I started by building a forest scene and wanted to center it around a Christmas tree.
At some point, the idea shifted to a Christmas tree that had been cut down, leaving only a stump behind.
I tried to make the shape of the missing tree appear using the surrounding forest, but couldn’t get it to work visually.
Instead, I added a mountain and placed a small cabin with a light on its peak, using the light as a distant stand-in for a star.
Later, the idea changed again — the light moved from the mountain and became a star hanging from a branch in the foreground.
Adding the animals was the final step, placing them as quiet witnesses to a Christmas tree that is no longer there.