Lullaby Theories: Same Same But Different

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The memory is imprinted on my brain. Grainy black and white forms swirled on the monitor. It was confusing. As glowing lines separated the dark abyss, abstract shapes slowly took on more recognizable form. Then something caught my eye. I craned my neck a pinch further and I saw them before she said it. Still, the confirmation was shocking. "You're going to have twins." Yup, there they were. Two little bodies bobbing around in a static world more fitting for 1980s television than for 2012 medicine. Still, the shock was palpable. I replied, "Shut up. You're joking, right!?!" She wasn't joking.

Identical twin girls filled our arms, hearts, and days roughly seven months later. And while the shock dissipated, nothing could truly prepare us for the massive eating, the diapers (one time we went through 32 diapers in a 24 hour period), the sleeplessness, the frustration, the joy and the immense gratitude and love.

As the girls turned three, our experiences with them, or maybe it was just the extra sleep, inspired us to explore science from the perspective of toddlers. Our first subject: epigenetics.

According to whatisepigenetics.com,

"Certain circumstances in life can cause genes to be silenced or expressed over time. In other words, they can be turned off (becoming dormant) or turned on (becoming active) ... What you eat, where you live, who you interact with, when you sleep, how you exercise, even aging – all of these can eventually cause chemical modifications around the genes that will turn those genes on or off over time."

Simple and yet elegant, the science behind gene modification came easily to our identical twin daughters, Lucy and Sophia, who notice daily how 'same same but different' they are from each other.

Recording discussions between the girls and ourselves, we paired their coos and their innocent interjections with gentle explanations of the theory. This is roughly a minute of us recording with the girls. It was a ton of fun and really adorable to hear their pronunciation and some of their feedback on the script. It makes our hearts swoon to listen back, and their patience is staggering given we have roughly 20 minutes of them recording with us.

On a black background, glowing lines weave and flow across the frame as we learn about Lucy and Sophia and how they understand the theory. Much like my first visions of them on the ultrasound monitor, the design is elegant, abstract, haunting and yet comforting.

Here are some initial style explorations from David Stanfield & Ricardo Nilsson:

This boardomatic uses early music exploration & initial storyboards. The girls have some cute moments here as well that ultimately had to be cut or refined for understanding, pacing, or overall length. This is partially why we have subtitles included in the final version too:

The lovely 2d design is animated as smooth as butter thanks to an amazing team. Here is some early animation love from Handel Eugene:

And this is a fun title exploration by John Long, who also handled the ending:

Meanwhile, the music carries us through in sweet lullaby fashion thanks to Matt Stanfield, an amazing composer and sound designer. Have a listen to the music by itself here. And you can see the visuals with sound design only below:

At first we didn't know this idea we were calling "Lullaby Theories" would turn into something grander. But it did. Our study of epigenetics with Lucy and Sophia is episode one of a four-part series. A deeply personal and rewarding project, Lullaby Theories might just be our favorite to date.

Descriptions and backstory for the remaining episodes to come. Until then, please enjoy these Same Same But Different loves that inspire us every day.

Creative by Coat of Arms
Writer/Director: Clara Lehmann
Voiceover: Clara Lehmann, Lucy Lacocque & Sophia Lacocque
Director/Producer: Jonathan Lacocque
Designer/Animator: David Stanfield
Designer/Animator: Handel Eugene
Designer/Animator: John Long
Designer/Animator: Ricardo Nilsson
Original Music & Sound Design: Matt Stanfield