Chantal Rousseau

Darcy Tara McDiarmid

Jamal Ademola

Miranda Javid

Nadine Chantal Leclerc

There is an app on my phone called Pixel Thoughts. When you open it, a piano tune begins to play while a bright translucent circle appears on the screen with a prompt above it: Put a stressful thought in the star. Beneath the star, a blue cursor blinks and the box asks: What’s bothering you? Once you type your worry into the box, the text appears in the orb. Then the worry begins to get physically smaller, eventually blending with the star speckled background. As it shrinks, the prompts above changes: Relax and watch your thoughtTake a deep breath in… and breathe out&nbsp;Everything is okayYour life is okayLife is a much grander thing than this thoughtThe universe is over 93 million lightyears in distanceOur galaxy is small&nbsp;Our sun is tinyOur earth is miniscule&nbsp;Cities are insignificantYou are microscopicThis thought… does not matter&nbsp;And can easily disappear&nbsp;And life will go on… Once the thought has diminished to become one of the many stars in a quickly moving sky, a pop up appears that reads: Hope you are feeling a little less stressed and a little more connected.&nbsp; I am critical of dismissive language and acknowledge that this app is by no means a solution. It does not address the overarching web of human systems created to enforce and uphold structures of dominance that are so often the cause of anxiety. What it does, however, is remind me that beyond my anxious thought is a city, a planet, a sun, a galaxy, and an entire universe. Rehearsing this play in perspective and extreme zooming out grounds me where I stand. As that big star shrinks and joins all the others, I remember that I am not alone in what I feel, that there is strength and purpose in our connection on this miniscule planet.&nbsp; Similarly, the animated films by Miranda Javid, Jamal Ademola, Darcy Tara McDiarmid and Chantal Rousseau, and Nadine Le Clerc, in this program remind us that this inhabited world exists despite those who inhabit it, not in spite of us. Together, this selection of short films take us on a journey through a plentitude of experiences, individual and collective, human and more-that-human, as the artists and filmmakers share joyous, complex stories marked by their own ways of being in and with the world.&nbsp; Tune into Images Festival’s official selection of animated films entitled A Little More Connected, on Saturday morning from 7am until noon at Imagesfestival.com. This program is available to early risers and deep sleepers alike. It is child friendly and, as always, parental discretion is advised.