Illustrations made for the articles on the uDiscover website, specializing in music.

The legislative elections in India, a monumental event with 970 million eligible voters, or one human in eight, hold immense global significance. Agence France-Presse, a leading international press agency, covers this major event in text, video, photo, and videography.

India is often associated with a vibrant atmosphere, but Indian parliamentary elections are marked with black ink. Each ballot is printed, and assessors apply a dark ink mark to one of the voter’s fingers. To avoid falling into stereotypes or even into a form of orientalism, I decided to dismiss an artistic direction focused on color in favor of a minimalist graphic, with a light background and elements in black and shades of gray that remind these inks. Several elements are textured to give the aesthetic a sensitive dimension. These graphic frames are delicate and meticulous, as realized with pencil: a discreet reminder of the complex engineering necessary for these elections of exceptional scale. ​​​​​​​

The characters come to serve the dynamism of the animation. They are humanoid but unrealistic; they hop, wiggle, dance, and jump. Exaggeration is there to bring a form of humor and theatricality to the movement.

Established in 2002 in The Hague, Netherlands, ICC’s mission is to investigate and bring to trial individuals charged with the gravest crimes when the countries involved did not have the commitment or capacity to bring them to justice themselves. This short animation film for the AFP, one of the world’s largest news wire agencies, aims to clarify ICC’s general functioning and is intended for use by its various clients.

The animated format was chosen to represent abstract concepts, evoke scenes that would be unbearable otherwise, and make statistics and numbers more relatable. Given the gravity of the crimes judged by the ICC, the video used a contrasting aesthetic and a technique where frame-by-frame sequences alternate with the fluidity of keyframe animations. These artistic choices aim to juxtapose the severity of the subject matter with an element of delicacy and poetry, conveying its complexity without resorting to sensationalism.

Particular attention was put into the character design, as the subject is political and centered on an institution and people legislating war. Therefore, humanity is the primary focus. Each character performs a recognizable function—aggressors, judges, civilians—without being identifiable individuals. Symbolism and metaphor play a crucial role. They are deliberately devoid of distinct features such as face, gender, age, or ethnicity, serving as blank slates onto which audiences can project their empathy. The depicted scenes are illustrated minimally or metaphorically.