I Worried: Visual Poem

motion graphics, illustration, art direction, storyboarding

Animation for “I Worried,” a poem written by Mary Oliver about the universal experience of overthinking and anxiety and how that can expand over a lifetime.


Collaborative project with
Tara Lam & Elaine Lee




Full Poem

I worried a lot. Will the garden grow, will the rivers
flow in the right direction, will the earth turn
as it was taught, and if not how shall
I correct it?

Was I right, was I wrong, will I be forgiven,
can I do better?

Will I ever be able to sing, even the sparrows
can do it and I am, well,
hopeless.

Is my eyesight fading or am I just imagining it,
am I going to get rheumatism,
lockjaw, dementia?

Finally I saw that worrying had come to nothing.
And I gave it up. And took my old body
and went out into the morning,
and sang.

IdeationThe final line, “...took my old body and went out into the morning, and sang,” closes the poem with freedom from her worries by choosing to focus on life, creation, and beauty. Intially, the poem asks if the garden will ever bloom, and in the end, it’s revealed this worry was unfounded, as it had deep, unyielding roots the entire time. We felt this poem was especially fitting given the pandemic, quarantine, and all of the self-reflection that came with it. To give the same sense of closure, we depicted this full-circle ending with a blooming flower.

Since this piece is representational, we wanted to convey each stanza abstractly to add a unique point of view while keeping it open to interpretation by using nonliteral shapes and transitions.

animation tests We experimented with 2D & 3D as well as cel animation to tie together the scenes as seamlessly as possible. Cinema 4D was used for moments that needed dynamics or the 3D camera.  


FramesOur main visual language was a flat, graphic look with key moments of 3D. Gradients and noise were important elements to add a more poetic, graceful feeling.