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Fleeting glances, a heart-pounding infatuation, and awkward encounters; the tell-tale sign of a cliche school crush. ‘In a Heartbeat’ is a short animated film that tells a captivating story of just that, but with a unique twist.
This animated short posted on YouTube was created by two student filmmakers named Beth and Estaban. It tells the story of Sherwin, a shy, young redhead enamored with the most popular boy in school, Jonathan. As Sherwin longingly admires Jonathan from afar, Sherwin’s traitorous heart comes to life and lands Sherwin in awkward encounters in a relentless pursuit to unite their hearts together.
This four-minute animation swept the nation overnight, racking up over 20 million views, due to its positive LGBT storyline, and gorgeous animations. The animation bears a strong resemblance to Pixar’s animation, which is impressive given its limited budget of $8,000 that was fundraised on Kickstarter. The story is also compelling as it perfectly encapsulates the gay community’s fear of being outed and mocked for their sexual orientation. It’s a huge step for LGBT media representation, amplifying the community with its accurate portrayal of love. My only critique for this film would be its notable lack of diversity among its characters as they all seem to be portrayed as white.
I would recommend ‘In a Heartbeat’ to everybody and anybody. I would also especially recommend it to fans of LGBT films, animated films, or even romance films. ‘In a Heartbeat’ is short, sweet, and at times, heart-wrenching. It is a gentle reminder to all of us that the hearts wants what it wants, no matter what you identify as.