Cindy Yang’s poignant animation questions the routine and mundanity of life

Cindy Yang is currently a student at California Institute of Arts, and her first year film And Then is a compelling tale about what happens when the everyday routine of the world is suddenly broken by one incident. Set in black and white, Cindy conveys a noisy monotony with workers typing away at their desks in unison, cars continually beeping in eternal traffic jams and rows of ping pong players simultaneously serving to each other.

Interspersed between this repetitive action is a lone figure trying to hang up his washing as he precariously balances on a stool on his balcony. The inevitable happens and he falls but Cindy’s pacing is wonderfully measured as the tension builds slowly throughout the film. To emphasise the magnitude and impact of the accident, all sound is removed, allowing us to just focus on her blank figures and their reactions. Cindy communicates a rock in the status quo beautifully and we’re excited to see how she develops her work while at CalArts.