Flow is an enchanting film about the journey of a cat. It is notable for a few reasons – no words are spoken as the cat makes friends, gets out of scrapes, and generally survives a (post human?) drowning world.

It is also the first Academy Award nominated movie made in Blender! With a budget of only $4 Million, it is a testament to the power of open source.

Blender spoke with the director Gints Zilbalodis:

…Blender’s mission, where a small, independent team with a limited budget is able to create a story that moves audiences worldwide, and achieve recognition with over 60 awards, including a Golden Globe for Best Animation and two Oscar nominations.

How did you learn Blender?

I learned a lot online, but it was great to have someone with more experience next to me (Konstantīns). He did a lot of rigging and was much more technical than me, so I could ask him for advice. Sometimes, I needed something specific in the animatic, like the deer moving in a spiral, and he would write a script to automate it. This was before Geometry Nodes.

Read more – Making Flow – Interview with director Gints Zilbalodis

Fast Company – How ‘Flow’ turned a $4 million budget into an animated work of art

Hollymotion – “FLOW” (2024): THE FUTURE OF 3D ANIMATION CINEMA ON BLENDER

If you are cat fan check in (or add to) our Cats of Engineering page or make a project for your cat with help from the Adafruit Learning System:

• Automatic Cat Treat Dispenser
• Nunchuck Controlled Laser Cat Toy
• HalloWing Interactive Cat Toy
• Pet Bowl Water Level Sensing
• NAU7802 Pet Food Scale
• IoT Food Scale with Azure and CircuitPython