Saturday 22 February 2014

Batman versus The Terminator

30 years have passed since Bruce Wayne survived Skynet's nuclear blasts in August of '97. Iron demons now roam the planet, and without the requirement to defend the innocent against crime and injustice, Wayne has sought refuge in the bomb shelter that saved his life; the Batcave.

Having scavenged the wasteland for resources, he discovers the radio of a dead soldier. There is static over a frequency. Flesh and blood is rising up to the west. With The Stinger; a riot control vehicular unit built before the apocalypse along with a refitted bomb blast vest, Batman makes his way across what remains of the United States to join forces with the man determined to neutralize the electronic menace - John Connor.





That's pretty much it. It was fun while it lasted.

Apologies for the Batman voice. I'm no Kevin Conroy and I'm no professional voice actor. Hell, I'm no professional anything. Now for my next endeavour - Burger King fry cook.

65 comments:

  1. Amazing. One of the best videos I've ever seen.

    That moment when the Terminator showed was so intense..

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  2. I really love all of it, good job. Hopefully some higher ups at DC see the potential here.

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  3. I've watched it several times.
    It's really great how it hits the perfect spot for the meeting of those franchises, style and theme wise. Plus your direction is very dynamic, tense and suspenseful.
    Congratulations.

    Xurxo

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  4. If ever there was a match up, this is it! Life complete...game over

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  5. I write a pop culture site called Blurppy (dot) com and we are doing an article on your film tomorrow, Feb. 26. I know fans will ask us and have asked you...."will there be follow up videos?" My fingers are crossed that you have SEVERAL lined up to finish this story. Congrats on a job exceedingly well done.

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  6. Sadly there will be no follow up videos.

    My intention for this animation was to teach myself how to animate. I knew absolutely nothing prior with regards to animating. So while I had the "plot" in my head, in terms of actually making it the entire thing was improvised. I get that people know it took me nearly four years to make, but I don't think people reeeally get that. For instance, the scene where the soldier walks up to the wall then gets his head blown off; that took me 6-7 months to do during 2011.

    To work on a single project for 6-7 months for either a single person or a group is long enough to take a break from and celebrate. For me, however, it was a sign that not only is this thing going to nearly kill me but that it also won't be over for other 2 and a half years.

    I get that because the video is just under five minutes, and therefore just zips by, it's easy to think I worked on this over the weekend. For everybody else it's an entertaining video but for me it's a visual diary of my life for the past four years.

    What holds me back from going anywhere further is that I'm human. I suffered mentally and physically and I'm completely discouraged to follow my dreams. So while I'm flattered and overwhelmed by the response, I think I'm just going to ride my 15 minutes of fame and try something else with my life.

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    1. Awesome work though man! it looks terrific and totally blew me away!
      Sorry to hear you suffered so much through it, you have a very keen eye and a brilliant attention to detail. Well done dude, hopefully something more will come off the back of it regardless of it being animation or not, your a very talented guy!

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    2. reading your blog you stated that initially you wanted to do a webcomic, why not continue the story in that vein?

      you could make the story primarily a webcomic and maybe if you got a better team together you could produce another animated short?

      either way, whether you are working this idea or another i hope you continue 4 years is a long time to work on something , but at the same time you now have something to show for your 4 years.

      what is right is seldom easy, everyone in the world who has tried to make something has to fight this same fight. you fought and you won, remember that.

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    3. You've revealed your talent.
      The Internetz will decide your fate.

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    4. First, GREAT WORK! You've left me wanting more, and I'm sad to hear there will not be, but understand why.

      Having said that, and I know this is entirely up to you, but I hope you won't mind me making a suggestion:

      Have you considered crowd-funding the rest of this project, much like the "Veronica Dark" movie was? You could conceivably raise enough money to hire animators and finish this project through to the end credits. :)

      With any luck, DC would be willing to give you a little seed money to get things started?

      GIve it some thought; it seems like you have lots of potential fans -- ummm.... backers -- right here!

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    5. Hey man I feel your pain when it comes to animation. I've never worked on a project for that long though. You have real talent man! All you need is a team to do some of the legwork for you, you should do more. I can't imagine putting together something this complex on my own. Amazing work.

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    6. Just take some time to fuggin decompress. Honestly, you don't need to animate another frame in your life if you don't want to -- but you should definitely not leave behind what could amount to a great career as an animation director.

      People who WANT to animate? Those people are nutso IMO. No one should WANT to animate. That's like wanting to scrub toilets, except harder. Use this to get the job where a group of other people are doing the animating.

      Good luck

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    7. As someone who has done a lot of animation over the years in mostly just a hobby capacity to learn as well, my best advice would be to remember that nobody makes animations of any length BY THEMSELVES. I personally find animating incredibly rewarding - breathing life into something is really fun. Sure it takes work but of course it's dangerous to go alone

      Great work though man, love the crossover and Noir Deco are an excellent choice for music.

      Hope you're not really just going to give up and go hollow

      ehahahahaa haa

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    8. Oh, I was always aware that animation is a collaborative effort. Thing is that I didn't actually have any knowledge or interest in making animation prior to this video. It's been over a couple of months since the upload and my mind hasn't really changed. I suppose this was just a one off thing. I appreciate the words of support, though. Thanks all.

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  7. It can't end like this Mitch.

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  8. Fantastic work, man. My kudos to you for all the hard work that went into 5 minutes of great entertainment!

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  9. It's been quite some time since I've been so thrilled about something. I'm speechless man. I want more! This is far too majestic to be left like this. Make a series, a movie.
    I'm an instant fan.

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  10. awesemo. congrats. soon on my site

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  11. Excellent work and a fantastic dev blog to go along with it. Sorry it was such a crushing experience, but I hope you can pull something positive from it. Thank you so much for sharing all of this with us.

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  12. Excellent work, and you should feel proud of your accomplishment. Your hard work and dedication shows. It would be great if you could be a director and have a crew. But I understand how art projects can take a chunk out of your life. I wish you well with whatever you end up doing. As it is, this movie just made my day. I know it was years for you, but you have brought joy to more people than are posting here. Thank you!

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  13. As a professional storyboard artist in animation I must say that this is very fantastic work. It's impressive that you produced this on your own and you can have a bright future in animation ahead of you if you wanted it. This is a wonderful reel to start with, and I wouldn't be surprised if some offers came your way. Your comments are interesting, but it's important to remember that, should you pursue a career as an animator, storyboard artist, or animation director, you will always be working with a TEAM! Remember this for it may take an intense amount of pressure off. For now though, bask in your glory, you've earned it.

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  14. its amazing!!! crazyyyy!! great work!!

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  15. That was great! It was very well done and the designs and movement were very well done. I just want to ask you one question though, was that supposed to be Solid Snake and Green Arrow in that three man strike team?

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    1. Nope and nope. Although I'll admit that Metal Gear is a heavy influence on me and that while I wasn't trying to make him Snake... I certainly did subconsciously. As for the woman, I never took into account Green Arrow but now it completely makes sense. A lot of people have been asking why she has one arm and it was because I wanted to animate her doing things that would look less interesting if she had both arms, eg; rolling over the wall. Yes, my actors must suffer for their art.

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  16. Also, I must add, I do not believe you should do more with these properties. IF you are going to invest your own time and energy into a creative endeavor it should be one that YOU OWN! Then you can submit for shows and reap any financial rewards for yourself.

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  17. This is amazing. Kudos!

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  18. This is an amazing video. The internet is abuzz with your project. Regardless of where you go from here, I hope that this opens many doors for you, because you deserve it. Well done.

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  19. Hey Mitchell love the short! hey I was wondering if you would be interested in doing a quick Q&A for our website www.nerdlocker.com?
    You can reach us via our contact page.

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  20. Loved it. You have a lot of talent. Great work, man.

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  21. "Nothing in life that's worth anything is easy."

    You are the man, Mitchell.

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  22. Awesome! Please! Next chapter!

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  23. Excellent work. all the best to your future endeavors...

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  24. Well done pal!! Don't worry Im sure this is just the first step of this, gread job!!

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  25. Please continue with Part 2. We may never see Batman vs The Terminator in comic form (as we did with Superman Vs The Terminator: Death To The Future).
    And don't worry about 'not getting the voice right'. Peter Weller pulled off an amazing Dark Knight in DKR. You did too.

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  26. wow, i absolutely love the animation pacing on this, and a very nice cliffhanger ending. grizzled batman looks great, and the music is perfect. really really well done !

    please make more, pleaseeee

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  27. You capture the mood so much better than any of the recent efforts, thanks for this.

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  28. why don't you crowdfund and find some pll to help you ! it could change your life forever !
    great job !

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  29. Great piece of work there man. Really great that you worked with an idea and improved yourself to do it. Top notch stuff.

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  30. Really great effort. Your dedication to your craft and your education is inspiring, even at the toll it seems to have taken on you. Take a break, breathe a bit, and then dive into the mountain of job offers that should be coming your way.
    Best of luck in the future, and I think if you put a fraction of the effort into paying work that you put into this you'll be well off.

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  31. There is talent. There is ridiculous talent. There is ridiculous, stupid, unbelievable, "somebody punch this guy, he's just too d*mned good" talent. And then there's this.

    You have to keep going. You have to. If not on this project, then some other animation work. You can still wear that Burger King hat if you want to, but you have too much going on to stop. Really. You have to do more work. A lot. A bunch. Man...

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  32. I'm speechless man, seriously lost for words. There's so much I can say but not enough to express how I feel about the work you've done. You've successfully crossed over two of my favourite worlds and what a job you've done. You must continue the story you've created in this short, you just have to, "You know it in your soul.." The higher ups of both franchises need to see the potential you have and provide you with what you need to complete this project as it is far from being complete. If not then they must pick up where you left off or you yourself at the very least you must attempt to finish it in one form or another. Please do this for us. The least you could do is a webcomic or tell us how the story in your vision ends. Also which version of Batman is this in your story? Correct me if I'm wrong but it seems like the one from Frank Miller's 'The Dark Knight Returns.'

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    1. Definitely inspired by Miller's yes. However the animation isn't in the continuity of either franchise. It borrows lore, sure, but it's its own universe.

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    2. and i sir would love to explore this universe. at least as a comic m sure it would take less time and then if it get big you could hire people to animate for you......just throwing ideas at ya lol honestly this is great please continue this.

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  33. You should seriously consider pitching this project to someone, man. The fact that you taught yourself how to do animation as you did this is amazing. If you don't know how to pitch then find someone who does. This concept and work deserves development.

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  34. OUTSTANDING! But I have one beef with you, good Sir: AAAARRRRGGGH! I've got to see this movie. Serious, get this thing out to some people--it's fantastic!

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  35. Hey brother, this is amazing work. I've watched it like 10 times and I blogged about it.

    http://antreviews.blogspot.com.au/2014/02/ant-reviews-batman-vs-terminator-2014.html

    The visual style, the tone, the pace, everything is kickass and inspiring. Thanks for putting in the hard work, i wish you the very best. Look forward to what you end up doing in the future.

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  36. As a fellow animator, I would be extremely proud of making this. Stop talking about flipping burgers. If you spent years on this, you can at least spend a month sending this to studios for an animation job!

    Also, will you make a post saying what tools you used? It looks like you drew it in Indesign?!?!? Get back to me, I'd love to chat.

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  37. The TERMINATOR RESISTANCE supports your project 100% and we are on pins and needles awaiting updates. This is the BEST thing to come along for us TERMINATOR fans in a very long time. Thank you for your efforts it is very much appreciated.

    https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Resistance-TERMINATOR-Fan-Page/243551265733745



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  38. I'd like to feature this on my site along with an interview with you via e-mail or Skype. You can find my contact information and my previous interviews at http://flightstightsandmovienights.com/superhero-shorts

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  39. What tools did you use?

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  40. Absolutely Amazing! Things are only worth the effort that was put into them. This is art and priceless. In either comic or anime form this is well worth expansion. Hopefully someone at DC Comics will see this and realize the enormous potential you have.

    Please let the praise provided here rebuild any metal injury this effort may have given you and grow you to the next level in developing and publishing your art.

    Very well done!

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  41. This is fantastic. Its hard to tell sometimes but Was this done in 3D? If so what software? It's amazing that you had no animation experience prior. I'm assuming you must have at least some experience in film though. It's edited really well, and the characters' acting is good as well. are you going to pursue a career as an animator now that you have learned how to animate?

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    1. It's entirely two dimensional and animated in Adobe Indesign. I have no film experience, either. Right now I'm leaning more toward not pursuing an animation career. The more I think about it the more anxious and ill I become. I've lost interest. But who knows, it's early right now.

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    2. Absolutely amazing. I wasn't even aware in design had animation capabilities. I can empathize completely with your anxiety and wish you the best with whatever you want to do. As for now I'm a fan and am gonna spread the word.

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  42. You truly deserve something more to happen with this.

    I have not been too interested in either franchise for years now. I am almost lost for words at the sheer brilliance of this short, the fact you put this together as a learning experience is even more amazing.

    My heart sank when I saw your comment saying there will be no follow-up... Page bookmarked though, I will definitely stay tuned in.

    You have clear talent and feeling anxious is a perfectly normal, somewhat healthy human response to receiving the kind of praise you are getting ATM.

    Good luck!

    <*_*>

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  43. You're an intuitive director. Your timing, shot choices, reveals, and character representation are top notch! Don't focus on having to do this or that project, just know that you have a gift, and for all of our sake, find a way to apply that to something! We look forward to your future work. Of course, I hope this gets developed, but it's not the concept or the animation, etc. that people are excited about. It's how you showed it to us. Godspeed, man.

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  44. This was awesome! You are Batman!
    I love the video and hope to see more one day.

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  45. That is cool! I love this story!. I wish one day, we can watch that in a big screen!

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  46. Excelente trabajo mi amigo, gracias

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  47. Hi Mitchell.

    I just wanted to say that you did a wonderful job with this short.

    I remember seeing it when it first posted, and being blown away by what I saw.

    You have true talent, my friend.

    And like many, I was heartbroken when I read that you would not continue with any follow-ups. However, I understand and respect your decision.

    So I thank you from the bottom of my heart for producing and releasing this great piece of crossover fiction for an enthusiast of that particular genre.

    And I wish you luck and success in whatever you decide to do in the future.

    Take care.

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