The Thing That Happened is a mixed-media digital science fiction short that blends documentary-style interviews with surreal animation to create a playful yet unsettling exploration of memory and time. Directed by Mark McKeown and produced during the COVID-19 lockdown, the film captures an offbeat interview with Terry Blender, frontman of the cult punk band Snide Effects, and the Professor, played by Jonny Porter.
The film bends the lines between reality and fiction as Terry recalls a strange, possibly fabricated event when “time went wonky.” What begins as a nostalgic reflection on the anarchic early days of punk spirals into a chaotic tale involving time loops, mobile phones, internet satellites, and the enigmatic Time Wave Collider. Terry’s story invites the audience to question whether his story is a metaphorical expression of cultural disillusionment or something far stranger.
Kinetic animations accompany Terry’s narration, giving form to his fractured memories and blurring the boundary between his inner world and the film’s visual reality. A pulsing soundtrack, blending punk and industrial music composed by Neil Burns, heightens the film’s frenetic energy, amplifying its disorienting journey through time and consciousness.
The Thing That Happened explores how subcultures like punk not only challenge societal norms but also mythologise themselves, distorting their own histories. The film reflects on nostalgia, the unreliability of memory, and the strange comfort of embracing chaos in uncertain times.