You watch a person's entire life compress into twelve minutes of impossible movement. Piano notes that sound like they're breaking apart mirror a body that bends in ways flesh shouldn't allow, and something in that collision between sound and animation hits you before your brain can decide if it's beautiful or disturbing. Some people will call it self-indulgent; they're not wrong, but they're also missing the point, this is grief made visible.

Anima is a 2005 animated film built around dance, using movement to portray a human life. It rests on thousands of images drawn by hand on paper, which were then brought into motion with the help of computers. Music sits at the center of the experience, so it suits viewers curious about animation that pairs dance with sound.