Private Project

Dazzling: A Timekeeper's Tale

Daz, a young Timekeeper, sneaks out of class to explore Tempus, ​a world full of magic. He drags his best friend, Kesi, along for the adventure ​but they find themselves in serious trouble when Daz accidentally opens ​a portal to another world beyond anything he could imagine.

  • Jessica Gray
    Director
  • Jessica Gray
    Writer
  • Archer Devon
    Key Cast
    "Daz"
  • Callie Wills
    Key Cast
    "Kesi"
  • Project Type:
    Animation, Short, Student
  • Genres:
    Fantasy, Adventure
  • Runtime:
    4 minutes 29 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    March 28, 2025
  • Production Budget:
    0 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States, United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States, United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    Yes - University of Central Florida
Director Biography - Jessica Gray

I am a third year MFA student at the University of Central Florida studying Animation and Visual Effects. Before relocating to Florida, I received a BFA in Studio Art (Drawing and Painting) from Endicott College in Beverly, MA with a double minor in Creative Writing and Music. As an artist, I combine these various means of creating art to tell stories that can both elicit giggles and a good itch of the brain.

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Director Statement

It’s in our nature to seek truths about natural phenomena. Humankind built a cosmic excel sheet to organize this intangible presence known as time. We invented sundials, hourglasses, calendars, clocks of all sizes and wearability, time zones, time limits, in an attempt to figure it out, almost with a desire to control it. Time affects every living thing without bias, it’s enormously complex and largely incomprehensible. It therefore seems like just the right conceptual space to explore and to share stories of the universality of being a human thing experiencing Time. I want this story, beginning with this brief snippet, to do some deep thinking on time, and to present those thoughts and questions in a way that doesn’t give viewers a whopping headache.