The film is a triumph from American animation auteur Plimpton – melancholically waltzing in the arms of bittersweet humour in search of evidence of love and infidelity. The hand-drawn film pushes beyond the boundaries of reality and depicts physical closeness with an intensity that leaves no room for dialogue – the soundtrack consists of music, moans, panting and screaming.

In a fateful encounter, Jake and Ella meet, becoming the most loving couple in the long history of romance. But when the cunning “other” woman drives a wedge of jealousy into their perfect world, insecurity and resentment begin to foreshadow their fate. With the help of a disgraced magician and his forbidden “soul machine”, Ella takes on the forms of Jake’s many lovers, desperately fighting against what their future has in store.

A longtime creative collaborator of Latvian animation director Signe Baumane, Plimpton transforms this love story into a surreal journey of the body and the imagination. The filmmaker’s sixth feature is one of the most striking testaments to his fascination with the possibilities of hand-drawn animation. Every frame is drawn in pencil, then digitally coloured to create a watercolour-like, vibrant image. Plimpton’s signature style unfolds in all its splendour: bodies stretch, deform and transform, emotions become physical and jealousy becomes tangible and visceral. By sidestepping the rulebooks of the major animation studios, the film is a testament to what can be achieved if you’re willing to work outside the “system”. At the Annecy International Animation Film Festival, the film received a Jury Award and was nominated for the festival’s top prize, the Cristal Award, as well as earning three Annie Awards nominations.