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A man sits alone in an empty room. There is a cup of coffee in front of him which he languidly reaches for and raises to his mouth. He takes a sip before placing it back down on its saucer. This short series of quotidian actions take place in a mere eight seconds and repeat... Or so it seems at least, as it is not long before this cycle is interrupted. This seemingly everyday event is the basis for the animated short '00:08' directed by Yutaro Kubo. It is, in my opinion, a reflection on absurdist philosophy, portraying, in particular, the absurdity of everyday life. ... While it may not be everyone's cup of coffee, if you have not already seen the short then I strongly recommend you do as not only will my interpretation make more sense, but if you do dislike it you'll at least witness some of the best independent animation in recent years.

Absurdism, in regards to philosophy, is a school of thought which promotes the belief in an irrational, incomprehensible and chaotic universe. There is no inherent meaning and the universe is indifferent to our suffering as well as our futile search for purpose. While that may sound bleak, absurdism, unlike nihilism offers an alternative: to 'rebel'. Albert Camus, the most notable proponent of absurdism, believed that individuals should embrace the absurdity of existence while also searching for their own meaning in the universe. It is the search which may create purpose in of itself and the construction of our own meaning which separates absurdism from its similar branches of philosophy.

Eventually, after the plodding tone and meandering camera movements of the initial eight seconds and its repetitions, the cycle begins to deviate. Adding together the effects of the looping, the music and the art create an uneasy atmosphere rife with suspense. We tune into the style and pacing of the short and it becomes an entrancing experience. With no dialogue, it relies solely on metaphors conveyed through animation. Distortion starts and the man comes to acknowledge the absurd futility of his life and is thrown into incertitude, reflected by the deformation of the cup. Superficially undeterred, he continues the cycle. However, cracks in his routine begin to show with the morphing of the cup occurring more regularly. At points it expands, contracts and even momentarily disappears — symbolising his wavering mental state. Continuing on, strange creatures appear, seeming to fabricate from the man and his mug only to dissipate into thin air shortly after. Suddenly, with the introduction of colour, he implodes in a goldish hue marking the beginning of his 'existential crisis'.

This concept of an everyday existential crisis is not uncommon in absurdist thought. Questioning the foundations of one's life can arise from anything; menial tasks, habits, chores, labour, reading, excursions, studying, nights out, and so on. In this case, it arose from the simple act of enjoying a hot beverage. Camus himself commented on the absurdity of the day-to-day activity of the average person, in his essay The Myth of Sisyphus: "Rising, streetcar, four hours in the office or the factory, meal, streetcar, four hours of work, meal, sleep, and Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday and Saturday according to the same rhythm — this path is easily followed most of the time. But one day the "why" arises and everything begins in that weariness tinged with amazement.”

While the routine described is perhaps dated in modern society, the point still stands. Especially the last sentence, holding the most pertinence to 00:08. The "why" emerged for the man; halting the rhythm of his life. We know nothing of the man's life; his job, hobbies, sorrows, disinclinations, idiosyncrasies and relationships are all a mystery to us. We cannot make assertions on his day to day life but it is clear he strayed from its path. Yet it is not the end, for everything appears in a newfound clarity, or maybe better put obscurity, "tinged with amazement". This is shown visually of course, and what proceeds can best be described as an unfettered release of the man's inner self.

Images morph into completely other images with no apparent relation to one another. His thoughts hop from one thing to another in rapid succession. Objects unfold and transform quickly yet seamlessly, resulting in a stream of consciousness that even James Joyce would be proud of. This Joycean aspect is more than subtle and extends further than just the stream of consciousness. 00:08 is technically eclectic, employing multiple technical shifts as a form of thematic development. Going from leisurely and plodding to chaotic and erratic by means of art style and animation technique. It utilises several artistic styles from surrealism to cubism, expressionism to impressionism, modernism to fauvism and so forth. In addition, the constant morphing of images usually resulting from the previous image was entirely done through hand drawn animation on paper — as goes for Kubo's whole body of work. This wide range of art movements and maddeningly tedious animation technique exhibits the absurdity of the massive amounts of ideas and conflicting worldviews in life. There is no inherent meaning to our existence and even if there was, the sheer amount of contradicting information renders an objective conclusion unattainable.

As I mentioned earlier, we are left in total darkness in regards to the man's life. We know nothing about him as an actual person. It could be argued that this enigmatic portrayal is an unfavourable element of the short as our protagonist lacks depth and/or shows no sign of ''character development'', but I disagree. Creating the man like this was done intentionally and renders him as a blank canvas for the viewer to project onto. Even his design reflects this, being inoffensively generic and minimalistic. We can see ourselves in him and empathise with his philosophical plight. Even encouraging us to analyse and reflect upon our own life and our perceived meaning of it.

Resuming where we left off, entropy has begun to take over with the images presented becoming increasingly vibrant and abstract. As the flow of animation quickens, the images blur from each frame and transition into the next. Along with this, the music, which has been relatively tame thus far begins to diverge. Transitioning from orchestral with an occasional blow of a trumpet and bang of a drum to something more avant-garde — mirroring the direction the animation has taken. It becomes increasingly minimal, with repeating chords and drones reminiscent of the works of Steve Reich and Philip Glass. The minimalist music of this latter section may at first seem at odds with the absurdist themes and notions, however, the repetitive melodic patterns which gradually change demonstrate the mental metamorphosis the man has undergone. Moreover, aesthetically, minimalist music is marked as lacking narrative and having "little sense of goal-directed motion", making it perfect for 00:08.

As pandemonium takes complete control, the music swells to a peak. Becoming evanescent, it is overpowered and gradually drowned out by the abrasive sounds of free jazz which are directly representational of the current mental state of the man. While colour and plentiful use of it becomes more present, structure is abandoned altogether with the occasional flashbacks to the man and his coffee now nowhere to be seen. This lack of cohesive structure allows for the film to not only be open to interpretation but also to be interpreted itself. The structure, or lack thereof, shows us that intrinsic meaning is most likely non-existent and therefore unreachable.

The man's startling realisation of this fact and initially of the Absurd caused this whole period of contemplation. According to Camus, there are three key choices in absurdist philosophy that an individual can make upon their realisation: either adopt a faith or deity, commit suicide or accept the absurd. The first, despite being rejected by Camus who called it "philosophical suicide", was embraced by Danish philosopher, Søren Kierkegaard. Kierkegaard was around long before Camus and, while mainly he is considered an existentialist (the first existentialist, in fact), had similar writings on the absurd. However, unlike Camus, he was religious and viewed the belief in a God (to him the Christian God) to be a "leap of faith" as one must simultaneously acknowledge the absurdity of their existence while maintaining their faith. The second option, while sounding tremendously depressing and discouraging, may be the most logical and valid option. If there is no meaning, isn't it better just to give up? No, maintained Camus saying "suicide is the rejection of freedom". And finally the last option, albeit the hardest, is to simply accept the Absurd. Obviously endorsed by Camus and most absurdists, is to live in spite of the dire knowledge of the meaninglessness of life.

Which of these options the man chooses is left intentionally ambiguous. Nevertheless, I feel we are given some indication in the last eight seconds (coincidence?). The music abruptly ceases and we are returned to the distantly familiar sight of the man with his head in one hand and coffee mug in the other. With deliberation, he lowers his cup onto its saucer which sounds an exceedingly satisfying "tink". While this ephemeral sound may seem trivial, I see it as deeply significant. The man, upon completing his catharsis, is awoken from his lassitude and now has a reformed outlook on the world and his life. It becomes like a twisted reverie resulting in a state of content for the man. He has become the 'Absurd Hero' because he is able to recognize the absurdity of the human condition, abandon all of his hope, yet find happiness in material reality, and ultimately find meaning in the struggle. As the camera moves for the final time, we peer down into the contents of his mug to see a black void. A black void full of possibility.

(Originally written for and published on Anime Amino, 12/22/17)