hypnotizing 3D animation enlivens states of derealisation

Panoply animates the derealisation phenomena

Creative studio Panoply takes us on a spiraling narrative, slipping backward into different states of derealisation. This hypnotizing short film is created as a visual representation of the symptoms that can derive from this mental disorder. The result is a 3D animation that confirms that even familiar and friendly environments we experience every day can turn into uncanny spaces during a derealisation episode.

What it looks like for a person suffering from this disorder, is a blurry world with dimensions that are far from real — a distorted, artificial, or even colorless world. During the video, the viewer gets into a constantly-changing chaotic action, falling backward from different settings and getting into new ones. All are portrayed in a spiraling motion, a constant drift that exhausts body and mind.all images by Panoply

floating through time and space

Panoply came up with this project after the isolation the COVID-19 pandemic has caused, which has changed so many people’s lives forever. ‘The constant cycle of negative news and the strict social distancing measures combined to create a dissociative, mass-malaise. This in turn left many feeling disconnected from their everyday lives and the people around them – including members of our own team here at Panoply,’ they explained.

The team declares that the symptoms of this mental disorder can vary between individuals, based on the person’s perception of their surrounding space. Derealisation often causes those suffering from it to describe the space they are in as unreal, distant and deformed, or falsified. According to the team, ‘derealisation’ may affect everyone at least once in their lifetime, with a low percentage of the population possibly experiencing symptoms on a more serious and sustained level.

Panoply sought to enliven the mind-bending feeling through digital tools, including tense audio and sound effects. The result sees a short journey that immerses the viewer in a derealisation episode, experiencing feelings of detachment and disconnection from the enviroment and the people around. The setting is changing from a school corridor to a metro station where instruments replace the people’s presence.

Then moving on to an office ambiance, the mind experiences a pixellated chaotic situation. Passing through an enlivened natural scene, it continues to the house, where pieces of furniture and ceiling drift and get destroyed, proving that even at home, the sufferer doesn’t feel safe. The film ends with a scene at a restaurant, where the stage starts to collapse.