Film-maker Huda Razzak delves into an old poem for the animated short THE OCEAN DUCK.
Film And TV Now spoke with the film-maker about the short.
FILM AND TV NOW: You are the product of an Iraqi immigrant and raised in Chicago. What are the key values that your upbringing in American society has been ingrained by your family?
HUDA RAZZAK: Resilience – even though my parents lost so much from leaving their home country of Iraq, they both remained determined in creating a life here for us as a family. Their stories made such a big impact on me growing up, and I am constantly seeing my own struggles through the stories my parents shared about their own.
FTVN: Tell us more about the source material for THE OCEAN DUCK?
HR: The Ocean Duck is inspired by a poem from Rumi’s Masnavi – about a duck who lived among hens because it had forgotten its true home was the ocean, a symbol for the eternal. I came across it a few years ago after my beloved grandmother passed away. The metaphor really resonated with me and became the basis for the short.
FTVN: The film has a unique animation style. Tell us how you conceived it and what were the key influences on your work?
HR: I wanted the film to closely reflect the mixed Arab and Persian culture I shared with my grandmother, even visually. So I studied the illuminated manuscripts that depicted Rumi’s life and poetry and found visual inspiration for the film. The art of those manuscripts all shared certain traits – a flat two-dimensional perspective with a decorative border that elements crossed. In translating that aesthetic to animation, I looked to the beautiful works of Cartoon Saloon which also influenced our work.
FTVN: Tell us about your production team.
HR: We had a wonderful crew of about 50 people and 5 amazing leads. My Anh Ngo, co-director and animation supervisor, led a team of animators to craft the character animation and performance of the fim. Katarzyna Doszla, our art director, visually developed and painted all of the exquisite backgrounds.
Denise Anger, lead rigging artist, designed the 2D rigs used for our hybrid 2D animation approach. Ryen Goebel, the visual effects lead, created the perspective-challenging effects in the film. Stephanie Hamelin Tomala, coordinated work on sound and composed our beautiful score.
FTVN: How long did it take to make?
HR: I started developing the concept in March of 2019 during my MFA studies at SCAD. After six months of writing, storyboarding, and visual development, production began by that fall and took 2 years to complete the film in September of 2021.
FTVN: The short is a very spiritual one with the ocean being a key image. Where do you stand on spiritualism in general both in the world and in your own life?
HR: The Ocean Duck is a very personal film for this reason. For me it represents the idea of the eternal and that there are things that transcend the world that we know and observe. I always try to recognize that in my own life, especially when I feel like I’m getting lost in the day to day, or when I’m remembering someone I love.
FTVN: Who and what are your key cinematic influences?
HR: My biggest influences in animation are the works of Studio Ghibli and Cartoon Saloon. In live action, the films that had the biggest impact on me were Agnieszka Holland’s The Secret Garden and Alfonso Cuarón’s A Little Princess. The way these films beautifully explore themes of relationships, culture, and magical realism continue to inspire my own work.
FTVN: Would you be keen to use animation in fusion with live action in future work, given the revolution in CGI cinematic work?
HR: Yes, absolutely, if I have the opportunity, and if it strengthens the concept and story.
FTVN You are currently employed at Netflix. How does working for them help you to evolve as both an artist and a filmmaker?
HR: I’ve learned so much from working there and observing the feature film pipeline. My role in story and edit production gives me a great vantage point to understand the creative development process in particular, and this especially helps me in growing as a writer and director.
FTVN: You studied at the Savannah College of Art and Design. Tell us about this facility and what was your personal experience like there?
HR: I had a very good experience at my grad program in SCAD – even though I learned a lot about film and animation, I would say the most valuable part for me was the community. Every quarter, the animation department would organize a collab fair, an event where students pitch their projects and recruit other students to work on their films. Each graduate film also had an advising committee of experienced professors to seek guidance from. It was such an incredible and encouraging atmosphere that really supported passionate filmmakers.
FTVN: Would you be keen to expand on the ideas explored in this short in a feature idea?
HR: Yes – I recently started developing a new concept for a feature that is inspired by my mother’s refugee experience, a story that would build upon the themes, magical realism, and style of animation of The Ocean Duck.
FTVN: Finally, what are you most proud of about this short?
HR: My daughter is the voice actress for the young girl character, and so being able to create a story with my daughter about my grandmother, my mom’s mom – touching these multiple generations of women in our family – makes this film especially meaningful to me.
I appreciated sharing that experience with my amazing crew, who captured that warm tone and spirit of the film through their incredible work. It’s these relationships behind the film that I love most.
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