Cloudtank In the course of its history, filmmaking has exploited a variety of tricks and constructions to mimic reality. Achieving a realistic simulation of elementary natural forces has always been of pivotal importance, and is something that presents a particular challenge. The typical objective of special effects is to imitate reality as closely as possible in order to support or supplement a narrative. Cloudtank neither wants to tell a story, nor does it even want to try and make us believe that what we are seeing is real. Using a special effect that simulates clouds, the film presents the cloud as idea. What we see allows us to enter into our own private visual world, to create our own story. Cloudtank is a short film about the emergence and dissolution of illusion. It is a film that uses clouds to call up real and imagined images out of memory, allowing us to submit to the pleasure of illusion. When do we believe what we see, and when do we want to believe what we see.