When Celisse tells Mira that her song is what ascending is going to feel like, it’s so heartbreaking… Celisse is showing incredible vulnerability, giving what she thinks is the highest possible compliment to Mira’s song, that it made her feel like the ultimate bliss that the disciples, the first people Celisse has ever felt accepted with, will feel. Meanwhile all Mira hears is that the one person she can show her secret to, the one person she actually feels a connection with, has been indoctrinated so heavily in the disciples that she is lost to them. It’s such a powerful and sad moment.
one of my favorite moments in the movie, where you just see mira’s expression falter. it really helps put a world of distance between the two in just a split second, and establishes the NON-main character as the one who sees through the cult
The moment in the end where Ascensia cries is so powerful, it gets me no matter how many times I watch it. The emotions playing out on her face are so real. She dedicated her life to this, she put all her faith in this higher power promising salvation and happiness. She was right, sure, but she's still not happy. The gods she worshipped have a god of their own. A beautiful sucker punch of an ending.
When I first watched this film, I was months deep into a slump of overall hollowness. But this got to me. It made me feel something, lots of somethings. I'm in a bad state again now and I need to watch it again, to turn my lights off and block out every other sound and experience only this for 45 minutes.
This was my favorite scene out of the whole thing, too. I'm glad someone else recognizes how powerful it is. That moment has stuck with me for so long. If Jonni ever decides to sell those animation cels like she did with Goodbye Forever Party I want to own at least one.
I really appreciated the moment where Amy/Celice(??) went up to the mute person and figured out a way to communicate with them through writing/drawing :)
the part where amy's roommate is watching the TV at the end and sees the news about the cult supposedly committing mass suicide and she looks back at the phone... that makes me feel really sad
i think mira is better able to recognise the red flags in what ascensia says because she was raised in an extremely religious environment. the similarities between organised religions and cults are striking. they’re basically one in the same
What hits me the hardest is when celisse is like "that's what I think ascending is going to feel like!" Like... Man... That's what NOW feels like. Maybe that's just pointing out the obvious but at the end it really stuck with me. Gotta enjoy now, good message, fantastic film
This is honestly so underrated. There's so much to praise but I just want to point out how this film makes the viewer feel what it's like to be Amy/Celise. Like the first scene that basically proved the scribbles existed but presented in a way that could be a fever dream. It seems so certain and concrete and to anyone desperate enough, they can take that story for face value. When Mira points out how crazy it sounds, we as the audience feel pretty conflicted because WE'RE PRETTY SURE that it's all true, even though the first scene could be explained as a fever dream. I dont think I've ever felt such uncertainty about the validity of a cult before, and it's interesting because right before they unwillingly ascended, I felt pretty much like Celise. Had this all been a waste? Did she really throw away her life? But it all seemed so perfect and real. Nothing sounded off while being with everyone. This film is so awesome and it needs to be seen more.
This is one of the most beautiful independent animated films I've ever seen, it actually had me tearing up. Amazing job to you and all the talented people who worked on this.
(spoilers) "Hey, Celise...? Is this place even any different?" "What do you mean?" "Like, it all feels exactly the same as back home. I can barely tell the difference." "If I had known it was going to be like this, I wouldn't have even tried"
In August, I spent a month in Poland with my family. They live in a beautiful small farm town and every time I go I'm immediately comforted, like it's my true home; it's an escape from my battle with anxiety and depression and trauma attached to the city. I've had some tension with my parents, but I actually felt like we were family when I was there. If I had just one more day there, I swear I would've had the courage to tell them I was trans. It was 2 AM when I returned home. I was gutted abt leaving and I couldn't sleep, so I decided to watch this film for the first time. I was bawling my eyes out by the end. I often have trouble with my emotions but I had such a strong connection to the story and the characters and it's meaning (or at least my interpretation). I've connected it to my time in Poland -- how it just felt so right to be there, to live so simply and peacefully with people you can finally call family -- and how, now that I'm stuck here again, I have the promise of something better to keep me going. It's not a perfect analogy, but I was trying to make sense of my feelings and I had such a strong emotional connection to the film (esp the ending). It's been 9 (dang.. 9 already??) months since then but I just wanted you to know it has gotten me through so much, especially nowadays. Sorry for how long this comment ended up being ahahaa, thank you so much for making such powerful, beautiful, and delightful content, Jonni
oh wow I just figured out the symbolism with the weird numbers of fingers and toes on everyone's hands and feet in the commune, where the only time someone's hands are shown up close and with the "right" number of fingers is at the start with Salise in the bathroom. the cult is basically a refuge for marginalized misfits who for one reason or another don't feel alive in the outside world, so before finding the disciples Salise's hands have the "right" number of fingers but are drawn as almost twisted and malforemd, like she had to actively force herself to fit that model of convention and even then didn't really succeed (also note the Goodbye Forever Party black and white in that scene VS the color that's added elswhere, especially with the commune's outfits). Upon embracing her strangeness, the fingers look way more natural despite being in completely abnormal numbers after that. (this might also be another layer on top of Delilah's six-tuple jointedness). wait is this also a thing about rejecting rules in animation too where people are "supposed" to be drawn five fingers even though there's absolutely no expressionistic reason why that should be the case? it all comes together this is the best short film ever made. the garfield eyes, the hands, everything, it all ties into this beautiful tapestry about rejecting the alienation imposed by societal convention, be that convention as large as ableism and comphet or as small as the "rules" of animation. masterful
I'm working on this big dumb video essay about expressionist art films on RU-vid and I swear I will do all of this justice in the section where I talk about Wasteland
im so glad someone picked up on this :) it started out as the general statement on animation "rules" in my other work, when it came to ascensia i started to think about it in narrative terms as well
Hello! This is the final film in my Wasteland series. It's about a UFO cult, the leader of said cult, and her disciples. I had a lot of help from many extremely talented people- Jenna Caravello (instagram.com/jennafruit/ ) and In Heo (instagram.com/inheo_/) helped me write the film. In voices Celisse, and Jenna voices Mira. Jenna also wrote and performed Mira's songs. In guest animated Ascensia's dream sequence. Dylan Kanner (dylankanner.bandcamp.com/) wrote and performed "Wasteland Ballad", the song that plays during the montage of Celisse's life. I had amazing animation assistants, who colored my frames physically with gouache/watercolor and cut them out: Frankie Tamaru (instagram.com/sloopy__/), Jeanette Fantone (instagram.com/jeanoot/), Misuzu Shibano (instagram.com/misuzushibano/), Serena Hughes (instagram.com/wamwogs/), Worsey (instagram.com/wormsea/). Benni Quintero (vimeo.com/benniquintero) was my shooting assistant, and also did a lot of practical special effects. They also directed the scene in Lil P's hole, as well as drew all of Lil P's drawings, and voiced Lil P. I had amazing guest animators who animated the flashbacks, sermons, POV shifts, and dream sequences. Victoria Vincent (vimeo.com/vewn) animated Narnia's flashback, Mel Roach (melaphantastic.tumblr.com/) animated Lil P's flashback, Kelly Ficarra (kficc.tumblr.com/) animated Mira's flashback, In Heo (instagram.com/inheo_/) animated Ascensia's dream sequence, Sarah Schmidt (vimeo.com/sarahmaes) animated the Derek POV shifts, Jeanette Fantone animated sermon #1, Chris Clancy (vimeo.com/user27715558) animated sermon #2, and Benni Quintero animated sermon #3. Sam Gurry (vimeo.com/samgurry) did the "Scrimble Screaming" vocalizations throughout the film & voiced the Scrimbles, Jan Jurchak (six-teen.bandcamp.com/) and Wolf Woodcock (wolfwoodcock.bandcamp.com/) both worked on the score. Jan also did sound design and mixing, and Wolf did additional instruments and mixing for Mira's final song. Jake Ryan (instagram.com/boingeauxmcmasters) helped me with editing. Charlotte Pryce voiced Ascensia, Gary Mairs voiced Derek, Isabel Higgins voiced Janis, Victoria Vincent voiced Delilah, Chris Kim voiced Narnia. My website: jonniphillips.com My twitter: twitter.com/jonniphillips My instagram: instagram.com/jonniphillips If you'd like to help fund my future projects, my patreon is here: patreon.com/jonniphillips , my paypal is jonniphillipsart@gmail.com
I thought abt this film today when I entered a bad thought spiral like “I can’t be a real person bc I feel out of place” and coming up w different explanations for why. I’m secretly a robot, I’m supposed to be dead, or I’m really an alien. It’s comforting to think there’s somewhere out there where I can feel like myself, like I’m home. But that really is just a fantasy, at least while I’m alive on earth bc there is no perfect place for me. That’s what the ending means to me anyway. I’ll still carry my problems with me. Which is depressing but like. I have to be okay with it. It’s never going to be perfect but it can be good enough, I hope, with the right person to share it with.
I don’t really get this, there’s no place on earth where you’re able to feel like yourself because you’ll still have issues in your life? Is being completely purged of sadness a necessity for feeling at home?
@@impwolf No, there are definitely times and places where I feel like myself or at home in real life. But the promise of somewhere where I can always feel that way, I think that's what's alluring. (if that makes sense?) (Personally what gives me this feeling the most is how long it takes me to be comfortable around other people. I always always always feel nervous around others and it's very hard for me to make friends...so imagining a place where I don't feel that way and can magically feel like I belong is comforting.)
would you believe me if i told you that there is a place, just like that? i think of this earth as simply a resting place on my journey to a final destination. i treat my time here as a foraging mission, i am collecting conversations, memories, knowledge. i'll take them with me in my pack. one day, when my body has worn out, i will rest in the earth. asleep for a while while the world above me shakes. my flesh will feed the insects and the soil, and in time, only my bones will be left. i think i need a long sleep. i'm tired. when at last the earth has crumbled, i'll wake again, and go to the place you talked about. my time on earth will be but a memory. i believe in heaven, and that is a great comfort to me.
"Perhaps you were expecting some surprise, for me to reveal a secret that had eluded you, something that would change your perspective of events, shatter you to your core. There is no great revelation, no great secret. There is only you."
Hello! My big film is coming! It's 45 minutes long and i worked on it for 2 years and a lot of geniuses helped me on it. I'm very proud of it! For now if you want to see the film early you can watch it via my patreon: patreon.com/jonniphillips , but if not, it's coming on June 1! Wahoo!
It's been a year since this uploaded and I can't believe no one has commented on the fact (not really a fact but heavily implied regardless) that mira got kicked out of her house for being a lesbian.
i have adhd, and it's a near impossibility for me to focus on a piece of media without needing something else playing in the background. i kept going to open a side tab, but something kept my interest. i watched the whole 45 minutes of this film, completely enraptured for it's entirety, and i'm glad i did.
I love this because it shows the beauty we can find in the monotony of life, human spirit. that no matter how much someone can feel sad and hopeless and lost, it’s all just one big cycle, something created us, something created them, and things die and grow and change and all we can do is take comfort in our humanity. absolutely love this animation
this is criminally underrated. i don't have much to say except that i relate to the feeling of dissatisfaction in a place that is meant to be home. incredibly well done, dude
@@Inochikaragara sorry for looking at your account but i was confused on how you were a jonni phillips fan, an infinity train fan, know about animation epic, have mother mother, lemon demon, the scary jokes, and the boys are back in town (to kill you) saved to ur music playlist everything is all the same
@@Inochikaragara sorry i was being weird & kind of forget what it meant. i was joking about how a lot of those communites & fandoms online seem to be close each other
Lyrics for "Hold on Sailor": [Verse 1] When you find that you are tired And you feel misunderstood Knowing patience is a virtue And yet waiting does no good Is the glass too dim to see through? Can you set time back to zero? Will the flood rise up to meet you? Oh my God [Verse 2] And is it right that we should be alone In an aching that we share? Can we throw a bridge between our hearts To meet in open air? And your shadows you'll take with you Your sorrows never fading But the moon's bright side will find you Even while it's waning [Chorus] So hold on sailor Hold on partner Your family will find you Your pain will guide you [Verse 3] When you dove into the deep end Did you know on your way down That the fears you hid to hold you up Can beckon you to drown? Did you see the big wave coming? Did you feel the planet moving? Will you know that you've been missing All the time you're losing? [Chorus] So hold on sailor Hold on partner Your family will find you Your pain will guide you [Verse 4] Sometimes life can be misleading And you won't get very far And some people don't know what they need And bury who they are This is all to say "How are you?" Treading water, castle burning All alone except for everyone On our asteroid turning [Chorus x2] So hold on sailor Hold on partner Your family will find you Your pain will guide you So hold on sailor Hold on partner Your family will find you Your pain will guide you
I loved the ending, but it leaves me craving more. This was a beautiful animation. This felt like having a dream I could always remember if I’m having a bad day. Simply splendid
This is very good , and I don't know if this was the intention, but knowing a little bit about cults and how they manipulate people ,this is vaguely unnerving and sad, which to me, makes this the most emotional and best entry to the wasteland series
If in some point of my life I get to be a recognized creator, I will say that this film and your work were some of my greatest influences. I really wish you to get far, because this is some of the most heartful and admirable works that I've ever seen in a long time, of a quality that you can't easily find nowdays. I wish you the best Jonni, and keep being that wonderfuly weird person that you are.
What a POWERFUL film! To me this film represents growing up. Like when we are kids we want so bad to grow up and be an adult because we perceive adults and beings higher than us with skills and abilities far beyond ours that it almost feels like they are magical but once you grow up and become an adult it all feels so mundane and devoid of all mysticism and you feel trapped in a system you hate.
Jonni I sincerely mean this when I say this is one of my favorite animated films of all time. It's moving, beautiful, and the kind of subjects I love (cults, lesbians, aliens). Also I LOVE how you animate everyone it's so evocative. You have serious chops and I can't wait to see what else you do!!! ❤
BTW I wanted to ask what's probably obvious but: ascensias whole method and cult reminds me of heavens gate. Am I right in thinking it was an influence on the film? I mean I know it's an obvious question XD but I especially love the *SPOILER* ending where ascensia realizes nothing magical really happens once you do achieve this grand work/goal. The disillusionment of that and it pairs so well with the two struggling girls as they learn to be content with where and who they are. I love it so much!!!
@@JonniPeppers I asked him what he’d rate it out of 10 and he said that “it’s hard to pin down a rating, it’s kind of an anomaly, sort of like family guy”
found this bc it’s the 9th highest rated animated film on letterboxd. truly wonderful, jonni. on a purely visual level, this is exactly how i want my own animations to make people feel. the story hit hard, especially the ending. i’m not sure what to make of it all yet but i’m sure i’ll rewatch this.
this was fantastic. amazing. incredible. like-- i cant, i-- like i just, i love the different perspectives of the characters and i love the contrast between celisse and mira with celisse not understanding mira correctly, i was surprised that theres no resolve to the story but i think it fits perfectly and i lvoe that you ended it with a shot of ascensia realizing that this was not all it was said to be. it really suits all the shit people go thru for a better life and sometimes it could end up just as waste of time, its a sad truth but im glad you made this. it just brings an incredible story to life in a very great and smooth way. also i love how surreal this shit is!!! i love your work!! and i love the guest animations!!!! if you plan on selling frames from this film too, give me like a week bc i need to get $hmoney lmao😔😔
sometimes you spend your entire life working to something you'll never find. sometimes it all goes wrong and sometimes the oasis you've been seeking was a mirage the whole time. sometimes the haven you find, the place where you finally feel like you matter, was hurting you, silently, in the deep part you can't see. the world is ugly, and maybe that's beautiful.
i love this. the whole wasteland series was really really good. the ending of this one made my heart physically ache and that is a feeling very little media can pull out of me. just. wow. thank you for this. and all of the wonderful people who worked on it. its beautiful.
Jonni it’s been 3 years since this lovely film was posted and I’m just now working up the courage to comment about it, but it’s never late, right? I have watched Ascensia and maybe the entirety of the Wasteland anthology so many times at this point, it’s something I always come back to again and again and at this point- is not exaggeration, but it may be my favorite film of all time. There’s something so easily relatable about this world and these characters and no matter how many times I watch this to the end I cry every time. This as well as Barber has such profound themes in the sense that- you can’t run from your problems, but you can find happiness where you are. Which is a lesson I constantly have to teach myself over and over. Which is why even though the ending is bleak, I cannot help but read this as a happy ending for Mira and Celise. Because yes, they once again are living their lives in a place where they rejected, hated, or at the very least scorned for their final decision. But they found happiness on earth with each other listening to Mira play music, and in the end, they still have that. Despite everything. It’s just refreshing to have a story that says “sometimes things don’t get better, but you can find happiness where you are” and it’s just something that’s really stuck with me all these years. Thank you for this film and thank you for being one of the best creators out there, Jonni.
Most interesting end I have seen in a long time. It's oddly satisfying despite not being a downer or happy ending. I really enjoyed this, thank you to everyone who worked on this.
saw this was on letterboxd, went "haha i liked this film time to rewatch it so i can review it" and now it's an hour later and i'm bawling my eyes out to hold on sailor.... this film hits
I mean that end where she discovers that everything she believed was a lie and there’s no longer a way to reverse what happened. Also that scene where the roommate realizes what she lost
I still come back to watch this just about every 3 months and every time I still cry at the end. The music and lyrics mixed with everyones personal sadness is just so powerful.
Everything about this film is near perfect. The balance between traditional storytelling and surrealism, the writing and pacing, extremely unique animation style, and my god, the music!! The end montage never fails to make me tear up. I've come back 4 or 5 times; the film really and truly gets better with each viewing.
I'm rewatching this yet again, and oh boy the ending (and the whole thing) really makes such impact that I feel like I have to lie down on the floor for a while
Man it's almost a year later and I still consider this one of the best films I've ever seen in my life. Jonni and crew are such incredibly talented people just. Wow yknow? Thanks for putting this together it's really impactful and I like it a lot
i come back to this film all the time, it never fails to inspire me to work on my own art related shit. this is just so incredibly beautiful, it means so much to me.
I remembered watching this when it first dropped and just being absolutely floored by the artistry and direction. It suddenly wormed its way into my head again and I spent forever trying to remember where it was just to see it again. Honestly such a masterpiece, your work is incredible.
So I wanted to watch this again, and every time I watch it, it I don't really know how to describe it, but this has impacted me very deeply and I want to convey it somehow
Can't remember exactly how long ago I watched this for the first time, toward the end of 2019 I think. Been through a lot of things since then... I revisited the movie for the first time in a while yesterday and the ending sequence set to Hold On, Sailor had me full body weeping. It's hard to put into words what I take away from the movie, but it's a strangely hopeful feeling, even though it's wrapped in grief. I love this film very much. Thank you, Jonni
Incredible how almost each major character of this film provides a separate framework to interpret its themes, with the loose consistency through them all being a confliction within their emotions and outlook, allowing none to truly dominate the others. For me personally, I find myself most sympathetic and inclined to the perspective and story of Mira, but I understand that that's due to my own personal experiences and interpretation process of media rather than some direct author's guidance towards that reading due to the volume of material within this work which more heavily supports another. Communal art made for community, incredible work by the whole team. Feel pretty silly putting off watching this for so long until being inclined by a friend recently.
just rewatched this and cannot express how much i truly love it. this’s gotta be like my 4 th watchthrough and it always leaves me with the feels and thoughs
insane how you made one of the greatest movies of all time and got 100k views but a video of a potato chip rotating with funkytown playing got 30 million views
This is honestly the perfect argument for animation being the superior medium. Every subtle movement is filled with character and meaning. Every emotion the characters feel is communicated immediately.
