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Hysterico

This film was made in Austin, TX

Hysterico is a hand-drawn animation short and music video by Amitai Plasse (Gonzo Viz Productions). The Song "Hysterico" was written by Chase Frank (Lone Twin Publishing) and performed by The Harms.

Austin animation hero Amitai Plasse brings The Harms' song, "Hysterico", to life with a modern take on an old fable, "The Scorpion and the Frog". Our friendly frog, Pickles, likes to have a good time, but doesn't always think about what he's getting himself into. A Jacuzzi? Nope, he's just the protein for tonight's soup. A swarm of delicious flies? Uh uh, he's hit by a truck (in true 8-bit style) before he can feast. As Pickles chills on his lily pad the scorpion appears. True to the Austin way, they become fast friends. Now she's ready to tag along to the Austin music festival, she just needs a ride across Ladybird Lake. When the scorpion stings Pickles, killing him with her poison before they reach their destination, Pickles asks: "Why?", but the scorpion sinks to her demise before we can find out. But as revealed in the original fable, "it's in her nature".

Pickles may be down, but not out, there's always the chance of a new beginning. But who is that at the helm when he reincarnates as The Harms' keyboardist in his own theme song?

Note on the origins of the fable referenced: The Scorpion and the Frog was first found in Lev Nitoburg's 1933 novel, The German Quarter. The fable is about a scorpion who wants to get across a river. The scorpion sees a frog and asks the frog if he can carry him across. The frog is worried about this because he doesn't want to be stung. Halfway across the river the scorpion stings the frog ensuring the demise of them both. When the frog asks: "Why!?", the scorpion replies "It's in my nature".

(this song, produced by Stuart Sikes, was originally self-released, March 30, 2021, Lone Twin Publishing).

Music & lyrics written by Chase Frank (ASCAP)
© Chase Frank (2018) / Lone Twin Publishing
performed by The Harms recorded by Stuart Sikes, Austin, TX
Support provided by the City of Austin "Austin Live Music Fund".

  • Amitai Plasse
    Director
    Apollo 10 1/2, Water Wars, The Finkel Files
  • Amitai Plasse
    Writer
  • Chase Frank
    Writer
    n/a
  • Chase Frank
    Producer
  • Amitai Plasse
    Producer
  • Pickles Von Dedfraug
    Key Cast
    "Pickles"
  • Chase Lynn Frank
    Band
    n/a
  • Rachel Allred
    Band
    n/a
  • Lauren "Ren" Lewis
    Band
    n/a
  • Amitai Plasse
    Animation
    Apollo 10 1/2, Water Wars, The Finkel Files
  • Project Type:
    Animation, Music Video, Short
  • Runtime:
    3 minutes 22 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    January 10, 2025
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    N/A - hand drawn animation
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Goin' Gonzo Art Opening
    Austin, TX
    United States
    February 28, 2025
    North American Premier
  • Austin Shorts Fest
    Austin
    United States
    August 16, 2025
    Official Selection
  • Austin Micro Short Fest
    Austin
    March 28, 2026
    2nd place for best Best Animated Comedy & Music Video
Director Biography - Amitai Plasse

Amitai (ahh-mee-tie) Plasse, aka Ami – is a visual and motion artist born and raised in New York City. A 1995 graduate of Parsons School of Design with a BFA in Illustration, he landed in Austin in 2011.

A lifetime urban dweller, his creative influences have drawn heavily from his surroundings - from the numerous subcultures of music and art to the physical landscape of the city and its inhabitants. Always the prolific sketcher, he is rarely without a sketchbook (or now iPad) – chronicling characters, scenarios and impressions as he navigates his world. A lover of motion and interactivity, he is always pursuing alternate ways to bring his work to life.

In New York, he spent years capturing the infinite array of interesting characters and interactions that he encountered on his daily commute on the subway. In 2012, Nauset Press published AmiUnderground, Drawings from the NYC Subways: 2007-2011 - a selection of subway drawings from a body of nearly 2000.

In Austin, Ami found inspiration particularly in the energy of the music scene, capturing the artists and fans he encountered at clubs and festivals through his own unique lens. His rapid approach to drawing subjects in perpetual motion led to developing a new approach to animation, compositing quick, expressive drawings, often cut to wild captured audio, into short, animated clips.

In 2017, Ami left his Creative Director position to start Gonzo Viz, a studio focusing on live art, animation, illustration, group art projects and creative workshops. In addition to his freelance projects, he spent 9 months as animator on the 2021 Richard Linklater-directed animated feature, Apollo 10 ½.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

In Hysterico, I employed a lovable yet flawed frog (aka Pickles), a creature common to fables and pop culture references, to help tell a sad, familiar, Rock N' Roll story. Both the Frog-in-a-Pot metaphor, and the fable of the Frog and the Scorpion, have been top of mind, especially over the last few years, so they seemed an apt way to tell this familiar rock n' roll story, with a touch of Gen X 8-bit nostalgia to round it out.
Despite the unfortunate fate that Pickles meets, several times in the video, I am an optimistic person and wanted to celebrate Pickles' resilience in the face of adversity.
No matter how impulses and unfortunate choices lead Pickles to disaster, that Frog reincarnates itself and is always down to Rock 'N Roll another day. Stylistically, I wanted to be able to tell the story as a slightly psychedelic, whimsical 2d animated cartoon, but also wanted to bring some live footage inspiration, in the form of some Rotoscope sequences, to pay homage to the Austin Music Scene which has given me so much.