HOP THE HOPEFUL HARE

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We created animation for this charming new musical play for Grand Ambition, written and directed by Michelle McTernanwith music by Steve Balsamo, Michelle McTernan and John Quirk. A heart-warming and endearing story of loss, healing and hope, and the powerful magic that hides in our ordinary everyday lives.

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It’s springtime, and Grandpa busies himself in his garden – once tended with his wife and his now estranged son. Life grows in every corner – rows of potatoes, carrots, and cabbages, a cherished rose bush, and an enchanting tree. When crops start to disappear overnight, Grandpa is determined to catch the culprit. It is not the birds, slugs or snails, not a fox, or a bear, but the mischievous HOP, a tiny hare with a huge heart and an even bigger appetite!

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Through music, puppetry, and animation, Grandpa is guided by HOP’s gentle mischief. He slowly learns that the garden he protects can be a home to others, and that hope and happiness can come in the most unexpected way.

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We created three animated memories to tell the stories of the past through back-projected animated shadow puppetry. We also created animated interludes and backdrops to set scenes of the changing of days and years.