over winter break, I completed the rough animation for the entire film so I could then focus on cleanup and composite. During this phase, I learned that clean up is one of my favorite parts of the animation process!

DEVELOPMENT

Initial Ideas

The first seeds of SymBionic go as far back as 2013! I had sketched a little robot I was fond of, and once I had my first animation class in 2017, I revised his design to fit an 8-frame walk cycle assignment. I knew I had something, and actually considered him as a main character for my final assignment in that class. Ultimately, I instead went with the concept that became Perspective (see Character Animation), but in the years following, I continued to nurse the idea of this little robot.

Sketched animation concept -November 2017

Near Final Design Watercolor - February 2019

Conception, Character Designs, and Vision

Finally, in 2019, I had it: the characters, the story, and most importantly, the drive to do it. After transferring to Columbia College Chicago to study traditional animation, I spent as much time as I could ironing out assets before the production semesters. I developed the characters - how they looked, moved, and behaved - their personalities, motives, and even dreams. All of it prepared me to create this film, and I have even more in mind for SymBionic. I envision it as a side-scroller, puzzle-solving video game with the short film serving as the opening cutscene. Where that film ends, the game and their journey together will begin.