Elon Musk Is In The Soup In Umami’s ‘A Hard Fork for Humanity’

Montreal, Canada-based Youtuber Justin Tomchuk, whose online nom de plume is Umami, is likely best known for creating the viral video Thomas the Thermonuclear Bomb, which has amassed more than 8.4 million views in the four years since it was posted, as well as his webseries Interface, which has also been compiled into a feature-length film.

Umami publishes about one animation per month, and his surreal style is instantly recognizable to fans of his work. While his videos need not have anything in common narratively or emotionally, there is a specific look and detachment from reality that clearly defines most of his shorts.

In late August, the Umami channel posted his latest short A Hard Fork for Humanity, described as:

Aboard the SpaceX Starship heading to Mars, a sentient packet of soup mix comes alive to school Elon Musk about its future inhabitants.

Warnings about gravity, life-sustaining resources, and the difficulties of terraforming lead to a prophesized future in which mankind living on Mars worships at the base of a giant can of soup.

As cryptic as the work itself and without breaking character, Umami posted in the video’s comments sections:

If you cherish the Soup Son deep in your heart, he’ll make you acutely aware that his true home is in your stomach.

Karolina Szablewska and Allie Brown were assistant animators on the short. Paul Cuthbert provides the voice.