The Man Who Saw a Boat

A man lives at the bottom of the ocean but his peace of mind is broken by the appearance of a boat on the surface, way above his head. Should he go and explore or remain content where he is at the sea bed?

This gorgeous looking animated short is by Henrique Baron who created it in the Digital Character Animation course at Vancouver Film School. It is great to see an animation (particularly a student animation) with such an existential stance, the idea that philosophical thought begins with the human subject—not only the thinking subject, but the acting, feeling, incarnate human individual. The starting point here – the existential attitude per se is the sense of disorientation the protagonist feels in his apparently illogical world. I also loved the resolution which, despite the abstract nature of this animated short, leads the way towards another philosophical revelation. Nietzsche would have loved this.