Once Upon a Rabbit Primary Function: Animasyon nga Mubo nga Pelikula by Jesseter Wang and Hannah Sun

Once Upon a Rabbit Primary Function: Animasyon nga Mubo nga Pelikula by Jesseter Wang and Hannah Sun is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2026 A' Design Award nga Bronse in Disenyo sa Pelikula, Bidyo ug Animasyon Competition Category.

BronsePelikula· 2026

Once Upon a Rabbit Primary Function: Animasyon nga Mubo nga Pelikula

by Jesseter Wang and Hannah Sun

A' Design Award nga Bronse Winner in Pelikula Category

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Verified Award Winner

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View at A' Design Award Press Release Award Badge

Colors

The Design

About Once Upon a Rabbit Primary Function: Animasyon nga Mubo nga Pelikula

Book Text: Ang Once Upon a Rabbit usa ka animasyon nga disenyo nga proyekto nga giinspirar sa kultural nga mga detalye sa Lantern Festival ug sa panumdoman sa pagkabata. Ang buhat nagtukod og humok, mapahayagon nga pinulongan sa panan-aw pinaagi sa pagsagol sa dimensyonal nga porma ug pagkamabinati sa kamot nga pagdibuho, nga naghimo og mga imahen nga mibati nga pareho nga estrukturado ug malingaw-lingaw. Ang mga nagbalik-balik nga motibo sama sa kuneho ug Tangyuan, mga bola sa bugas, gigamit isip mga visual nga angkla, samtang ang paglihok, ritmo, ug komposisyon nagpasiugda sa atmospera ug pagpadayon, nga miresulta sa usa ka nag-usa nga kasinatian sa disenyo nga nakagamot sa kainit, pagkasinati, ug kultural nga pagsanong.

The Recognition

About the A' Design Award nga Bronse

Once Upon a Rabbit Primary Function: Animasyon nga Mubo nga Pelikula usa ka mananaog sa A' Design Award nga Bronse, usa ka labihan ka prestihiyoso nga pag-ila nga gihatag sa talagsaon nga mga disenyo nga gipaila sa pagkamamugnaon, kaabtik, ug kamatngon. Ang mga mananaog sa Bronse mga hanas kaayo ug makapahibulong nga mamugnaon nga mga artipakto nga nagpamatuod sa dakong kasinatian, imahinasyon, ug kaabtik sa ilang mga tigdesinyo. Gilauman nga ang Once Upon a Rabbit Primary Function: Animasyon nga Mubo nga Pelikula mahimong gipabilhan, gihangaan, ug gihigugma nga butang nga talagsaon ang pagkapropesyonal ug bag-o. Kini nga disenyo nga nakadaog og A' Design Award nga Bronse naglakip sa labing maayong mga praktis sa arte, siyensya, disenyo, ug teknolohiya ug maayo kaayo tungod sa pagtagad niini sa mga detalye. Once Upon a Rabbit Primary Function: Animasyon nga Mubo nga Pelikula nagtagbaw sa mga panginahanglan sa matahom nga paagi, nag-igo sa mga tinguha, nagbihag sa mga pagbati, ug nagdani sa pagkamausisaon.

Behind the Design

Press Kit

Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.

Unique Properties: Once Upon a Rabbit is an animated short inspired by childhood memories and subtle cultural details of the Lantern Festival. Guided by the recurring presence of the rabbit and tangyuan (rice balls), the film unfolds as a sequence of connected moments that gradually lead toward a shared table. The piece emphasizes emotional flow and visual association over explicit storytelling, capturing the lively warmth of the Lantern Festival.
Dimensions & Packaging: 16x9 video file
Tags: Animation, Motion Design, Illustration, Culture, Year of Rabbit
Production Technology: The project was produced using a hybrid 3D and 2D animation workflow. Core scenes and motion were created in Cinema 4D, with a focus on modeling and animation. The renders were then composited in Adobe After Effects, where textures, graphic details, and subtle motion accents were added to achieve a cohesive, handcrafted visual quality.
Design Challenge: A key creative challenge was achieving a sense of warmth and human touch within a digitally constructed visual environment. The project sought to avoid a rigid or overly polished appearance by introducing texture, softness, and brush-like qualities into form and motion. Balancing control and imperfection required careful visual restraint, ensuring the imagery remained expressive and inviting while maintaining coherence and clarity throughout the animation.
Research: This project is based on exploratory design research focused on visual expression and cultural memory. The objective was to understand how abstract form, color, and motion could evoke familiarity associated with the Lantern Festival without relying on literal depiction. The research was conducted through visual experimentation, reference studies, and iterative sketching using digital tools. Observations were drawn from personal memory, cultural imagery, and repeated motion tests. The results informed a visual language that balances simplicity and expressiveness, demonstrating how motion design can translate shared cultural atmosphere into an accessible and emotionally resonant visual experience.
Inspiration: Once Upon a Rabbit was inspired by childhood memories and subtle cultural details of the Lantern Festival. The project explores the use of 3D techniques rendered with a 2D sensibility, creating a vivid yet dreamlike visual language reminiscent of childhood doodles. By prioritizing mood, memory, and shared cultural experience over literal representation, the work aims to evoke a sense of warmth and nostalgia through motion.
Project Duration: The project was developed and completed in 2023 as an independent animation project, produced remotely.
Operation Flow: Motion unfolds through a sequence of gentle transformations, where shapes, colors, and motifs transition fluidly between scenes. Visual elements expand, contract, and reorganize to guide attention and create continuity, allowing the design to feel cohesive while maintaining a sense of lightness and rhythm throughout the experience.
Team Members: Jesseter Wang,
Hannah Sun
Image Credits: Direction / Design / Animation: [Jesseter Wang & Hannah Sun]
Music / Sound: [Davis Aguirre]