On All Levels Except Physical I Am A Wolf — Two-pane meme with person in wolf mask and 'On All Levels Except Physical, I Am A Wolf' text.

On All Levels Except Physical I Am A Wolf

2013Exploitable image / video clip / catchphraseclassic

Published March 24, 2026

Also known as: Wolf Therian Meme · I Am a Wolf

"On All Levels Except Physical, I Am a Wolf" is a meme originating from a 2013 Logo TV documentary about otherkin, in which teenager Shiro Ulv (born Matthew Schimmel) declares his wolf identity before letting out a bark while gazing over a body of water2. The clip spread across Reddit and Vine starting in 2014, spawning a two-panel exploitable format where characters declare "On all levels except physical, I am X"3. It became one of the most widely recognized memes about the otherkin subculture and identity expression online.

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Overview

The meme centers on a short clip from the Logo TV documentary *What? I Think I'm an Animal*, which profiled young people who identify as otherkin, believing their true selves are non-human animals trapped in human bodies2. In the clip, a teenager named Shiro Ulv stands outdoors and earnestly states, "On all levels except physical, I am a wolf." The camera then cuts to him looking over a body of water and letting out a small, sincere bark3.

The internet latched onto the clip for its unintentional comedy, with many labeling it "cringeworthy"2. The quote's rigid, almost philosophical structure made it perfect for remixing, and it quickly became a two-panel exploitable template. The top panel shows a character or person making the declaration "On all levels except physical, I am X," while the bottom panel shows the absurd or literal fulfillment of that claim3.

Origin & Background

Platform
Logo TV (documentary source), Reddit / Vine (viral spread)
Key People
Shiro Ulv / Matthew Schimmel, Logo TV
Date
2013

On April 23, 2013, Logo TV aired the documentary *What? I Think I'm an Animal*, which explored the lives of teenagers who believe their physical bodies don't reflect their spiritual animal identities3. One of the featured subjects was Shiro Ulv (born Matthew Schimmel), who looked into the camera and delivered the now-iconic line: "On all levels except physical, I am a wolf"2.

On May 3, 2013, the documentary was posted on the Cringe Channel Forums by a user named Ahlstrom, who specifically highlighted Ulv's quote as a standout moment3. The clip sat relatively dormant for over a year before catching fire across broader platforms.

How It Spread

The meme's life beyond niche forums began on August 20, 2014, when Redditor SpeedyCZ posted a two-panel image to r/payday. The edit placed the scene alongside the mask of Wolf, a character from the first-person shooter *Payday*, creating the first known exploitable version of the format3.

On December 14, 2014, YouTuber Alfred84 uploaded a standalone clip of Ulv's scene. The video picked up over 600,000 views within four months3. Five days later, on December 19, the video hit r/videos, where it pulled in more than 3,000 upvotes (89% upvoted) and over 1,000 comments in three months3.

By January 2015, the exploitable format had taken off. On January 18, FunnyJunk user applecooler posted a version featuring the Tunnel Snakes from *Fallout 3*, earning over 1,400 upvotes3. On January 27, FunnyJunk user britbong compiled and submitted several more two-panel variations in a post titled "On All Level Except Physical"3.

Also in 2015, the original clip was submitted to Vine, where it went viral and reached a much larger audience2. The Vine version gave the meme its biggest push, introducing it to a generation of short-form video viewers. After Vine shut down, the clip was reuploaded to YouTube multiple times to preserve it2.

How to Use This Meme

The standard format uses two panels:

1

Top panel: A character, person, or object paired with text reading "On all levels except physical, I am [X]," where X is whatever identity is being claimed.

2

Bottom panel: The subject doing something that absurdly or literally demonstrates that identity, often with a mundane or comedic twist.

Cultural Impact

The clip brought mainstream visibility to the otherkin community, though not in the way many otherkin would have preferred. Ulv (who later went by Naia Ōkami) reportedly criticized the documentary's producers for framing otherkin culture in a way that invited ridicule1. According to the Otherkin Wiki, Ōkami still identifies as a British Columbia wolf and red fox therianthrope1.

Years after the original clip went viral, Ōkami resurfaced on TikTok and revisited the meme. In one video, she returned to the exact location where the original documentary scene was filmed: "I almost didn't come out here because my fur is a mess, but this is indeed the sacred spot where the meme was created"1. She then recited the line, bark included, racking up over two million views in two days1.

When a commenter told her they were glad she didn't hate the meme, Ōkami replied, "I laugh at my past self tbh"1. The TikTok appearance showed a more self-aware relationship with the viral moment and brought the meme back into public conversation.

Fun Facts

The documentary's full title was *What? I Think I'm an Animal*, and it aired on Logo TV, a channel primarily known for LGBTQ+ programming3.

Shiro Ulv used several names over the years, including Matthew Schimmel (birth name) and Naia Ōkami12.

The first exploitable edit connected the meme to the *Payday* franchise, specifically because one of the game's playable characters is named Wolf3.

After Vine shut down in 2017, the original clip was reuploaded to YouTube by multiple users to keep it accessible2.

Ōkami's TikTok recreation of the meme hit two million views in just 48 hours1.

Frequently Asked Questions