yunlan-zhang__unknown__ual__2025

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School: RCA
Program:
Year: 2025
Author(s):

Source: https://ualshowcase.arts.ac.uk/project/689494/cover

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Description (Markdown extracted)

# Project Description

Hold?

Yunlan Zhang

Summary

Final work

I am a final year 2D animation artist student on Animation at LCC who focuses on expressive movement and emotional clarity, creating atmospheric, character-driven visual storytelling.

I am a final year 2D animation artist student on Animation at LCC who focuses on expressive movem...

College London College of Communication

Course MA Animation

Graduation year 2025

Title: Hold?

Film Blog/Website Link: https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/1094722795

Film Vimeo Link: https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/1094722795

Trailer Vimeo Link: https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/1094722795

FilmFreeway Link : https://filmfreeway.com/projects/3668655

Film Information:

Genre: Animation

Production Year: 2025

Country of Production: United Kindom

LogLine (25 words): A child grows up under a controlling love and learns to hold on—repeating the same cycle without knowing if it’s right or wrong.

Synopsis (50 words): A child is raised with love that slowly turns possessive. When they try to break free, the warmth becomes force. Thrown into a dark inner world, the child confronts emotional pressure, struggles to reclaim autonomy, and returns—only to find themselves repeating the same cycle they tried to escape.

Credits:

Director: Yunlan Zhang

Animator: Yunlan Zhang

Sound: Yunlan Zhang

Edit: Yunlan Zhang

Biography (25 words max):

Yunlan Zhang is an emerging animation artist whose works explore emotional abstraction through experimental visual language and expressive, shape-shifting character movement.

Artist/Director Statement (250 words max): “Hold?” is an abstract and emotional short animation exploring how love, protection, and control can blur into one another. I wanted to portray how a child’s early experience of attachment—seemingly gentle and intimate—can slowly transform into an invisible restraint, shaping how one learns to love, resist, and repeat. Through surreal metaphors and minimalistic design, I aim to visualize the inner tension of being held too tightly, and the eventual cycle of becoming someone who also holds on too hard.

The film was created in 2D digital animation, with limited color and stylized movement. Some sections incorporate mixed media and rotoscope-inspired transitions to represent psychological breaks and shifting realities. The visual language focuses on simplified forms and symbolic transformation to suggest emotion over narrative clarity.

This project aligns with my ongoing interest in experimental, emotionally driven animation that blurs the boundary between the personal and the universal. “Hold” is not just about trauma or healing—it’s about the strange echo of care turned controlling, and the uncertainty of what we pass on.

Sustainability (100/250 words max): In the creation of ‘Hold?’, I prioritized a fully digital and independent production process, reducing physical resource consumption and travel. The project was developed using minimal equipment and software, all within a compact home studio environment. Beyond technical sustainability, the film explores the psychological impact of emotional control and misguided affection. By reflecting on cycles of harmful attachment through abstract imagery, the story encourages awareness of emotional boundaries and social well-being. The slow and introspective production rhythm allowed for deeper creative reflection, aligning with a mindful approach to both storytelling and making. This project reflects my belief that sustainability is not only about ecological impact, but also about creating with care—for both the world and ourselves.

Contact Details:

Name: Yunlan

Surname: Zhang

Email: i9475367@gmail.com

Technical Information:

Running Time: 01:12

Original Format: Digital 2D animation

Screening Format: Quicktime H264

Aspect Ratio: 1920x1080 - 16:9

Sound: Stereo

Final work

Hold?

Title: Hold?
Film Vimeo Link: https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/1094722795
Genre: Animation
Production Year: 2025
Country of Production: United Kindom
LogLine (25 words): A child grows up under a controlling love and learns to hold on—repeating the same cycle without knowing if it’s right or wrong.
Synopsis (50 words): A child is raised with love that slowly turns possessive. When they try to break free, the warmth becomes force. Thrown into a dark inner world, the child confronts emotional pressure, struggles to reclaim autonomy, and returns—only to find themselves repeating the same cycle they tried to escape.

Credits: 
Director: Yunlan Zhang
Animator: Yunlan Zhang
Sound: Yunlan Zhang
Edit: Yunlan Zhang

Biography (25 words max): 
Yunlan Zhang is an emerging animation artist whose works explore emotional abstraction through experimental visual language and expressive, shape-shifting character movement.
 
Artist/Director Statement (250 words max): “Hold?” is an abstract and emotional short animation exploring how love, protection, and control can blur into one another. I wanted to portray how a child’s early experience of attachment—seemingly gentle and intimate—can slowly transform into an invisible restraint, shaping how one learns to love, resist, and repeat. Through surreal metaphors and minimalistic design, I aim to visualize the inner tension of being held too tightly, and the eventual cycle of becoming someone who also holds on too hard.
The film was created in 2D digital animation, with limited color and stylized movement. Some sections incorporate mixed media and rotoscope-inspired transitions to represent psychological breaks and shifting realities. The visual language focuses on simplified forms and symbolic transformation to suggest emotion over narrative clarity.
This project aligns with my ongoing interest in experimental, emotionally driven animation that blurs the boundary between the personal and the universal. “Hold” is not just about trauma or healing—it’s about the strange echo of care turned controlling, and the uncertainty of what we pass on.
 
Sustainability (100/250 words max): In the creation of ‘Hold?’, I prioritized a fully digital and independent production process, reducing physical resource consumption and travel. The project was developed using minimal equipment and software, all within a compact home studio environment. Beyond technical sustainability, the film explores the psychological impact of emotional control and misguided affection. By reflecting on cycles of harmful attachment through abstract imagery, the story encourages awareness of emotional boundaries and social well-being. The slow and introspective production rhythm allowed for deeper creative reflection, aligning with a mindful approach to both storytelling and making. This project reflects my belief that sustainability is not only about ecological impact, but also about creating with care—for both the world and ourselves.
Contact Details: 

Name: Yunlan
Surname: Zhang
Email: i9475367@gmail.com

Technical Information:

Running Time: 01:12
Original Format: Digital 2D animation 
Screening Format: Quicktime H264
Aspect Ratio: 1920x1080 - 16:9
Sound: Stereo

Share this project

Title: Hold?Film Blog/Website Link: https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/1094722795Film Vimeo Link: https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/1094722795Trailer Vimeo Link: https://vimeo.com/manage/videos...

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Links (Markdown)

# Links

## Official page
- https://ualshowcase.arts.ac.uk/project/689494/cover

## External
- https://www.instagram.com/Z.Lan_sll
- mailto:i9475367@gmail.com
- https://forms.arts.ac.uk/client-enquiry-form/
- https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fualshowcase.arts.ac.uk%2Fproject%2F689494%2Fcover&text=Hold%3F
- https://pinterest.com/pin/create/button/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fualshowcase.arts.ac.uk%2Fproject%2F689494%2Fcover&media=https%3A%2F%2Fportfolio-tools.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2025%2F12%2F01001025%2F3.jpg&description=Hold%3F