[INTERVIEW] ‘Hugs’ Animator, Nicolas Fong (Sundance Animator Spotlight Series 2026 #6)

Today we finish our annual tradition of getting to know the animators at the Sundance Film Festival. Our next animator to profile is Nicolas Fong who has a new short at the festival, Hugs. 

How did you get started in animation? 

NF: I studied in the animation school in Brussels, and I worked for animation feature film, for short film and TV show for almost 20 years. And I direct several music video and short film as well, and commissioned film. So I work for other people and I work for my own project as well. I do both at the same time. And this film, Hugs, it’s my second short film after… The first one was made seven years ago. It was called Yin.

After I finished this first short film, I decided to do another one, but without money. So I decided to do a film, it was self-produced. I started six years ago, just animate a hug. After I finished animating one hug, I do another hug. I really liked to animate a hug, and then another one. And I decided to continue like this, to animate several people hugging. So without script, without storyboard. In the same time, I was working as an animator for different projects. I was doing my short film Hugs during my spare time, during the weekend or during the evening. This is why I have no time limit. And it took 6 years to finish this short film. Because when I had all those shots with hugs, I didn’t know what to do with it.

I like that you showed different kinds of hugs

NF: Yeah, I tried to do as many hugs as I can. But it’s not a full list of all the different hugs can exist. It’s something I can experiment myself during my life as a hugger. I don’t know. Because I really like to have a cuddle. It’s really nice to do that.

How did you decide on the color palette that you’re going to use?

NF: First of all, I animate in black and white. And it was a really long process to define what kind of color I will choose. Because like I said, I animate everything without script and without storyboard and without art direction. So it was not really clever to work in this way because I have all this animation and I decide after what it will look like. So I have maybe five or six different way to finish my film.

So I tried in black and white. I tried to print all those frames to do it with paint. And after a while, I decide to do the color. Most of the time it’s red, it’s green, it’s blue like this. Because if it was in black and white, all the characters will be white. And I didn’t want my characters were only white.

How did you come up with the music? Because that’s a big character in the short.

NF: I worked with a musician for years now. Each time I do a project, I call him and say, hey, do what you can. Because I really like his music. Most of the time he does his music in a crafty way. He play a lot of different instruments. He can do electronic stuff, but most of the time he records it with an old piano, an old cello. So he’s very talented.

You must have been so excited when you found out you got into Sundance?

NF: I’m really excited, but I can say I’m a bit afraid because you can hear my English is not that good and I will be around full of people talking English and I will be… Oof!

You’ll do great. It’ll be great. Congrats!

We’d love to thank Nicolas for taking the time to talk with us. Make sure to listen to the full interview and if you are attended the festival I hope you checked out Hugs as part of the Animated Short Film Program.