LJ Burnett (’21) Directs the SCAD Animation Studio’s Short Film Team
LJ Burnett (’21) is the Director for the SCAD Animation Studio‘s short film this year. It’s been a huge group effort with a team of approximately 75 SCAD students from different areas who were selected by the faculty to work on this year-long project. It’s incredibly rewarding to see it all come together!
Exciting news: the film was selected as a finalist for the Rookie Awards and has since been chosen for seven other festivals! After evaluating its performance at the festivals, the team will be able to release it, likely about a year from now. You can follow their progress on instagram.
Below we are thrilled to share the trailer of “Time Flies” with you! The team presented it at the 2024 SCAD Animation Fest in Atlanta.
About "Time Flies"
Time flies tells the story of two bugs with a one day lifespan, trying to make the most of their time before it runs out. Though they each have a different approach to living out their day, they share the immense pressure of their time limit, and they both panic that their time is running out. Of course, for a film about encroaching death, it’s far from all doom and gloom. Full of visual gags and slapstick comedy, Time Flies gave our artists loads of opportunities to have fun with their work.
Yet within the silliness of the story, there’s an earnestness about the flies’ struggle to make the most of their life. It’s not difficult for us to relate: we had a single year to make this project a reality and turn it into everything we dreamed it could be. With tight deadlines to meet, we had a lot of late nights, last minute do-overs, and difficult decisions on where we could afford to spend our time. For us over-achieving art students, the sentiment goes beyond just this project. Are we making the most of our college years? Can we make it in the industry after we graduate? Will we have our dream job by the time we’re thirty? What if we don’t?
By the end of the day, the two flies get some perspective when they’re forced to stop worrying about the future and take a moment in the present. It goes to show that we can spend our time stressing over living life to the fullest, or actually living it. Luckily, the human lifespan is generally longer than 24 hours, so we’ve got a little time to figure it out.
— LJ Burnett, Director
About LJ:
You can follow LJ directly through instagram and LinkedIn.
Hi, I’m LJ Burnett, a comic illustrator and story artist from Northern VA currently studying Sequential Art at Savannah College of Art and Design. My goal is to tell stories with dynamic visuals, emotionally-driven scenes, and a healthy dose of fun! I’m always looking to challenge myself and get involved, and I’m hoping to gain experience through internships and freelance work as I pursue my degree. I’m comfortable working solo, as well as collaborating with a group to bring a shared vision to life.
When I’m not drawing, you can find me making stickers, listening to queer fiction podcasts, playing TTRPGs, or lost in the weeds of my latest research obsession. Feel free to reach out, I’d love to connect!
While LJ was still here with us at CHS, they designed the “CHS Spearing Covid-19” design that was used for our 2020 Graduation program. We also printed stickers of that design and mailed them to alumni during quarantine. For our 2021 Graduation program, LJ designed a second version of the Narwhal, which was added to our school seal.
