‘An Apparition of Darkness’ is a short animation that explores the fear women experience when walking alone at night. It draws inspiration from the Korean folklore creature ‘Eoduksini,’ which symbolises darkness. I wanted to depict women’s lives and struggles, while also representing my cultural identity as Korean through this project.
The animation aims to convey the story of women and their experiences while raising awareness about female safety. To do this, I used ‘Eoduksini’ to symbolise fear. The creature grows larger the more you stare at it, representing the human fear of darkness. It serves as a caution against the fundamental terror associated with darkness, highlighting that the essence of ‘Eoduksini’ is merely an illusion created by the human mind. I have connected these characteristics of ‘Eoduksini’ to the psychological fear women feel when walking alone at night, crafting a short story based on this theme.
This animation project builds on my ongoing visual language, which involves creating characters and alternative worlds by layering my drawings over real-life images (pictures and footage). For this project, I added an extra layer of fabric props to set the film’s atmosphere and incorporate elements of traditional Korean painting.
‘An Apparition of Darkness’ is a short animation film that depicts the fear of women walking alone at night, drawing inspiration from the Korean folklore creature ‘Eoduksini,’ symbolising darkness and fear. The film aims to raise awareness about female safety.