TRT: 15:05. By C. Ryder Cooley and Bart Woodstrup, 2011.

Invoking visions of human-animal relations, secret bee societies and haunted circus scenes, this enchanted fable tells the story of a girl who must learn to fly in order to escape from social distress, environmental destruction and the threat of impending war. When she renounces her humanity to become an antlered deer creature, she finally achieves flying powers.

Animalia is an ongoing series of lyrical performances created by Ryder Cooley. It was translated from performance to illustration and hand drawn on found book pages during a residency at the MacDowell Colony in 2009. This illustrated book has since been animated into a short film with collaborator/animator Bart Woodstrup. For more information about the performance, illustrated book and Animalia-related projects, please visit carolynrydercooley.org