Peter Hair

As a woman with a full head of unruly curls, my relationship with hair usually involves less panic about retreating hairlines and more late night googling of “frizz control”. So I didn’t expect to relate to today’s film as much as I did. But somehow, this oddly moving follicular weirdness hit surprisingly close to home. 

Created by Arthur Studholme and Cosmo Wellings for Adult Swim, Peter Hair centres around a single, sentient strand of hair, who decides to hand in his resignation letter at work during a low-key existential crisis. In just eight minutes, the animation delivers a mix of quirky visuals, unsettling sound design and excellent voiceover work (featuring co-director Wellings), all adding to its odd charm. Inspired by Studholme’s own creeping fear of hair loss, Peter Hair might, at first glance, be mistaken for a thinly sketched vanity project, but it goes surprisingly deep. It will resonate with anyone who’s ever felt stuck, sidelined, or ready to walk away from whatever rut they’re in, whether that’s a job, a relationship, or a scalp. It’s an unexpectedly relatable tale, packed with offbeat humour from tip to root.

“The only thing that brought me comfort in that moment was to imagine that all my hairs might in fact just be little guys, with inner lives”

The story follows Peter, a kind and weirdly phallic-looking hair who, after working for 20 years on Tim’s head, decides to resign. All goes smoothly with Margaret, the HR person who reassures him he’s just one of many recent quitters, until it becomes apparent that Peter is, in fact, a front-liner, making him far more important and valuable to Tim and the hairy workforce. This complicates things for Peter – enter Mike…

The idea for Peter Hair came to Studholme during a sleepless night, when he was grappling with the unsettling thought that he might be going bald. “The only thing that brought me comfort in that moment was to imagine that all my hairs might in fact just be little guys, with inner lives, hopes and dreams,” he shared with S/W. “Maybe I had it all wrong, maybe I should be respecting their decision to leave my scalp. Who was I to stop them?”

After sharing the idea with Wellings, the duo quickly began writing, and brought in the corporate dystopia elements and the character of Mike. “We found Mike funny as a kind of expression of a collective male anger about hair loss, turning it personal, imaging a world where men could somehow address their hairs directly. Even yell at them,” Studholme explained. 

Peter, the individual strand of hair looking for meaning in his life.

Peter Hair is a very funny animation, and its deceptively simple style is central to its impact. There’s a deliberate digital flatness the film – sharp colours, rigid outlines and a total lack of texture – that add to the slightly unnerving qualities of the short. The character design is slightly grotesque too, while the loud and exaggerated sound effects – where each turn of the head or shift of the eyes is grating, like nails down a blackboard – amplify the unsettling tone. Together, these deliberately ugly elements complement the comedy beautifully and make the witty writing hit even harder. 

But beyond the surface level comedy, Peter Hair also finds its way into our hearts. I’d have a wild guess that anyone who’s stayed in an unrewarding job for longer than a week has felt the sudden urge to just walk away and see what else life might have in store. It’s this very human feeling of restlessness and the search for meaning that elevates the film beyond a fun sketch. Peter Hair sticks with you – much like a stray hair caught at the back of your throat – making it irresistibly compelling. 

Whether you’re facing hair loss trauma or navigating a life crisis of any kind, chances are you’ll recognise a little bit of yourself in Peter. Crafting a belly-achingly funny short about a single strand of hair and making it genuinely relatable is no mean feat – but Studholme and Wellings have somehow pulled it off.