97M views; a 22-second masterpiece -- How it Worked

A tear-jerking 22-second masterpiece that did over 97M organic views.

Beat 1 = A simple animation, connects with our reality "scrolling on the phone in the dark", hints that it's from the bee's perspective with "bee-like fingers", visual hierarchy of information leads us seamlessly down the page, the 2 years is highlight with three flashing red circles, very simple UX directing us to most important information

Beat 2 = scrolled to next slide, same thing, easier this time to read as we know what to expect. We're lead to notice the discrepancy between 2 years and 30 days. We're immediately shown a difference. This information, in and of itself, because it's about Bees (which have a cultural association of "little heroes needing to be saved" is a tidbit of worthwhile information, a simply stated fact, but given to us in the context of an animated short, and inside an existing story. Why is the bee reading this? What will their reaction be?

Beat 3 = Reaction. Reveals the queen bee reading the information, close-up, we see this personified bee expressing sadness and grief. The immediate connections become clear; she has read and is sad because of the discrepancy of life span. Using body language to clearly, simply, and effectively communicate this point. Worked well because we all clearly understood it. Visual images and character giving us a clear line of emotion.

Beat 3.5 = Reveals "worker" bee, personified as the excited, happy, optimistic child. We immediately draw the associations of the struggling single mother, the hardworking parent, doing everything in their power to provide for their child (even though this doesn't EXACTLY line up with reality, it's the frame of the emotion being used for the purpose of the story). This jumpstarts our emotional associations and activates mirror neurons as our brains "connect the dots" of what this fictional bee mother is feeling/experiencing. The contrast of emotion, from sadness of the mother to happiness of the bee dramatizes the story. The stakes are time and death, readily recognized by all humans.

Beat 4 = Queen bee, the loving mother, grabs and pulls the baby, worker bee, close. Without words, we see the action/reaction, the line of emotion the queen bee is expericing. We know that she knows (mirror neurons and empathy generated by previous information) that she's feeling the limited time she'll have with her child. The emotional insight is transferred to us, "we need to make every second count with our loved ones". This is the core message of the story, and the climactic, emotional peak.

Beat 5 = The Queen bee's experience went from sadness to slightly less sad as she embraces her child, the worker bee however, goes from giddy optimism to facing reality head on. A slight lowering of the eyes shows that the worker bee also knows what the queen bee knows, also FEELS the clock of their life ticking down. This would be considered an "up/down" ending by Robert McKee, which means a both happy AND sad at the same time; a textbook Irony ending. These two up/down values clashing at as the scene ends fills us with conflicting emotions and heightens our emotional engagement.

Music:

The music has tension, anticipation, and a general tone of discontent, "I just hope she don't wanna leave me" helps elevate the emotion of the story. Hook of the song hits as the story emotion climaxes (beat 4). Drum track is very pop-alternative, connecting with younger audience, but also steadily driving the story.

Takeaways:

Can you use simple, clear visual hierarchy to give viewers KEY, relevant information that pushes the story forward?
Do your characters represent REAL-WORLD experiences and symbols of association "greater than ourselves", can you connect with real-world symbols and causes.
Are the stakes of your story made clear, and inherent to the core desires of the character?
Can you immediately connect (within the first second or two) with the lived experience of the viewer?
Does your music match you clear direction for your story?

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