Haunting Canadian Short ‘Return To Hairy Hill,’ Made With Experimental Production Techniques, Debuts Online

A decade in the making, Daniel Gies’ haunting Canadian short, Return to Hairy Hill, recently premiered online following a successful festival run.

Inspired by a story passed down by Gies’ grandmother, the 17-minute film tells the tale of a young girl forced to care for her three siblings after their mother mysteriously transforms into a bird and flies off. What begins as a tragedy evolves into a story of hope and resilience as each sibling learns to follow their own path.

Somber storytelling aside, what stands out about the film are the experimental techniques developed by Gies and the team at Montreal’s E.D. Films during its lengthy production process.

Return to Hairy Hill showcases a custom Photoshop-to-3d plugin, vr puppetry, and a game-engine animation export tool. By combining hand-drawn illustrations with cg tools, the film achieves a unique stop-motion aesthetic, blending traditional and digital methods into a distinctive look.

Gies, who is a co-founder of the acclaimed E.D. Films, is a self-taught artist who honed his skills through online tutorials and mentorship. Return to Hairy Hill marks his debut as an independent short film director.

Return to Hairy Hill was produced by Emily Paige. The project received financial support from SODEC Québec.

An in-depth video explaining the film’s use of the PSD to 3d tool can be viewed below. For more about the making of the film, see the E.D. Films website.