Tough Bird

A 3D animated comedy short, Tough Bird is about Nestor, a meek office pigeon who is sick of feeling invisible at work.

When he discovers a toxic bird-influencer touting a “Tough Bird” attitude, Nestor dives beak-first into self-reinvention to wildly chaotic ends. 

Made entirely in Blender, Tough Bird examines the universal desire of belonging, identity, and toxic male ideologies. This film is for anyone who has ever felt invisible and wondered what they would do to be somebirdy.

The Seed of an Idea

The idea of Tough Bird came to me after a dinner party I had with friends in 2024. Despite being among friends, I felt ignored the entire night and barely got a word in. It was as if I were a ghost and no one could see me.

Later, I wondered: “What would happen if I started acting out just to gain everyone’s attention?” And that was how Tough Bird was born.

The Making of Tough Bird

Tough Bird is my most ambitious project yet. Prior to this, I had only animated short clips and films of up to 1 minute in Blender. However, given the space, time and resources that the thesis year affords, I thought this would be an excellent opportunity to broaden my scope of what I could accomplish. 

As a solo 3D animator, these were the timelines I had set for myself: I began developing the story in summer of 2024, discovering the character of Nestor and the themes of this film. Later in fall, I proceeded to write (and rewrite) my scripts, design my cast of characters, research rigging techniques, and draw the storyboards and 2D animatic.

I began the animation process in the spring semester of 2025 – recording voice actors, modelling the environments and props, and keyframing the scenes. 

By the end of the spring semester, I submitted an 8-minute cut of Tough Bird as my thesis final. While not in a festival-ready state, the film contained the building blocks of what was to come – a story in its full arc, voice acting, and jokes galore.

On the use of comedy in the film

When I first conceived of the idea, it felt like a no-brainer that this film would be comedic. While Tough Bird might be about an overlooked pigeon, the film is very much grounded in real emotions. 

Comedy allows me to tap into the strengths of the animated medium, creating heightened and absurd situations that can play for laughs.

On the use of motion capture

My goal during my research and development phase was to find expedited ways of rigging, especially for the face. I drew inspiration from the mouth movements of hand puppets, especially those of The Muppets, and tried to use that to inform my work. 

My mentor Will Anderson introduced me to the use of facial motion capture, a technique that he incorporates in his own animations. Using a Blender add-on called Faceit, I sculpted mouth movements that were later synced with the actor’s facial expressions. While I did not end up using this technique in the final film, the time spent on researching facial motion capture tools will come in handy for future projects.

Tech Bleeps and Bloops

It wouldn’t be an animation without TECH ISSUES!

The Cast and Crew of Tough Bird

A film is never made in isolation, and Tough Bird is no exception. Here is the list of my cast and crew who generously lent their talents to this film. 

Writer and Animator: Lisa Cheong

Nestor: Ben Eyers

Jason: Nick Pearl

Clover: Katie Hutch 

Ringo: Fennell Harris

Spud:  Michael Newman 

Music and Sound: Tim Rosko

Blender Plug-in Dev and Puppeteer: David Shiyang Liu

Mentor: Will Anderson 

Thesis Advisor: Sarah Mae Schmidt

About Me

I’m Lisa Cheong, a Singaporean comedy writer and 3D animator who makes funny and bittersweet art. I like coffee and naps, and my favorite bird is the sparrow. I currently live in Brooklyn.

Get in Touch!

Check out my website or my Instagram account to see if Tough Bird is screening in your city!