Splinters of Joy

A short animated film (5') in early development. It tells the story of Lesya, a stained-glass artist, as she tries to fit the shards of her war-ravaged Ukrainian childhood into her new life in the Netherlands.

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The

Goal

The Challenge

Define a realistic scope of work that would substantially kick-start the project, but fit within the €10,000 budget. Secure the funding from Het Stimuleringsfonds Creatieve Industrie. Execute the project according to the plan.

A major phase of development required experimenting with a paint-on-glass animation technique. It's a highly unpredictable medium where no standard production pipelines or time-estimation frameworks existed.

Scope of Work

The development phase required the delivery of a mini-treatment, 3 pieces of artwork, and a 15-second paint-on-glass animation test.

The film's idea combined societal urgency and artistic pioneering by making the paint-on-glass technique reflect the fragmented and foggy traumatic experience of the protagonist Lesya.

To strengthen these aspects, I secured collaborations with a scriptwriting mentor Jantiene de Kroon (Camouflage, 2021) and painted animation mentors studio Moldybyrd (Pilar, 2020), discussing their share of budget, hours and responsibilities beforehand.

I developed a planning and budget, prepared a detailed project pitch, and successfully acquired the grant in the first round of applications.

In the following months, I closely worked with both mentoring parties to deliver the results. I acquired the necessary shooting equipment, glass sheets, lighting, and arranged short-term rent at Broedplaats BOGOTA, located conveniently in-between locations of all parties involved in the project.

All core deliverables were completed on time and within budget, culminating in a development application submitted to the Netherlands FilmFund.

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The Result

Oleksandra D.

oleksandra.hoofd@gmail.com

2026