"OCULI"  is an animated short film created by Hayden Luckett. Based upon a concept first conceived in 2020, the film was completed in 2023 as Luckett's senior thesis film.

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The story follows a young girl named Hotai who travels from world to world through door-like portals in search of a way home, all while dealing with a unique quirk where she sees creatures that don't quite exist.

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"OCULI" premiered at Lipscomb University's "5-Minute Film Festival" where it was nominated for "Best Animated Short Film" and tied for 2nd place in the "Best Screenplay — Animation" category.

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Luckett's personal comments on the film and its production:

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“ As of writing, it's been a little over one year since "OCULI" premiered. This was the first short film I ever produced and I'm still quite proud of it, but it definitely served as a huge learning experience for me. Most of the film was a solo effort, save for some last minute help from friends and peers who graciously offered their aid.

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Due to this solo approach and the deadline I was faced with, the film did not quite find itself in the completed state I had imagined. Honestly, sometimes I even hesitate to call it a "film" as it's more of a fully colored animatic if anything. Though, the definition of the word "film" is still pretty loose, isn't it?

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In spite of all the challenges, I still had a blast working on it. The concept is one that's been swirling in my head for a few years now, and I had already created a couple other storyboards in my attempts to try and hash out my vision for the story. They were all made with a 5-minute time limit in mind, as that was the primary rule of the film festival that I submitted to. After drafting out three completely different storyboards, I quickly realized the story I wanted to tell was much grander than something that could be told in 5 minutes. Nevertheless, I tried anyway.

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Each incarnation of the story differed from the previous, to the point now that the original concept is far removed from where it is now. Even the film itself is somewhat outdated, with the story having greatly evolved and expanded just in the past year. I've been speaking about it in a vague manner this whole time, but it's because I've been continuing to develop the concept and I believe it's finally nearing its true state.

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I'm not sure when or how I will be able to deliver the full story of "OCULI"—if it would even still be called that in the future. I have dreams of telling it in the form of a video game, or perhaps I'll be able to properly make the film as I had originally envisioned. These are options I am investigating, but either way they are definitely far off into the future.

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Ultimately, I'm proud of the work I did for this film and I'm grateful for the lessons that working on it taught me. It's far from perfect, but the feeling of seeing my work come to life on a giant screen in front of a whole crowd is truly unmatched. I'm thankful for everyone who supported me and for those who pitched in during the final hour to help pull it together.

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I hope to share more on the future of the series one day. Thank you for enjoying "OCULI"!”

 

— Hayden Luckett, 2024