Anime Epic..... by a Canadian

[Chibi Chan-o]

Mike and Bryan have started a great cycle of anime by people other than the Japanese. Here's an animation by a Canadian guy on DA. It won best animation at some California animation festival. The guy even got a Japanese speaker, classic Japanese music, and Japanese text!!! He lead the animation stuff (director, duh).

It's amazing. (it makes me sick with envy!!!)


Yuki Tani No Shuraba

He even has an artbook of it!! 0_0

[mahatista]

^^ That was very impressive. Thanks for sharing it. My favorite moment of course was when the flashback took over the current for just a second. That was really effective.

I've often wondered why there isn't more of this kind of work being done in the west. The only thing I can think is that Nick and other corporate entities tend to take over and push something more watered down.

But yes, that was a great bit of work. I look forward to more from him in the future (if he doesn't get hired by someone and squashed under their corporate thumb).

[falthor]

Very impressive piece of cinema. I hope that his work continues to improve and have the same amount of quality and drama that this little 5 minute video had.

[Sheogorath]

That was awesome. I hate the fact that the girl committed suicide, but it was a powerful, moving, and ultimately very sad but still incredibly awesome piece of work.

[mahatista]

ozaifan said:

That was awesome. I hate the fact that the girl committed suicide, but it was a powerful, moving, and ultimately very sad but still incredibly awesome piece of work.

I originally didn't like the end either, but then I came around to it. I think it's going to bug me for a long time though because he showed me just enough to make me wonder what in the world they were fighting about. It was serious enough to draw swords, but the victory was painful enough to commit suicide. What could be so huge that would bring them to that point?

I should really go to Canada and stalk him until he tells me.

[Avatar Mystic]

Wow, that was unbelievable. Too bad thats as far as it can go as far as production, you know with tight standards regulations and all. I'll gladly pay for his plane ticket to Japan so we can see what led them up to that point. 2007 will go down in my memory as the year Canadians proved they don't fail at understanding Japanese culture, with the release of this little number and the recent Naruto game for the 360, I think they will have a very bright future.(I wouldn't be caught dead saying this last year)

[Chibi Chan-o]

I wonder if he's doing another one. I think that's the only vid he's put up, unless he has others he hasn't put up yet. It's probably his first.

[Avatar Mystic]

Well judging by video itself, it didn't look cheap. Counting about a dozen names in the credits it would be a miracle if he were to come out with another one any time soon. Imagine all the people hours that had to go into making those scenes. It takes at least 20 frames to animate a single second if you don't want it to look bad. And that doesn't look bad at all.

[Sheogorath]

mahatista said:

ozaifan said:

That was awesome. I hate the fact that the girl committed suicide, but it was a powerful, moving, and ultimately very sad but still incredibly awesome piece of work.

I originally didn't like the end either, but then I came around to it. I think it's going to bug me for a long time though because he showed me just enough to make me wonder what in the world they were fighting about. It was serious enough to draw swords, but the victory was painful enough to commit suicide. What could be so huge that would bring them to that point?

Bah. I want to know what they were fighting about, too, but I have a completely different reason for not liking the ending. I could care less if it was so painful that it was the only way she could react in her state of shock. But was it truly necessary to have her commit suicide? She could have retreated into a reclusive existence, or a severely depressed one and entering an advanced state of shock at the sight of anyone's sword but her own, or she could have been affected in a way that she wanted to end sword violence throughout the entire country. All I'm saying is did she really have to die? I mean, I'm all for equal opportunity @$$kicking, both being the @$$kicker and the one who needs their @$$ kicked, but I just can't stand the sight of women being tortured overlong or killed.

[mahatista]

ozaifan said:

mahatista said:

I originally didn't like the end either, but then I came around to it. I think it's going to bug me for a long time though because he showed me just enough to make me wonder what in the world they were fighting about. It was serious enough to draw swords, but the victory was painful enough to commit suicide. What could be so huge that would bring them to that point?

Bah. I want to know what they were fighting about, too, but I have a completely different reason for not liking the ending. I could care less if it was so painful that it was the only way she could react in her state of shock. But was it truly necessary to have her commit suicide? She could have retreated into a reclusive existence, or a severely depressed one and entering an advanced state of shock at the sight of anyone's sword but her own, or she could have been affected in a way that she wanted to end sword violence throughout the entire country. All I'm saying is did she really have to die? I mean, I'm all for equal opportunity @$$kicking, both being the @$$kicker and the one who needs their @$$ kicked, but I just can't stand the sight of women being tortured overlong or killed.

I can see that it would bother you. There is something very disturbing about women and children being killed/hurt/exploited and if there's another way to go about telling the story, I think writers/artists should challenge themselves to find it. That kind of prurient, shock imagery happens a lot in anime though.

This one didn't strike me as an exploitation moment though, so I took it more as the END of the short piece. There wasn't time to show all those things you mentioned, although if this were a full-length feature I'd probably rather see that than the way it was.

It also seemed the whole point was that women are too soft-hearted to be warriors, and I guess the suicide proved the premise within the short time-frame.

[Chevalier Vi Liberté]

This was probably done by one of my many Canadien friends. I was born in Toronto, Ontario so I got quite a few of them. That was one excellent piece of animation by one fellow talented Canadien.

[Chibi Chan-o]

Do you know a Micheal Nesbitt? He's the one that did this.

[Sheogorath]

mahatista said:

ozaifan said:

Bah. I want to know what they were fighting about, too, but I have a completely different reason for not liking the ending. I could care less if it was so painful that it was the only way she could react in her state of shock. But was it truly necessary to have her commit suicide? She could have retreated into a reclusive existence, or a severely depressed one and entering an advanced state of shock at the sight of anyone's sword but her own, or she could have been affected in a way that she wanted to end sword violence throughout the entire country. All I'm saying is did she really have to die? I mean, I'm all for equal opportunity @$$kicking, both being the @$$kicker and the one who needs their @$$ kicked, but I just can't stand the sight of women being tortured overlong or killed.

I can see that it would bother you. There is something very disturbing about women and children being killed/hurt/exploited and if there's another way to go about telling the story, I think writers/artists should challenge themselves to find it. That kind of prurient, shock imagery happens a lot in anime though.

This one didn't strike me as an exploitation moment though, so I took it more as the END of the short piece. There wasn't time to show all those things you mentioned, although if this were a full-length feature I'd probably rather see that than the way it was.

It also seemed the whole point was that women are too soft-hearted to be warriors, and I guess the suicide proved the premise within the short time-frame.

That's just it. Show a little pain leading up to it, and I'm fine with it, but just happening outright like in the movie (We didn't actually see her do it, but know she did by seeing her hold her blade to her throat, the blood, and her body slumping over Ichiro's. For those who still haven't watched it but are reading down this far for some reason) and I don't like it at all. Don't mistake me. To the exception of that, I liked it. It was very good and it was moving and heart wrenching, the very things I like to write in my stories. All I'm saying is did she really have to kill herself?

And having it happen in actual anime, that's one thing, 'cause nine times out of ten, it adds to the story in showing the depths of the villain's or monster's cruelty or it serves as part of the heroine's motivation to defeat the villain or monster (if it was happening to her or a loved one). But having it happen just to happen, I'm sorry, but I just don't like it at all. And I'm sorry, but there's no justification for why all of you came around to it despite not liking it at first that can make me come around to it. I just don't like the fact that a girl killed herself over someone who was probably best getting over, even if it wasn't real.

[mahatista]

ozaifan said:

mahatista said:

I can see that it would bother you. There is something very disturbing about women and children being killed/hurt/exploited and if there's another way to go about telling the story, I think writers/artists should challenge themselves to find it. That kind of prurient, shock imagery happens a lot in anime though.

This one didn't strike me as an exploitation moment though, so I took it more as the END of the short piece. There wasn't time to show all those things you mentioned, although if this were a full-length feature I'd probably rather see that than the way it was.

It also seemed the whole point was that women are too soft-hearted to be warriors, and I guess the suicide proved the premise within the short time-frame.

That's just it. Show a little pain leading up to it, and I'm fine with it, but just happening outright like in the movie (We didn't actually see her do it, but know she did by seeing her hold her blade to her throat, the blood, and her body slumping over Ichiro's. For those who still haven't watched it but are reading down this far for some reason) and I don't like it at all. Don't mistake me. To the exception of that, I liked it. It was very good and it was moving and heart wrenching, the very things I like to write in my stories. All I'm saying is did she really have to kill herself?

And having it happen in actual anime, that's one thing, 'cause nine times out of ten, it adds to the story in showing the depths of the villain's or monster's cruelty or it serves as part of the heroine's motivation to defeat the villain or monster (if it was happening to her or a loved one). But having it happen just to happen, I'm sorry, but I just don't like it at all. And I'm sorry, but there's no justification for why all of you came around to it despite not liking it at first that can make me come around to it. I just don't like the fact that a girl killed herself over someone who was probably best getting over, even if it wasn't real.

See I disagree. I'd say it's more like 7 times out of ten it's crucial to the storyline in anime. I find that most anime has almost fetishistic quality much of the time, and it can take me out of the story. The ones I've liked have had storylines that have risen above that tendancy, although I think it's still present if to a lesser extent.

Don't get me wrong on the ending of this piece. I actually only thought for a second "no, she's not going to kill herself. I wish she wouldn't" for as long as it takes to say that. When it was over I thought it actually was the ending the piece -- at this length-- called for.

I'm not trying to change your mind about it though. I think it's an interesting topic of discussion and that's why I'm engaging it.

[Sheogorath]

mahatista said:

ozaifan said:

That's just it. Show a little pain leading up to it, and I'm fine with it, but just happening outright like in the movie (We didn't actually see her do it, but know she did by seeing her hold her blade to her throat, the blood, and her body slumping over Ichiro's. For those who still haven't watched it but are reading down this far for some reason) and I don't like it at all. Don't mistake me. To the exception of that, I liked it. It was very good and it was moving and heart wrenching, the very things I like to write in my stories. All I'm saying is did she really have to kill herself?

And having it happen in actual anime, that's one thing, 'cause nine times out of ten, it adds to the story in showing the depths of the villain's or monster's cruelty or it serves as part of the heroine's motivation to defeat the villain or monster (if it was happening to her or a loved one). But having it happen just to happen, I'm sorry, but I just don't like it at all. And I'm sorry, but there's no justification for why all of you came around to it despite not liking it at first that can make me come around to it. I just don't like the fact that a girl killed herself over someone who was probably best getting over, even if it wasn't real.

See I disagree. I'd say it's more like 7 times out of ten it's crucial to the storyline in anime. I find that most anime has almost fetishistic quality much of the time, and it can take me out of the story. The ones I've liked have had storylines that have risen above that tendancy, although I think it's still present if to a lesser extent.

Don't get me wrong on the ending of this piece. I actually only thought for a second "no, she's not going to kill herself. I wish she wouldn't" for as long as it takes to say that. When it was over I thought it actually was the ending the piece -- at this length-- called for.

I'm not trying to change your mind about it though. I think it's an interesting topic of discussion and that's why I'm engaging it.

We're just going to have to agree to disagree. I don't think it was called for.