Noggin

7 MINUTES

After a life-altering diagnosis, Case crafts a loving message to his future self

‘Come on now – dig around in that noggin and save everything that’s worth saving.’

Facing the daunting realities of a multiple sclerosis (MS) diagnosis, Case Jernigan, a US artist based in Italy, turned to art to make sense of his new reality, including the mobility and cognitive difficulties to come. For Jernigan, creativity became a way to process his fear and uncertainty. His heartfelt hybrid animation and live-action short Noggin is the result.

Far more than a record of doctor visits, shifting symptoms and inevitable lows, the film is, above all, a testament to love. Layer by layer, Jernigan pieces together drawings, spilled ink, paper cutouts, puppets and personal footage – including video messages from loved ones – to help his future self navigate what he calls ‘the river of forgetfulness’. Ultimately, this collection of his life’s greatest hits, both big and small, forms an exuberant tribute to the people who fill his days, the act of creating, and life in all its fleeting, fragile beauty.

Director: Case Jernigan

Explore more

Photo of a person walking on an empty city street at sunrise, casting a long shadow amidst tall buildings.

Jaywalking man

Even before I got hit, I’d come to find unexpected bliss in waiting at street corners

by Lawrence Everett Forbes

Photo of a man in profile with glasses, eyes closed, head tilted back under a structure with a grid-like roof.

How slow breathing calms down your brain

Researchers studied the effect of slow breathing on people’s brain activity while they experienced anticipatory anxiety

by Christian Jarrett

Illustration of a room with a plant on a table, soft coloured walls and a window with curtains.
POETRY

‘You are me; I am you’ – a trans poet’s evocative message to her former self

Video by On Being

Abstract illustration of a head with an open mind in blue and gold tones with blurred background.

The (surprisingly new) science of aphantasia – the inability to ‘see’ mental imagery

Video by Quanta Magazine

A group of people outdoors looking serious, with one woman wiping her eyes in the centre. Trees and buildings in background.

The hidden calculations that determine whether you will cry

We think of tears as an overflow of emotion, but an evolutionary lens shows they’re a rational form of social signalling

by Daniel Sznycer & Debra Lieberman

A man with a beard sitting on a sofa with two young children, one resting on his head, in a room with bookshelves.

Being a dad has made my brain younger

As the father of twins, I could hardly feel more frazzled. But my brain age might paint a different, more youthful, picture

by Christian Jarrett

Black and white photo of a man and woman sitting under an umbrella; the woman leans on the man’s shoulder.

True contact is found in silence

For Emil Cioran, ‘true contact’ with another is the deep intimacy that emerges through mute togetherness

by Sam Dresser

Illustration of a simple cartoon figure with a bob haircut wearing a green crop top and red skirt on a light background.

Growing pains, bras, size, sex – a group of women get candid about all things boobs

A film by Subarna Dash and Vidushi Gupta