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We've all dated a worm at some point. That's the sly premise Karen Zipor builds on in The Worm's-Eye View of the Bird, a 2D hand-drawn animated short about Gillian, a girl set on leaving her hometown until she meets the worm of her dreams. Their meet-cute becomes an intense romance β dates, family introductions, intimate moments β before the worm grows distant and Gillian has to face the truth that their futures no longer align.
Zipor, a Television Academy alum and full-time animation producer whose credits span Disney, DreamWorks, and Warner Bros, works in the space where love reads as both comedy and horror. Here that duality is deeply personal: the film is drawn from her own decision to leave a first love behind when he refused to follow her to Los Angeles and her filmmaking dreams.
Key Takeaways
- A true story of first heartbreak reimagined as an anthropomorphic fable β and pointedly not the "would you still love me if I was a worm?" meme it resembles.
- A fully human-made, traditional 2D hand-drawn short built over a year by a team of nearly 40 artists.
- An innocent-seeming tale that turns toward darker adult territory, letting the audience feel the twist as sharply as its heroine.
Zipor spoke with us about worms in the brain, the airplane nightmare, and why animation takes a village.
Interview
What drew you to make this film, and why this story, why now?
Admit it, we've all dated a worm at some point.
The Worm's-Eye View of the Bird is surprisingly not inspired by the meme, "Would you still love me if I was a worm?" It's based on the true story of how I made the difficult choice to leave behind my first love. Despite many years together, he refused to follow me to Los Angeles, and no longer aligned with my destiny and aspirations of becoming a filmmaker.
This short film is the culmination of years of processing difficult heartbreak β how the memories of people are like worms that stick in your brain, and how you know the other person is still watching you from a distance, even years after the split.
What surprised you most about the filmmaking process, creatively or logistically?
When I first wrote this story, I actually thought it'd be shot live-action at first, with a girl holding live worm bait. Coming from animation, I knew how difficult and time-consuming it'd be to do it that way. But enough people saw the potential in it being animated that I knew this story was worthy enough of 2D hand-drawn animation. And now I'm so ecstatic, because the Worm gets to be his own full-fledged character.
What moment in the film feels most like you, or like something only you could have made?
Definitely the nightmare scene in the airplane. I love horror twists, and I was particularly proud of the animation in that sequence. It also really completes the story β showing how, when you're trying to get over a loved one, it does feel like worms in your brain.
What was the hardest creative decision you made while making the film?
The hardest creative decision was all the little tiny ones that add up every single day. In animation, every little detail is a decision that has to be made: whether a character holds a key-frame pose for 6 frames or 8. What the exact color script of a scene says emotionally. And how the camera moves on every single shot needs to be meticulously planned out.
What tool, technique, resource, collaborator, or mindset shift helped most during production?
This film took a team of nearly 40 people over a year. And just one shot was likely touched by 6 different artists at different stages of production β not including myself. So know that animation truly takes a village, lots of patience, and lots of organization and passion to get to the finish line.
What do you hope audiences take away from this film, and how does it push the boundaries of its form?
I hope audiences take away a lesson from this, just like any other anthropomorphic fable. This film goes beyond "Would you still love me if I were a worm?" Well, no. You should be asking yourself, "Don't I deserve more than a worm? Why am I settling for just a worm?"
My film pushes the boundaries of its form by, first of all, being 100% human-made and done in a traditional 2D hand-drawn style. Second, by luring in the viewer with what seems like an innocent tale and then going to those darker, more adult themes. The audience feels the twist just as strongly as the main girl loses her innocence and goes through heartbreak. At the core of all my work is a desire to connect with others β to share some joy but also some feeling of nostalgia and longing, to entertain but also resonate with the struggles of women-led stories.
What does it mean to have your film selected for the TRC Shorts Fest, and where does the film go next?
It means so much because I live in Glendale! I love how The Reel Champions uplifts newer independent creators and gives them a platform to share their work β especially as women and non-binary filmmakers get those opportunities much more rarely than their male counterparts.
This film continues on its Year of Worm, making its go around the festival circuit. I hope it will release online at some point and gain enough traction for a miniseries version continuing on the lead character's "bug boy" journey.
Main Cast & Crew
- Director/Producer: Karen Zipor β Television Academy alum in Animation and full-time producer creating content for Disney, DreamWorks, Warner Bros, and other animated television ("ARK: The Animated Series"). Webby award-winning producer of "Brittany Broski's Royal Court," featuring guests including Harry Styles and Anne Hathaway. Founder of Zipped Up Films, with prior directorial work across live-action and animation ("A Painterly Hand," "Blessing On Your Head").
- Production Company: Zipped Up Films β Instagram, YouTube
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