Some stories are best told without words.
The complete version of In A Heartbeat , an animated short about a boy named Sherwin who secretly longs for the affections of Jonathan, one of his young classmates, debuted Monday on YouTube after nearly a year of teases by its creators , Beth David and Esteban Bravo, according to MTV News.
As summarized by David and Bravo, the touching film sees Sherwin’s fluttering heart literally leaping from his chest at the sight of the calm and cool Jonathan, and beginning to go after its object of desire, despite its owner’s desperate attempt to stop anyone from knowing his feelings about a person of the same sex.
“Sherwin must track down his heart before it reveals to his crush how he really feels,” MTV News summarizes.
“There’s no dialogue in the four-minute short, but that doesn’t matter. The raw emotion of Sherwin’s struggle bursts off the screen.”
Speaking to MTV News about the reception In A Heartbeat has received thus far, Ringling College of Art and Design alums Beth and Esteban were still trying to come to terms with their piece of art connecting with hearts of people all around the world, no matter who they happen to love.
“There’s fan art [already] and people are cosplaying it,” David told the music network, adding, “[fans are] sending us GIFs and edits. [of In A Heartbeat ] That’s crazy! We’re blown away, and it’s so exciting.”
‘In a Heartbeat’ is a charming tale of teenage love that has quickly gone viral. https://t.co/XmCx06z2FJ
— Entertainment Weekly (@EW) August 1, 2017
“As artists, that’s when you know you’ve made something cool, when other artists draw your art,” Bravo added.
Originally pitched as a love story between a boy and a girl, David relayed to NBC News recently that the first shaping of In A Heartbeat didn’t hold much personal resonance to herself or her co-creator, due to its unoriginal theme.
“It wasn’t until we made it about a same-gender crush that the idea really started to take form and resonate with Esteban and I,” Beth further expressed to NBC News about the short.
https://www.facebook.com/inaheartbeat2017/photos/a.1808017996082129.1073741828.1804404343110161/1810811899136072/?type=3&theater
“We realized that we had something that could potentially be really special to us,” she went on to say.
After sharing their vision online, the filmmakers were able to garner an impressive $14,000 through Kickstarter to mold an official trailer, which debuted online last December. Since then, the introductory clip has amassed more than 1 million views and ultimately went viral.
The complete edit of In A Heartbeat is, as of this posting, in the top five trends on YouTube and been viewed nearly 4 million times.
Check out the full In A Heartbeat movie with music and sound from composer Arturo Cardelús and sound designer Nick Ainsworth, respectively, below.
[Featured Image by Beth David and Esteban Bravo/ Facebook ]
