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SYNOPSIS
Medium
2D Animation
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Length
8:00
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Aspect Ratio
2.38:1
(Letterboxed)
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Release Date
June 13th 2020
Herman, a farmer content to live out his life alone out in the woods, tends his garden day in and day out. Except for the regulars that come to his market to buy his giant carrots and radishes, he rarely gets visitors. When a witch approaches his cottage one day, asking for a special ingredient and supplying a spell, he is understandably shaken. He wakes up the next morning to the cries of a screaming baby, unaware that his life has taken an incredible turn.
More about THE MANDRAKE
Faculty Advisor
Michelle Tessier
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Additional Artists
Bruno Mendonca
Marco Elizalde
Ryen Goebel
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Sound Supervisor
Elizabeth Moore
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Sound Design
Carly Lewis
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Score
Tyler Grow
Inspired by the work of Beatrix Potter, Ernest H. Shepard, and other children’s book illustrators of the 20th century, The Mandrake relied heavily on the hands of its artists. Hand-drawn characters, backgrounds, shadows, props, and effects populate the film and fill out the small world in the woods. Special care was taken to create a bond between the titular Mandrake and Herman, drawing inspiration from the experiences of our faculty advisor as a young mother. Powered by the imaginations of many incredible women, this film went from concept to animation to post-production in the inspiring city of Savannah, Georgia.
Quincy Baltes | Director
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Growing up in the wilds of Ohio has imprinted a love of nature and wildlife that has carried into his life as a young professional now in an urban environment. Quincy’s work celebrates the nooks and crannies of the world that few look for: alleyways only one person can fit through, holes in ancient trees, or enchanted ruins of a forgotten land. With naturalistic animation and solidly stylized characters, he aims to bring this wonder and nature into the lives of those looking to escape for a while. When he doesn’t have a cup of tea in his hand, Quincy is painting what he sees outside with watercolors, and doodling the worlds he wants to bring to life in ratty sketchbooks covered in notes. Though his interests are venturing into motion media, game design, and visual development, his goal is to spark curiosity in those who have lost it.
Kate Jansen | Producer
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Kate is a producer from the bagel loving suburbs of northern New Jersey. After working on a number of SCAD collaborative projects, she is excited to be able to produce her first short film. Working on The Mandrake has been incredibly rewarding and she is honored to be able to support such a talented crew. When she is not making excessive amounts of to-do lists she loves to crochet, going on hikes, and volunteering at local hospitals.

Arden Mayer
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Raised with a passion for the visual arts since childhood, Arden began taking oil painting classes at a local college during her elementary years. After, she moved on to taking pre-college animation courses at local universities throughout high school. This then led to acceptance into the Savannah College of Art and Design, where she decided to pursue a Bachelor of Fine Arts in animation. She has a particular affinity for character design. Arden is a New York native, and she won’t let you forget it. Her favorite things to do back in her home state are sketching outside in Bryant Park and hunting down the best desserts the city has to offer.
Gaby Gonzalez
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After collecting every possible “learn to draw” book, Gaby knew her passion for art was more than just a hobby. During her senior year of high school, she had the opportunity to take AP Studio Art as an elective. This led her to the realization of wanting to make her craft a career. Once accepted into the Savanah College of Art and Design, Gaby decided to pursue the art of animation. As a Cuban- American visual development artist from Miami, FL, she is heavily inspired by her culture, heritage, and childhood. In her personal work, she enjoys exploring childlike nuances that spark imagination and nostalgia. When she doesn't have an Apple Pencil in hand, her hobbies include other activities that inspire her such as fishing, hiking, and playing softball. Gaby is thrilled and beyond blessed to be a part of The Mandrake.
Stephanie Verhelst
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Stephanie was born in Miami, FL and had an incredibly artistic childhood. At first, she believed painting was her calling, but later discovered a variety of artistic styles. In the first grade, with motivation from her teacher, she began her journey as an artist. Her practices gained her knowledge of perspective and natural atmosphere. Stephanie has been recognized for many awards throughout her school years, the most memorable being the Visual Art in the Young Arts Merit Winner of 2016. This award then led to her acceptance into the Savanah College of Art and Design, where she ventured into the world of animation. Within this media, her goal is to amaze an audience with her original ideas and designs.
Jane Morrison
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Jane Morrison was raised in New England eating raw sea creatures, and over time she discovered her fondness for art. This began with her love of film. Films have always played a major role in Jane’s life, so she combined her two passions and decided to pursue animation. Jane focused her high school career on graphic design and photography; she also freelanced for her town’s public library. Once she moved on to the Savannah College of Art and Design, Jane decided to fully focus on her dream of contributing and taking part in the world of animation. Throughout her time at SCAD she has participated in a number of student short films, travelled abroad, and learned about Japan’s amazing food. Now with her sights set for a creative future, she hopes to always be near good restaurants and to never be far from the ocean.
Jenna Fowlow
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As an Animation major focusing on Visual Development, Jenna loves to create both expansive worlds and characters for both movies, television and video games. Jenna has a bubbly personality and deeply enjoys the color pink, but her style is quite the opposite. With vibrant colors and textures, combined with a dark tone, Jenna’s style is eye-catching. Growing up in Washington State, Jenna has used her natural surroundings as inspiration for her own environments. Working on The Mandrake has been an enchanting experience for Jenna. She learns more each day with every layout she works on.

Andrea Cortez
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Andrea Cortez is a concept artist from Lima, Peru. The culture and artistic heritage from her country became the base of her artistic background, however, her passion for art and design really began when she tried her first video game. She was instantly amazed by the different scenarios and variety of characters provided by each level. Since then, she started developing her intuitive, creative, and artistic skills. Her style is mainly inspired by the natural and organic shapes from the Art Nouveau movement. This is reflected on the flow of the hair and garments from her characters, and on the decorative details from her props. Through the making of the film, Andrea provided concepts and designs, and collaborated with layouts and animation. Such opportunity has made a big impact on her, both artistically and personally. The growth experienced on this film was not only because of the great potential of the project, but also because of her talented teammates and their amazing contributions.
Maeve Shea
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Maeve had always been a creative and artistic child while growing up in Charlestown, Massachusetts. She attended art classes and took them quite seriously. Maeve never considered pursuing her hobby as a career, until her mother convinced her to go against the norm of becoming a nurse. She decided to pursue animation, despite having no experience. On Christmas Day, she was accepted into the Savannah College of Art and Design. In the fall of 2016, Maeve ventured down to Savannah where she’d spend the next 4 years nurturing her love of animation. Her senior year, she joined the film crew to create The Mandrake. Despite the challenges she and the crew have faced, she couldn't be prouder of all the hard work and accomplishments done to make it happen.
Olivia Taylor
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Olivia is a 2D animator and storyboard artist from the wonderful city of Cleveland, Ohio. Being an animation senior at the Savannah College of Art and Design, she has been exposed to a variety of artistic styles and genres, each inspiring her in unique ways. As for her personal work, Olivia loves to pull on heart strings and rattle some funny bones in her stories. During her free time, she enjoys reading, napping, and binge-watching Netflix.
Maria Migalko
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Maria is a Ukrainian-American 2D animator and storyboard artist from Wayne, New Jersey. Since the young age of five she had always enjoyed the hobby of creating art, but it wasn’t until her senior year of high school that Maria decided to pursue it as a career. This led her to study animation at the Savannah College of Art and Design. At the start of The Mandrake, Maria joined the story team and created storyboards to further visualize and improve its story. Once the sequences were finalized, she moved onto animation where she has dedicated most of her time. Maria is proud to have been a part of a group of amazing artists, and after months of hard work the outcome was a film and friends she will always cherish.