Waves | Sea Pearl Art

Short Film: Waves

Project Overview — Waves is a romance-themed animated short set in Hawaii, following the story of Namaka, a mermaid, and Lokahi, a fisherman. The story explores themes of connection, misunderstanding, and the courage it takes to bridge emotional gaps between two people from different worlds.

Themes: The difficulty of holding onto love. Overcoming fear of relationships. Being seen for who you truly are. The power of giving someone space to come to you. The conflict between private love and public perception. Choosing to fight for connection. Sometimes you have to send the big message/gesture.

Main Characters

Lokahi (The Fisherman): A shy, average, husky guy who's overlooked by others (hula girls don't notice him). He's a fisherman by trade. He’s kind-hearted but fearful loner. His rejection of Namaka is out of protection, for her well-being and to guard his vulnerability. He must let go of his insecurities to reconnect with Namaka and become a part of his village.

Namaka (The Mermaid): The only one of her kind. She's an expert at fishing — flipping the usual dynamic where the human would teach her. Instead, she teaches him. Her special abilities are unrefined and unpredictable. Namaka reflects a philosophy of growth: she doesn't change who she is to be loved. She evolves on her own terms, choosing to adapt without losing her identity.

Creative Process:

Beats — drawing the important story moments first, then filling in the script and details later.
Storyboarding —- Fill in story details with storyboard panels.
Script — Write out all dialog.
Record — Voices and Sound effects. Take video references of actions and voice recordings.
Research — Art styles, backgrounds, Hawaiian culture, sea life
Character Design —- Have full color, turn around sheets for each character.
Animatic — Put storyboard panels on a time sequence, add royalty-free music, voices, sound effects. Export as video with timestamp.
Timeline — Make a schedule for each scene and place for status updates.
Block outs — Establish camera movements first then rough animation of characters and elements such as bubbles, waves, trees. Preview video for error. Watch for timing.
In-betweens — Smooth out movements, no jarring.
Clean-up — All lines must be clear, clean and consistent in weight and style. Export as video with timestamp.
Color — Colors need to match from scene to scene, shadows need to be consistent and follow light source.

Beats