Hi everyone!
I'm currently developing SPHERES, a dialogue-free animated short (around 10 minutes) set in an alien world built entirely from simple geometric shapes.
The story follows 12.66666666666666666666666666666666π, a small alien born with a crack in his shell whose job is to organize the stars into perfect mathematical patterns. His curiosity leads him to question the rigid logic of his society, and through play and imagination he unintentionally creates the constellations we know today—getting himself into trouble with a civilization obsessed with order, symmetry, and calculation.
Visually, the film uses a minimalist 2D style that simulates depth through gradients rather than actual 3D. The aesthetic blends Memphis design, stylized abstract art, soft pastel colors, and a subtle 90s CRT television grain. Every character is built exclusively from simple geometric shapes.
Since the short has no dialogue, everything is communicated through animation, timing, body language, and changes in simple geometric forms.
I'm currently working on one of the supporting characters, Monitor, a floating supervisor. It's essentially a sphere with a single eye that also functions as a display screen. Instead of having a traditional face, it expresses emotions through very simple geometric transformations and movement.
My question is about the character's readability.
-Do these expressions communicate clearly at first glance?
-Without dialogue, would you immediately understand what Monitor is feeling or trying to communicate?
-Are there any expressions that seem confusing, ambiguous, or too subtle?
The animation itself will be fairly simple, so I'm trying to make sure the character designs and poses do as much storytelling as possible.
I'd really appreciate any honest feedback. Thanks!