The Yellow Coat is first short film by Oddly Films.The story follows Tilly, a yellow coated bird, and Simon, a clumsy singing frog, as several chance encounters lead them to finding love and building a life together.
Credits: The Yellow Coat was written, directed, animated, and produced by Daniel Clark
With musical performances by Alex Benson, Peter and Daniel Clark, Tom Savage, and Siarhey Shylenjou
The story of this movie is inspired by the time I met this girl and it changed the rest of our lives. More importantly though, this story is about taking chances, putting yourself out there, and being true to yourself.

This film is also a reflection not just on my life, but the lives of my parents and grandparents, and witnessing what it means to spend your life with someone.
The first character I drew was Simon. I was listening to Leon Redbone on a plane and just doodling when I sketched this guitar playing bullfrog.

The main character Tilly, was originally based more on an owl. However, I wasn't loving her color palette. Then I read about White Crested Helmet Shrikes which have a yellow flower shape around their eyes which match the main characters coat. So I changed her design to match that.
The story is split into 3 acts.
Act 1 is about destiny. For Simon and Tilly its love at first sight, but should they leave things up to fate and hope it works out? Or do they take a chance and tell each other how they feel.
Act 2 is about decisions. Tilly decides she is going to stop leaving things to chance. She is going to find Simon and tell him how she feels, no matter what.
Act 3 is about growth. We go through the seasons of Simon and Tilly's life together. In the winter they date, in spring they marry, in summer they have kids, in fall their kids grow up, and in winter we watch as they grow old together. laughing all along the way.
The setting for this film is inspired by the town of St. Charles Missouri. I wanted the world to feel small, charming, and transport you to a simpler, happier place where there is magic and history in every corner. I wanted the world to feel lived in, so I also took inspiration from old European houses for the final look.
Because the world is made up of animals, it lead to the potential for a lot of gags. Because the characters are on screen for such a short amount of time, most of the jokes didn't end up making it into the final film, but it still made for a useful bit of world building.Most of 
In fact, most of the citizens you see, especially in the market scene, are actually the pets of my followers! I was having a hard time coming up with characters to fill the world with, and I also wanted to find a way to thank my followers for their support. So having people submit pictures of their pets felt like a fun way to solve both of those problems.
The end of the film is meant to be a sort of epilogue, revealing that the entire film is Tilly looking at the photos on her shelf reflecting back on her life. This was inspired by my grandmother after losing my grandfather. Growing up they I could tell they were still crazy about each other it was impossible to imagine one of them without the other. But life still goes on. Its also a bit of me projecting how I would like to be remembered. My family gathered around laughing and fondly telling stories about me, would not be a bad way to be remembered.
The entire film contains over 60 characters, 80 backgrounds, 90 scenes, and took over 13 months to create! It was a super long a difficult process, but I'm so glad I made it!