“The Windshield Wiper (2021) Review

“Love is a secret society down the road…”

When Writer/Director Alberto Mielgo made his directorial debut on Netflix’s Love, Death, & Robots Vol. 1 it would also mark the inception of his own animation studio, Pinkman.TV. While he would skip out on Vol. 2 of Netflix’s anthology series to work as a consultant on a little movie you may have heard of, Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse. He would also find the time on the side to work on his next concept, which turned into “The Windshield Wiper.”

For this endeavor, Mielgo partnered with character designer and producer Leo Sanchez (“Over the Moon,” the “How to Train Your Dragon” sequels). Together they would refine their own style of 3D animation, which would amount to the Oscar Winning short of 2022. You would be surprised to know that he was merely using his self-taught artistic style of animation.

After laying witness to his latest work on Netflix’s Love, Death, & Robots Vol 3. I was ecstatic to experience his Oscar winning short. But I must admit, I am disappointed. The visuals are fine, but the narrative leaves something to be desired. But I suppose that was by design, as it explores the question of what love is in modern society. Mielgo never planned on giving us an answer, rather he explored vignettes that would purposely leave us in contemplation after witnessing the different ways the abstract concept can manifest itself.

And yet, the experience feels incomplete. This concept begs deeper exploration, hopefully Mielgo can garner the funding to turn this into a full length feature film, wherein he can flesh out these vignettes and finish what he has to say.