“If Anything Happens I Love You” directed by Michael Govier and Will McCormack

“If Anything Happens I Love You” is a short animated film that premiered on Netflix in November 2020. A week after its release, it quickly jumped to No.2 on the streaming site, and it has since been nominated for a slew of cinematic awards.

The film tells the story of a married couple grieving the loss of their young daughter after a school shooting. In just under 12 minutes, and with simple, sketch-like images and no dialogue, “If Anything Happens I Love You” delivers a gorgeous and heartbreaking insight into the experience of mourning a child.

Throughout the film, the parents are deeply isolated from one another, unable to connect through the fog of grief; we see them interact only through their shadows, which move about freely and express what they can’t. When the mother happens across one of their daughter’s old shirts while doing laundry, a wave of memories — warm, joyful, and then, ultimately, devastating — brings the two parents together as they face the enormity of their loss.

Credit: Netflix

“If Anything Happens I Love You” is almost entirely in black and white, and the stark, minimal backgrounds give us the sense that the characters are being engulfed in grayness. This style beautifully portrays the isolation and haziness of depression; when the father looks across the long dinner table at his wife, we see her almost as if through a tunnel, the distance between them palpable and overpowering.

Color is used minimally but to great effect, emphasizing the importance of certain objects in the environment. A splash of blue paint on the gray garage brings to mind the vivid, unexpected mix of pain and joy that a memory can bring. In the film’s subtle but gut-wrenching climax, we see the American flag in full color while gunshots ring out from behind black-and-white doors.

While “If Anything Happens I Love You” carries an unmistakable message about gun violence, it never exhausts itself trying to deliver that message. At its heart, the film is a simple, universal story of love and loss. Govier and McCormack consulted with a number of parents who had lost children to school shootings while making the film, as well as Everytown for Gun Safety, a nonprofit that advocates against gun violence.

“So many people who have lost loved ones have reached out to us,” said directors Michael Govier and Will McCormack in an interview on RogerEbert.com. “Maybe thousands. As storytellers, it’s been the most rewarding connection of our lives.”

Actress Laura Dern came on board as an executive producer after connecting with the directors through Everytown for Gun Safety. “The way the filmmakers and the animators captured that untold story of grieving and how we live amongst memory, was so palpable,” said Dern in an interview with Variety.

“If Anything Happens I Love You” has even inspired a TikTok challenge: Viewers film themselves trying to watch without crying. However, the film is anything but tear-jerking meme material. Govier and McCormack’s short film is an honest, beautiful look at one of the most difficult experiences life can offer.