ANIMATION - CAPSTONE PROJECT
YEAR: 2023
My Comfort Food is a curated series of illustrated zine, a short animation and stickers of how memory plays a crucial role in shaping my sense of self and identity through showing my childhood comfort food, Vietnamese dishes such Pho, Bun Bo Hue and Banh Mi.
Animation
Print Making
Challenge
Looking Within Myself
For my Capstone project, we were given the freedom to explore new and different mediums and methods of designing to produce an outcome to showcase at the graduation exhibition. I struggled at first because with so much freedom, I wasn’t sure what to do. But after a lot of overthinking (and a little spiralling), I came back to what brings me joy: illustration and Vietnamese food. This project became a way to connect with my culture, my childhood, and the comfort that comes from a steaming bowl of something familiar. It was the first time I let my personal identity fully shape my creative direction and it just made sense.
Solution
Comic and Animations of flavours of the Past: Visualising Identity Through Childhood Dishes
The story of the animation and comic 'My Comfort Food' was inspired by the desire to reminisce of the beautiful childhood that are close in our hearts. The personal and intimate story aims to evoke a sense of nostalgia, happiness and warmth with a sprinkle of humour in the audience...
"…like slurping on warm soup on a cold day."
Takeaway
Looking Back: Growth, Grit & Creative Discovery
- This project pushed me out of my comfort zone - trying new techniques like animation and storyboarding helped me grow as a designer.
- I learned to embrace imperfections, seeing them as part of creating more honest and authentic work.
- Feedback became a crucial part of my process, helping me reflect, improve, and see things from different perspectives.
- After struggling with Adobe Animate, I switched to Photoshop for animation - it felt more intuitive and helped me build confidence.
- I also picked up fun new skills along the way: risograph printing, sticker production, experimenting with sound in After Effects… even using my own voice!
- Overall, I see myself now as a curious, ever-evolving designer - driven by creativity, big ideas, and a desire to keep learning through passion projects and new challenges.
