What Time Is It?
Eric Giessmann, Piers Goffart | 2022 | 3m | Germany | International, Micro Short
A man travels back in time ten years to meet his younger self to give him a message. A message that is of tremendous importance for his future life.
Credits
Director & Producer
Eric Giessmann, Piers Goffart
Writer
Piers Goffart
Cast
Andrew Russell
Remy Joseph
Interview with directors Eric Giessmann & Piers Goffart
1. What was one of the most challenging moments you faced while making What Time Is It? Did this ‘setback’ change the direction of the final story?
There were many challenges—both story-wise and technically.
Technical: This was our first film using a new pipeline: creating the entire short in the VR painting/animation app Quill and then rendering it in Maya to achieve a stop-motion look. We had no idea if it would even be possible, so we had to figure it out as we went. It was also our first time adding lip-sync to characters and directing professional U.S. voice actors. All of that stretched us technically—and personally.
Story: Cracking the ending was the toughest part. Our producer, Goro Fujita, felt the original ending was unsatisfying. We first assumed we needed to “go bigger” —a time-travel paradox twist or a neat romantic ending—but none of those options felt true to the film. In the end, the solution was simpler than we expected: we tightened the edit and leaned into snappier comedic timing, and suddenly it clicked.
2. What was the biggest inspiration behind What Time Is It?
What time is it? draws from classic time-travel sci-fi like Back to the Future and Terminator. The humour is inspired by Akira Toriyama’s early work Dr. Slump, and the stop-motion feel takes cues from Aardman (e.g., Wallace & Gromit).
3. What message do you want the audience to take away from What Time Is It?
We prefer that audiences find their own takeaway. If we had to name a couple of themes, they would be making peace with regret and the importance of letting things unfold naturally.
Reviews
Written by Jack McKenzie
Flinders University Bachelor of Creative Industries (Film and Television) Student
What Time Is It? is a visually striking short that immediately draws attention with its unique animation style. Animated entirely through VR, it offers a fresh perspective on a familiar storytelling trope, which was time travel and meeting one’s younger self. The VR approach gives the film a sense of depth and immediacy, making even simple scenes feel immersive and dynamic. While the story itself leans on a well-worn premise and doesn’t quite reach the emotional heights it hints at, it remains engaging thanks to the clever execution and imaginative visuals. The voice acting is another standout element, with each actor fitting their character perfectly, adding personality that helps elevate the narrative beyond its plot. This film succeeds more as an experimental, technical achievement than as a ground-breaking story, but its still an enjoyable and memorable short that demonstrates the creative potential of VR animation.
Written by Tom Venus
Flinders University Bachelor of Creative Arts (Screen) Student
What Time Is It? has a simple and flat story, but deserves credit especially for its innovative animation style. Instead of traditional animation, the film is animated entirely in virtual reality, so it deserves credit for this technical innovation. Parts of the characters and environments have a floating, airy quality about them, and the film cleverly eschews smooth animation by having characters appear to jump through the environment.