This illustration was commissioned around right after the first nationwide lockdowns took place in March of 2020. A lot of it stemmed from the whiplash of it all–how immediate the changes were, and how quickly we were forced to adapt. Zoom meetings became commonplace, our bedrooms became too familiar, the news was terrifying, the wealthy became richer, and the election campaigns grew louder; “death toll” was a phrase that appeared as frequently in newspapers as the daily crossword puzzle.

All in all, it felt gloomy; and while some of us were fortunate enough to find solace and security during that, many others pressed forward in spite of it because they really had no other choice–and most of them continue to do so today.

“Fifteen Minute Break” is meant to be a visual representation of what so many people and communities deserved during that time: one small moment of peace. It’s less than what they deserved, but for many, those small moments are all they could afford to take and collect themselves with. And after that, it’s back to work.  

With concerts, conventions, workplaces–anything that required physical interaction being shut down indefinitely, we all had to get a bit creative moving forward; FunimationCon 2020 was the first time our company had ever done a virtual convention like this, and I’ll always be proud of it because it absolutely worked despite those circumstances. The convention delivered 26 hours of free and original content for fans of anime, managed to gain 400+ million organic impressions, increased Funimation’s social footprint by over 66k; over 500 cosplayers contributing to the event through social media, and that kind of community engagement alone was surreal to witness. 

The final piece was used for the background intermissions; it was animated and served as a backdrop to some in-house lo-fi music as fans waited for the next panel to start. It felt appropriate to see it placed during an interval like that. And it felt even more appropriate given what that convention may have been for many people during that time: an escape.