Zombie Boyfriend
2017 · 3m · USA
Directed by Case Jernigan
Genres: animation, horror, romance
Tones: darkly comic, surreal, whimsical
A love note to artist Case Jernigan's favorite films, art and games — cut-paper and ink zombies shamble through a desolate Brooklyn, paying handmade tribute to pop-culture influences. All artwork, animation and sound design by Jernigan.
Picked by Zoe
The scouts
A zombie rom-com made entirely by hand feels like the kind of thing that shouldn't work, which is exactly why it does—Jernigan's refusal to use a single digital shortcut turns what could've been clever nostalgia into something genuinely strange and alive.
The cut-paper aesthetic invokes a lineage from Lotte Reiniger through contemporary handmade animation practice, situating this love letter within a deliberate craft tradition that elevates genre pastiche into considered visual argument.
What makes this work isn't the zombie premise or the pop-culture references—it's Jernigan's choice to execute every frame, every sound, every movement by hand, which gives the whole thing a tactile, slightly off-kilter rhythm that a slicker pipeline could never manufacture.
Reviews
A love note to my favorite films, art and games. Cut paper and ink zombies roam a desolate Brooklyn, NY.
Brooklyn-based artist Case Jernigan pays tribute to some of his favourite pop culture influences with this fun zombie short ... we love his hand-crafted style.