Screen addiction. Species at risk. Whatever!

A dead tree goes viral, attracting wildlife, a nature lover, and a crowd of online followers. Animated entirely outside, WhateverTree examines our connection to nature in the age of social media, screens, and selfies.

WINNER: Best short film for Children, KUKI International Children’s Film Festival, Berlin, Germany Nov 14-19, 2020
WINNER: Best Global Short “One Planet”, SCAD Film Festival, Savannah, USA Oct 24-31, 2020
WINNER: Green Image Award, Green Image Film Festival, Tokyo, Japan Mar 26-28, 2021
WINNER: Colour Box Award, Flatpack Festival, Birmingham, UK May 21-31, 2021
WINNER: Best Fiction Film, Cineglobe Film Festival, CERN, Switzerland Aug 25-29, 2021
WINNER: Best Short Film, Cervello Natural Cinema Festival, Barcelona, Spain May 2022
HONOURABLE MENTION: Canadian Film Category, GIRAF Calgary, Canada Nov 19-29, 2020
SPECIAL MENTION: Animatricks, Junior Competition, Helsinki, Finland May 20-23, 2021
SPECIAL MENTION: Kiki Festival, Zabok, Croatia Oct 4-8, 2021
GUEST SPEAKER: AnimaAnima Int’l Film Festival, Cacak, Serbia Oct. 15-17, 2021
Official Selection, Ottawa International Animation Festival Sept 23 - Oct 4, 2020
Official Selection, Planet In Focus Film Festival, Toronto Oct 14 - 18, 2020
Official Selection, Uppsala International Film Festival, Sweden Oct 19-23, 2020
Official Selection, Curtaneu, Spain Nov 5-8, 2020
Official Selection, Chicago International Children’s Film Festival Nov 13-22, 2020
Big Art TO Outdoor screening, Etobicoke Olymium, Toronto Nov 11-14, 2020
Official Selection, Suncine Environmental Film Festival, Barcelona Nov 4-12, 2020
Official Selection, Fest de Cine Zaragoza, Spain Nov 20-28, 2020
Official Selection, Animasivo, Mexico City Nov 27-29, 2020
Official Selection, Animateka, Ljubljana, Slovenia Nov 30- Dec 6, 2020
Official Selection, Carmel International Film Festival, Israel Dec 15-17, 2020
Official Selection, ICONA Contemporary Ionian Contemporary Animation Festival, Greece Dec 4-6, 2020
Official Selection, Catch The Moon Animation Festival, Italy Dec 14-17, 2020
Official Selection, Minimalen Short Film Festival, Trondheim, Norway Jan 12-17, 2020
Cardiff Animation Nights, UK Online Event Jan 21, 2021
Official Selection, Anima Brussels, Belgium Feb 12-21, 2021
Official Selection, Animac, Lleida, Spain Feb 12-21, 2021
Jury Selection, Japan Media Arts Festival, Mar 12, 2021
Official Selection, Green Image Film Festival, Tokyo, Japan Mar 26-28, 2021
Official Selection, Athens Animfest, Greece Mar 26-28, 2021
Official Selection, GLAS, Berkeley, USA Apr 5-11, 2021
Official Selection, Stuttgart Animated Film Festival, Germany May 4-9, 2021
Official Selection, Vienna Shorts, Austria May 27-June 1, 2021
Official Selection, Cine-court Anime, Roanne, France May 3-9, 2021
Official Selection, Filmfest Dresden, Germany July 13-18, 2021
Official Selection, Adelaide Film Festival, Australia July 26-30, 2021
Official Selection, Cervinho Cinemountain, Italy July 31-Aug 7, 2021
Official Selection, Zoom Film Festival, Poland Sept. 6-12, 2021
Official Selection, Zlin Film Festival, Czech Republic Sept 9-15, 2021
Official Selection, Leeds International Film Festival, UK Nov. 3-18, 2021
Official Selection, Cine Eco Festival, Seia, Portugal Oct 9-16, 2021
Official Selection, Olympia Int’l Film Festival for Children, Athens Greece Oct 27-Nov 4, 2021
Official Selection, Abitibi-Témiscamingue Int’l Film Festival, Quebec, Canada Oct 30-Nov 4, 2021
Official Selection, TAIS Showcase, Toronto, Canada Oct. 15-17, 2021
Official Selection, El Meu Primer Festival, Barcelona, Spain Nov 12-28, 2021
Official Selection, Athens Int’l Children’s Film Festival, Greece Nov 13-21, 2021
Official Selection, KurzFilmFestival Koln, Cologne, Germany Nov 16-21, 2021
Official Selection, Sofia Int’l Kids Film Festival, Bulgaria Nov 17-30, 2021
Official Selection, Taiwan Int’l Childrens Film Fest, Taiwan March 28, 2022
Official Selection, La Guarimba Film Festival, Calabria, Italy Aug 7-11, 2022

**WhateverTree**
Duration: 11.5 mins
Format: Animation (mixed media: Outdoor stop-motion, paper/drawn animation), 16:9 aspect ratio
Language: No Dialogue (some english words)
**Credits:**
Story, Direction, Animation, Design, Production: Isaac King
Animation assistance: Dani Elizondo
Music: Bram Gielen
Sound Design/Mix: Matt Beckett
Voice: Laura Barrett, Isaac King
Produced with the generous support of:
Ontario Arts Council
Canada Arts Council
© Isaac King 2020

Director’s Statement:

In 2017, a concussion forced me away from computer screens. I spent more time outdoors, drawing characters in nature. As I identified species, I learned about native plants and ecosystems. I started sharing my work on social media, and the positive feedback that came with every “like” or “follow” encouraged me. I was physically connecting with nature, and virtually connecting with people online. It led me to examine the role of nature in our digital age.

“WhateverTree” tells the story of how a dead tree becomes an online viral meme and selfie destination. It also describes how the “wildlife tree” is home to fungi, insects and other creatures, performing a unique role in the forest ecosystem. Louise observes and records wildlife with her smartphone, representing E.O. Wilson’s “biophilia” hypothesis - that humans innately seek connections with nature. In contrast, Logan takes a selfie in front of the tree, vainly proclaiming human dominance. Consumed by their screens, Logan’s followers are ambivalent to the wonders of nature. Indifferent to both human narcissism and conservation efforts, the tree falls, returning nutrients to the soil and renewing the forest.

These digital and ecological connections reflect our attitudes toward nature: concerned, indifferent, or exploitative - determining if we’ll live within or against the natural world. Since the global pandemic began, our social media and smartphone dependance/addiction has increased, but so has the urge to connect with nature and the outdoors. “WhateverTree” highlights our connections, between humans and all life, in this time of crisis.

Press (click for links):

“The jury enjoyed this thoughtful take on the complexity of social media’s footprint, its impact and its potential to serve as a gateway to appreciating things off screen. The integration of social media screens and interfaces was lovely and showed a delicious attention to detail.” - GIRAF Animation Festival, awarding “WhateverTree” an Honourable Mention

"An unexpectedly charming short about screen addiction and wildlife protection… WhateverTree tells the story of a dead tree that goes viral thanks to an unwitting nature lover and a savvy social media influencer.” - Booooooom TV

”This film wins this year’s imaginary prize for the best lockdown film that isn’t a lockdown film. WhateverTree is an astute study of our behaviour on social media as we have collectively poured into parks and green spaces, looking for individual connection and salvation.” - Leeds International Film Festival

“The story is painfully accurate. The film tells a story of the collision of superficial social media and the balance of nature and its rhythms. The director doesn’t serve obvious end results instead he rather lets the viewer decide what they think of these themes.” - Animatricks Animation Festival, awarding “WhateverTree” a Special Mention

“Short Pick of the Day: WhateverTree by Isaac King” - Cartoon Brew

My Process: See how I made the film below. My work spanned three years, from 2017 - 2020.