Breathe: Sound Design and Composition for Animated Short

Project Overview Breathe is a 4-minute animated comedy short following an animation student whose project won't render — cue a full-blown panic attack, followed by a slow, funny return to his coping skills. It's a story about creative burnout told with heart and absurdity, and I was responsible for every sound in the film.

My Role I handled all sound design and original music, building the entire soundscape from scratch to match the film's shifting tone — from the mounting dread of a crashing render, to a trippy out-of-body experience involving a magical giant cat, to the quiet relief of remembering how to breathe. I worked closely with the client, using his references to shape the sonic world while finding moments to bring my own comedic timing to the mix.

Creative Approach The challenge was tonal whiplash done right — panic needs to feel real enough to land the joke, and the resolution needs to feel earned, not just cute. I leaned into exaggerated foley and glitchy digital textures for the panic sequence, then let the score soften and breathe (pun intended) as he grounds himself again. Every beat of sound needed to serve the comedy without undercutting the genuine anxiety underneath it.

Tools Used Sound Design & Composition: Logic Pro Reference-based collaboration with client-provided direction