Zombie Bread, Starving Mobs, and Capitalist Nightmares: Jay Baruchel’s Wild Cannes Cartoon

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In Alex Boya’s captivating animated short, titled “Bread Will Walk“, the zombie genre is cleverly reimagined. Instead of the undead causing fear and panic, it’s the living who are starving that pose the danger, with the once-deceased needing protection from them in this innovative production, set to make its world debut at the Cannes Film Festival.

For Jay Baruchel, who lends his voice to every character in the National Film Board of Canada’s film, Boya offers a unique take on the horror genre that opens up an expansive and necessary dialogue about global issues. As The Hollywood Reporter reports, Baruchel describes Bread Will Walk as both a bedtime tale and a platform for satire and a chilling critique of many aspects of civilization in 2025.

In the National Film Board of Canada film, Boya, Jay Baruchel voices all characters. This movie offers a fresh perspective on horror that encourages a broad conversation about global problems. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Baruchel describes Bread Will Walk as both a bedtime story and a place for satire and a disturbing reflection of various societal issues in 2025.

In simple terms, the brief yet intense scene unfolds in a single take, focusing on a caring sister named Magret, who urgently tries to rescue her zombified brother (transformed from a loaf of bread), from a ravenous crowd seeking sustenance. Baruchel described this surreal satire as a discourse on the commercialization of food and a chilling glimpse into capitalism’s darker side. Food, he noted, is a fundamental necessity for all living beings.

Boya himself was responsible for writing, directing, and animating the short film titled “Bread Will Walk“. This 11-minute production will be showcased within the Director’s Fortnight program at Cannes. Speaking with THR, he shared that his work on this short film at the NFB animation studio, a component of Canada’s publicly-funded filmmaker, provided him ample room to explore stop motion animation, 3D printing, and digital media. Over the course of four years, he took creative risks, resulting in a film that has a distinctive Kafkaesque, stream-of-consciousness aesthetic.

Boya explains that this blend of various types of media is like a shake made from numerous ingredients, resulting in what you see on screen. Instead of going digital, he chose an old-school approach with traditional 2D animation, creating approximately 4,000 hand drawings using ink and paper to finish the one-shot movie.

However, before embarking on such labor-intensive tasks, Boya opted to explore AI technologies to streamline the production process. He scrutinized various digital methods and tools available in the marketplace to ensure the successful completion of his film.

Ultimately, human artists prevailed over AI on the animation light table, with no competition whatsoever. According to Boya, it was a superior product compared to all the AI animations he had encountered online, and this was particularly true since then. Interestingly, Boya’s work was supported by Canada’s renowned NFB animation studio, ensuring that human creativity remained at the heart of the artistic process.

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Human artists outperformed AI in the animation light table, leaving no doubt about it. As reported by Boya, this superior product surpassed all the AI animations he had seen online since then. Notably, Boya’s work was backed by Canada’s Oscar-winning NFB animation studio, emphasizing that human creativity played a crucial role in the artistic process.

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In terms of the animation light table, human artists easily bested AI. According to Boya, his experience showed that the product he created was far superior to all the AI animations he had seen online since then. Significantly, Boya’s work was supported by Canada’s prestigious NFB animation studio, keeping real people at the forefront of the artistic process.

In simpler terms, Boya clarifies that at the NFB, the primary concern isn’t just about the end result but rather the process itself. He stresses that his goal wasn’t to replace people, but instead to ensure the quality of the product. Moreover, he highlights their emphasis on innovation and exploration, which is aimed at developing new animation tools and techniques that could be beneficial not only within the industry but also for future generations to use.

In speaking about his work, Boya notes that there’s much experimentation and creative breakthroughs born out of such developmental risks. He further highlights that these discoveries don’t just benefit the film, but also extend to various other parties. Regarding the project ‘Bread Will Walk’, Boya explains that it subverts the traditional zombie genre by presenting a humorous horde of starving individuals chasing two youths. The objective here is not merely to entertain, but to spark thought among viewers about the profound implications of hunger in a society where wealth disparity is growing.

Boya clarifies that everyone transforms when they’re hungry. The apprehensions portrayed in the movie aren’t just about being the one who’s famished, but rather, it’s about being the one who fears the hungry. For Baruchel, what attracted him to this project was the opportunity to work under Boya’s directorial vision and voice, as well as the movie’s broader themes revolving around global catastrophe.

He finds their collaboration exceptional for 2025, as it’s quite uncommon to have such a near-unified artistic vision coming from a single exceptionally skilled artist like Boya in the realm of animation.

What truly matters to me in conversations with directors, watching movies, listening to music, or viewing art, is the voice behind it all. Boya’s voice stands out as exceptionally unique and authentic,” Baruchel remarked.

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2025-05-13 10:57