Review
Sketch (Family, Fantasy) (2024)
Director: Seth Worley
Writer: Seth Worley
Stars: Bianca Belle, Kue Lawrence, Kalon Cox, Tony Hale
Using sketches as a creative outlet, a young girl accidentally brings her drawings to life, causing havoc throughout her hometown.
Providing his feature-film debut, Seth Worley delivers a light-hearted family hybrid that further expands on his previous short film: Darker Colours. Sketch premiered at the 2024 Toronto Film Festival and was later released to a wider audience in 2025. It has been produced by Morphan Time and distributed by Angel Studios and Wonder Project.
Living with her widowed father, Taylor (Tony Hale), Amber (Bianca Belle) is a creative child who uses a sketchbook to channel her negative emotions through her drawings, as suggested by the school therapist. When her brother, Jack (Kue Lawrence), discovers a nearby pond capable of restoring objects, he begins to experiment with it, first his recently broken favourite plate. Out of curiosity, his sister follows him there, leading to an argument in which her sketchbook falls into the pond. Retrieving it, they discover the drawings have been erased from the pages and brought to life—causing grave consequences for the town.
Rooted within the imagination of children, Worley’s script provides a composite of many genres, reminiscent of features such as Cooties, only in an entirely different, more kid-friendly tone.
As children, we hold such vivid thoughts, discovering the world through innocent eyes and believing the fictional or drawn could be real—which in this case becomes reality. Belle’s Amber expresses a darker imagination, less pure, sketching cruel depictions of nightmarish monsters and projecting her frustrations onto her classmates. Ideas of processing emotion and confronting family trauma sit at the core, with honest bonds between a father and his children keeping a comedic, family-oriented feature grounded as it explores difficult, emotional themes.
Through tone and thematic visuals, Sketch provides an accessible and engaging experience for early-teen audiences, as it may prove too intense for younger viewers. As the magical pond is discovered and the children’s 
narrative pushes the plot forward, the film remains compact for its running time, though at times this same restraint leaves it unsure, pitting youthful experience against adult burdens. Promises of these unconventional creatures brought to life from Amber’s drawings are acted upon, with each section introducing new threats and wisely dividing attention; the resulting chaos feels too narrow in scope, despite the scale it suggests. Simplicity proves double-edged with Sketch; it serves as a form of redemption as the children seek to repair the damage, gradually weighed down by the underlying emotional hardship.
Bright and colourful, while dense and tenebrous at the same time, Worley delivers an ultimately diverse film that never feels confused by identity. Where it does falter is the pacing: while sections with Hale and Carden felt suitable for emotional depth and landed the morals of this tale, sections with the drawings were too scattered and often felt interrupted by the dialogue too much to maintain momentum. A conceptually solid production that feels unable to capture its own scope fully.
Verdict
Visually stunning for a sketch.
6.5
