Once Upon a Rabbit wins Bronze A' Design Award

The animated short Once Upon a Rabbit by Jesseter Wang and Hannah Sun has earned a Bronze A' Design Award in the Movie, Video and Animation Design category. The recognition spotlights culturally grounded motion design inspired by the Lantern Festival and built with a hybrid 3D and 2D workflow.

Why it matters: - The Bronze A' Design Award puts Once Upon a Rabbit in an internationally reviewed field of animation and design work. - The win highlights demand for motion design that turns cultural memory into emotionally resonant visual storytelling. - The recognition may help broaden attention for hybrid animation approaches that blend digital craft with hand-drawn warmth.

What happened: - The A' Design Award named Once Upon a Rabbit a Bronze recipient in the Movie, Video and Animation Design category. - Jesseter Wang and Hannah Sun created the animated short. - The announcement was made June 29, 2026, in Como, Italy. - The project was inspired by childhood memories and subtle cultural details of the Lantern Festival.

The details: - Once Upon a Rabbit follows connected moments built around recurring rabbit and tangyuan, or rice ball, motifs. - The film moves toward a shared table and uses emotional flow and visual association instead of explicit storytelling. - The animation combines 3D and 2D production methods. - Core scenes and motion were created in Cinema 4D. - The work was composited in Adobe After Effects. - Textures, graphic details and subtle motion accents were used to create a cohesive visual language. - The creative challenge was to keep warmth and a human touch inside a digitally constructed environment. - Texture, softness and brush-like qualities were used to balance that goal. - Wang and Sun developed the concept, visual language, animation and compositing together.

Between the lines: - The award reflects how animation is increasingly valued for mood, rhythm and atmosphere, not just linear narrative. - Cultural specificity remains a strong differentiator when paired with accessible visual communication. - The project’s hand-crafted look suggests a deliberate response to the polished but sometimes emotionally distant feel of fully digital motion work.

What's next: - The award may support further exploration of hybrid animation techniques by Jesseter Wang and Hannah Sun. - The recognition could encourage more work rooted in personal memory and cultural imagery. - More information about the project is available on the award page. - A' Design Award also directs interested parties to its movie, video and animation design competition for jury details, past laureates and submissions.

The bottom line: - Once Upon a Rabbit turns a familiar festival memory into award-winning motion design, showing how cultural detail and visual restraint can carry real emotional weight.