My Moon is a 2018 animated short film directed by Eusong Lee.
Earth and the Moon are represented as two lovers who meet with each other every night, when the moon comes out. Moon wishes to spend more time with Earth, but their relationship is complicated as Earth meets with Sun at the break of dawn each day.
The story follows how it's necessary for each one to co-exist with one another - Moon must navigate being on one end of a Love Triangle, while Earth needs the support of both Sun and Moon to keep going.
The film is currently available to watch for free on Vimeo (watch it here
).
Compare Milky Way and the Galaxy Girls, Nebula, Stellarscape, and Planetary Moe for other works centered around anthropomorphic celestial objects.
Tropes:
- Alliterative Title: My Moon.
- Betty and Veronica: Earth is in a relationship with Moon (the Betty), who Earth genuinely enjoys the company of, but his practical purpose in her life isn't as clear as Sun's, though it's later revealed she needs Moon to light the world at night. Sun (the Veronica), helps support Earth's lifeforms through his light, but their relationship comes off as a lot more spontaneous as opposed to the quiet and secure romance she has with Moon, and Sun is not as available for her when night falls.
- Bittersweet Ending: As Earth falls and plunges into darkness, Moon swoops in to save her at the last minute and brings the light back to her world. He explains his sudden disappearance was because Earth had been around with Sun and didn't think intervening would be fair for anyone involved. Earth then asks Moon if he's leaving, but he flies back to the moon after telling her he'll be around. The moon then illuminates her from afar, and while they had to part on bittersweet terms, there's a possibility they'll still be able to see each other.
- Cast of Personifications: The cast consists of Earth, Moon and Sun, who are all humanizations of the respective celestial objects.
- Dogged Nice Guy: Moon is the Low-Key Yearning variety. Earth does reciprocate his feelings, but she says herself that their relationship troubles aren't as simple as just not being able to see each other more. He still tries to support her the best he can, but he's forced to watch Earth's and Sun's relationship blossom from afar, and is afraid to interfere with their relationship because he doesn't feel it'd be fair for anyone if he were to make a move.
- Green Thumb: Played with; Earth has the ability to make plants sprout out of nowhere, but only with Sun's light. This is showcased when he holds her in his palms and a luscious garden comes to life right beneath her, and then contrasted with Moon, who attempts to care for a flower, but the flower immediately retreats back into its budding stage upon Moon touching it.
- Huge Guy, Tiny Girl: Earth is about the size of a small building, while Sun is dozens and dozens of times larger than her. He can even fit her in the palm of his hand and still have plenty of room left over.
- Love Triangle: The story is about the complicated relationship between Earth, and her beaus, Moon and Sun. She's in a relationship with Moon, but she also needs the support of Sun for Earthling life to flourish.
- Masculine, Feminine, Androgyne Trio: Moon is the masculine of the trio, Earth is feminine, while Sun is androgynous (see Non-Human Non-Binary below for more details).
- Maybe Ever After: Has Moon called off his romance with Earth so she can be with Sun, or is he just distancing himself for now, while everyone can figure out their relationship with each other? He saves her in the nick of time right after he apparently disappears, and when Earth asks Moon if he's not staying, his only response is "I'll be around", followed by moonlight shining on Earth. This implies he's still there for her and loves her, but he's obviously heartbroken by Earth's interest in Sun and it's not clear if they're regularly meeting up as they were before.
- Minimalist Cast: While there are several background characters in the form of Earthlings, the only major characters are Sun, Earth, and Moon.
- Non-Human Non-Binary: According to a post from Eusong Lee's blog, Sun is "gender-neutral". While none of the characters are humans, per se, this is most obvious with Sun (see Nonstandard Character Design below) whose appearance is the most unhuman-like, at least in comparison to Earth and Moon.
- Nonstandard Character Design: While Moon and Earth appear to have mostly human-like appearances (barring things like unusual skin colors and being giant in comparison to a regular human, of course), in contrast, Sun's size eclipses over Earth's and Moon's, and he has a Non-Human Head that resembles the actual sun.
- Scenery Porn: The film is full of gorgeous scenes of the beach, bustling cityscapes, a rainy savanna, and snowy alpines, just to name a few. There's even wallpaper-worthy shots of outer space!
- Solar and Lunar: The film focuses on Earth's juxtaposing relationships with Sun and Moon, respectively, and how both of them fulfill necessary parts in her life. Whereas Sun helps the Earthlings flourish and creates daylight, Moon's purpose is lighting the world when night falls.
