Welcome to the TAOS challenge! We need your help to make The Alchemy of a Storm animation alive!
The Alchemy of a Storm is a 5–8 minute animated short film being created for and to be celebrated in the opening ceremony of THU 2026.
The film is set in a dark, contemporary cyberpunk world with underlying fantasy elements, blending grounded modern aesthetics with a more symbolic and imaginative layer.
At its core, the project is built around open and collaborative creation, inviting the community to actively participate in shaping its final form.
This challenge was created to open a space for artists to share their vision of what the characters of The Alchemy of a Storm could be.
In the previous THU event, a short film was created through a similar collaborative journey, and the experience proved to be incredibly rewarding. Building on that experience, this contest is a way to expand the process — allowing more people to take part, contribute creatively, and help define the world and characters of this new short film.
Through this challenge, we aim to gather diverse interpretations, ideas, and visual approaches that can inform and inspire the final character designs used in the project.
This animation is being created by a community.
That means:
If you love collaboration and seeing ideas grow beyond their first version, you’re in the right place.