Three directors from Collectif 99° (who joined the Eddy animation roster in 2023) conjure a painterly and dream-like fable about conquering guilt and depression for the London art punk band HMLTD.

From the directors: “HMLTD vocalist Henry Spychalski describes depression like a parasite which eats him from the inside. We wanted to use the codes of body horror films to illustrate this idea. In our story, his body undergoes terrible transformations – worm infested, lifeless, empty. The visuals are disturbing and gory, helping us to inhabit Henry’s malaise.
 

“We created a universe… based on representations of feudal England and various dystopias. We were inspired by medieval painters, such as Bosch and Bruegel, to which we gave a modern twist.”

 
“We wanted to concentrate on the feeling of guilt which eats away at Henry, and which is a recurrent theme in the album. Young Henry in the music video represents lost hope. Our story imagines the encounter between the disillusioned adult and the innocent child. Adult Henry must learn, through reconciliation with his child-self, to accept and forgive himself, and thereby rise above the circumstances of his time.

“We created a universe which fits with the album’s artwork – based on representations of feudal England and various dystopias. We were inspired by medieval painters, such as Bosch and Bruegel, to which we gave a modern twist through digital painting. Our aim was to achieve a mixture of realism and symbolism.”
 
 

 
Artist: HMLTD
Label: Lucky Numbers Music

Production: Eddy
Director: Emmanuelle Mohnblatt, Marie Deboissy, Sébastien Kirszenblat
Producer: Stella Ramsden
Line Manager: Isa Taoui
PA: Maria Markova
Storyboard: Emmanuelle Mohnblatt, Sébastien Kirszenblat
Colorboard: Marie Deboissy
Editor: Christian George
Character Design: Emmanuelle Mohnblatt
Background Design: Marie Deboissy, Sébastien Kirszenblat

Animation: Eddy Studio
Animators: Etienne Faivre, Nathan Harbonn Viaud, Antoine Vinceneux
Animation Coloring: Carole Mohnblatt, Emmanuelle Mohnblatt
Animation Intern: Ronan Facchini, Arthus Mariet
Compositor: Sébastien Kirszenblat
Head of Studio: Jean-Rémi Perrin
Technical Supervisor: Romain Cabanier
Graphic Designer: Emeline Courcier

With the support of the French CNC