Another bunch of entertaining ultra-shorts.
I specially liked the way the credits were presented on this, with the static between the things.
Some decent bits.
I notice that since #1, you don't make it easy for folk to rewatch a particular short - a definite omission imo.
Still, funky stuff.
The quality of the ultra-shorts has definitely improved, even if I don't like the recent remote that much.
Some great toons.
I specially loved Mathrim's 'Stars'.
I personally don't feel it worth my time in the other ones to find the hidden clips. Don't know if that's a shame or not - you obviously considered them not worthy of the main feature.
In any case, this too was an enjoyable watch and I really liked the opening effect with the letters reversing the noise.
Although the shorts weren't as good as #3, I preferred the presentation of this one.
Good idea.
There's a developing trend for ultra-shorts (or maybe it's just that I've been noticing them more recently) and those taken from unfinished projects can be almost as good as those made specifically for the purpose.
Almost.
Whilst impressive, and great fodder for a showreel to show prospective clients for a quick burst, it's not /as/ entertaining as Channel Surfing 3 for obvious reasons. Rather than the focus being on diverse styles, short excitement, jokes... it's simply to show off the pretty pictures.
Which is a good thing in itself but I don't consider it quite accomplished enough to stand on its own simply on grounds of technical work.
My primary gripe is with the cutting - cutting to the beat imo would have resulted in a more exciting watch and more of a 'wow' factor.
Of course, this may not have been possible for you...
In any case, I certainly agree with the motives. Better to show this stuff off than to let it never be seen.
An excellent selection of ultra-shorts.
I specially loved the wildlife show, which was returned to 2 times. The conclusion made me smile.
Personally, I actually found the interactive aspect slightly irritating.
It may have been better with some more tv-themed work, but it was a nice idea as it was and fun to watch.
Quick toons like this always entertain thanks to the fast pace and here, there's a lot of effort spent on each one. A lot of nicely different styles and bizarre concepts to keep us interested.
Brilliant animation throughout and some nice ideas. Specially liked the ultra-short 2-second thing with the ball. Rarely get to see something quite that short.
Static could have been better. Looks like a low quality jpg of some monochromatic noise added to something in Photoshop. the frames sorta look similar - with blobs in similar locations - maybe having a canvas entirely filled with one colour would result in more random noise? A very small niggle, but it's one of the very few complaints I could make.
Which is a testament to the overall quality of this piece, from the Blues Bros. style intro to the ending.
I'm just racking my brains trying to work out the tune played after the vacum cleaner bit (you know, after the dude swallows the other guy and starts dancing).
Any chance of you telling me?
Impressive turnaround time.
I'm really impressed you managed to get this done within a single day.
Personally, I didn't enjoy it that much, simply because whilst a few of the images shown were nicely thought up and/or nicely animated, it just seemed a bit dull.
Maybe if they had followed some real narrative, some sort of order (maybe chronological) and hadn't resorted to repeating the stuff at the end it would have been more interesting.
Maybe storyboarding the next thing you do would help you focus your thoughts and organise them in a way to make something even better.
But of course, then it'd take longer.
Still, I like a few of the graphical bits and some of the moments are somewhat touching.
Excellent conclusion.
Whilst I doubt that would ever happen, it certainly fits with his projected character, certainly that of the site anyway.
Music fitted perfectly - specially liked the ending piece - and Tom's glee had me chuckling.
The production values could be higher and some graphics could be better, but the story carries itself really and it isn't as if the graphics are actually /bad/.
Great review! Thanks alot!
I like the narrative aspect
I found the fact that nearly the whole movie was spurted out of Kirby's mind amusing in itself. Specially at the end with the Joanna's stated opinion of the story.
It was all fairly amusing, but as a person unfamiliar with the series, some stuff may have not had its full effect. Hence, it got only 1 chuckle from me. (the ending)
The parody of stories written by children could have been taken further, with some unnecessary detail (narrated extremely quickly of course) and maybe a bit more randomness.
Also, maybe a sort of crayon effect may have been a nice stylistic choice for Kirby's story.
Still, fairly amusing.
Top story
I had read it a while ago, but had all but completely forgotten it. Still I'm not sure what it is meant to symbolise, if anything. Maybe an allegory of how beauty can be found anywhere? Maybe a pointer to the many pointless deaths all around us?
Maybe intentionally vague to give us room to think? In any case, Christian-Anderson has done a wonderful job of creating a thought provoking tale.
It was nicely done although maybe not as well recreated as it could be, simply because of the standard of the graphics. However, the beauty of the story remains intact and it was obviously a labour of love.
I liked your eyes very much. The gradients were used really nicely and their over-shiny nature, as if they were constantly on the brink of tears suited the film well.
However, some of the drawings were slightly lacking - specially in the opening scene. I can understand you not animating the whole scene due to time constraints, but maybe a little more time spent on the drawing would have been better. The thing that most irked me was the were the inconsistencies in head shape. Also, some of the early motions (laughing, jingling bell) should have been a bit faster imo.
The stars would have looked better more dispersed throughout the sky and being mcs running for different lengths.
I really liked the font used and the title screen with the bell and such though.
In any case it's a great story, just not as well realised as it could have been.
story 8/10
your 'adaptation' work - 5/10
But you obviously have a lot of talent and potential! Keep at it and stay funky!
- Bez
I just love reviews from other flash authors. They know how it works and what exactly you can make better in your cartoon. So, your constructive criticism helped me :) It would be a real pleasure for me to get reviews from you in my future flash movies :) And good luck with your website !
An enjoyable watch.
It was a nice tribute.
The twisted reactions and the twisted ending did get a grin out of me (with a bit of a chuckle). The only problem was that in the lab, the prof. was slightly hard to understand at points.
Also, the build-up to the punch-line seemed a bit slow to me.
But it was amusing and I love Alan's trademark childish laughs.
Doesn't do justice to the song.
There's some cool effects in here, but some fast paced effects sit uncomfortably with the slow melody of the song.
It's all a bit too random for my liking considering the serious nature of the music and it really looks like not enough planning was done - maybe doing some storyboards and thinking it through together would have been worthy of the time?
Also, the way the song suddenly cuts out is a very bad thing imo. For a music video, it should really go all the way through. Specially when it's used about 80% of the song already.
I am BEhrooZ Bahman Shahriari. I am a man. For years, I have been (sometimes) called... BEZMAN!
Age 41, Male
Glasgow, Scotland
Joined on 8/16/01
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