$0.00 Short

shyguyfilms

shyguyfilms

Active member
For everyone who thinks money is holding them back from creating something visually stunning with a decent, if not good, story, watch this:
 
I love it.
Though its kinda misleading to say its $0.00 :)

To quote the youtube post; "This has been a labor of love on a budget of $0 with personal expense on my part and no funding."

And assuming talents were free, that kind of VFX requires computing power and a pricey graphics card to run VRAY alone.

I think NO OUTSIDE FUNDING would be a more accurate term.
 
That was really great. Well done without trying to be so in your face with the special effects. They used the effects to tell the story, not just blow stuff up in cool and clever ways.

I have to ask though, did anyone else see this as possibly being a demo for a feature? The end showing some concept art seemed to imply some of where the story might go now that the robot soldier has escaped. Reminds me of the end of Skyline, which also showed kinda where a sequel would go if they made one. This reminded me of that type of method of teasing the story during the end credits.

Also, for zero dollars, this is mighty impressive. Obviously a lot of skill is needed for something like this. It makes me wish I had gone to school for visual effects first, and then worried about the writer/director aspect later on. I have too many ideas for films that require lots of effects, although not specifically CGI all the time.
 
Well done, though I really doubt $0.00 was the actual amount spent. Honestly, the film is good enough that it doesn't need to be sold as "made for $0.00 budget!" and doing so probably distracts more than anything.

Nektonic said:
Also, for zero dollars, this is mighty impressive. Obviously a lot of skill is needed for something like this. It makes me wish I had gone to school for visual effects first, and then worried about the writer/director aspect later on. I have too many ideas for films that require lots of effects, although not specifically CGI all the time.
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I've always wished I could draw/animate; I'd love to be able to translate my scripts to the screen without ever leaving my room. <grin>
 
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If you wanted to know what Ed Wood would be doing today if he were working right now, here's your example. There were special effects back in the Ed Wood days, and he made them with his special brand of cheese. And oh, yeah, he too was all about low/no budget. Today, there's CGI and digital SFX. Ed Wood would also use computers, and the effects would again have his special brand of cheese, except updated to today's tech, just like here. It's funny to see how hypnotized people are by SFX. As if that's key. And when you do that, you don't pay attention to the rest, and what's really critical. Imagery choice. Timing. Dramatic flow. And so on and so forth, stuff that can't be programmed, but must be controlled by the artist. Here's a great test - mute the sound as you watch this.

Thanks for this, it was a lot of fun.
 
Wonderful short. To be honest I was expecting just another visual effects show like Panic Attack, which was great for what it was, but was a bit over-rated for the attention it got. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dadPWhEhVk

Instead, not only was it beautiful visual effects, it had heart and story (at least for a short film). Something intriguing about a robot warrior that wakes up with the mind and memories of a human. One that's looking for his wife and kids. Meanwhile this guy just wants to find out how he set off the EMP believing it's a malfunction robot. Wonderful idea, loved the dialogue, the voice acting was creepy and genuine, and well conceived with an intriguing mystery.

OldCorpse said:
If you wanted to know what Ed Wood would be doing today if he were working right now, here's your example. There were special effects back in the Ed Wood days, and he made them with his special brand of cheese. And oh, yeah, he too was all about low/no budget. Today, there's CGI and digital SFX. Ed Wood would also use computers, and the effects would again have his special brand of cheese, except updated to today's tech, just like here. It's funny to see how hypnotized people are by SFX. As if that's key. And when you do that, you don't pay attention to the rest, and what's really critical. Imagery choice. Timing. Dramatic flow. And so on and so forth, stuff that can't be programmed, but must be controlled by the artist. Here's a great test - mute the sound as you watch this.

Thanks for this, it was a lot of fun.
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Wait what? Did you watch the same film I did? I really don't see how you could compare this film to an Ed Wood film. He just made horrible films and would misuse locations and visual effects to comical proportions. He was about cheese. I'm not smelling the cheese from THIS film at all.

Aside from beautiful (and not cheesy) visual effects, I feel this filmmaker knows how to craft a story, drama, characters, and how to bring it all together, meanwhile having beautiful visual effects. Something rare in these short films, especially as there's so little time to show us anything.
 
If this didn't have a budget, I'm almost certain it will get one now. great display of story and execution.
 
I thought it was okay. Better that several things in SciFi now perhaps, but I didn't like it as much as others here.

I hate the whole "$0.00" thing. It's detracting at the least, boastful and inaccurate at worst. Obviously he had access to some sort of set, green screens, powerful computers, plenty of lights/grip and electric, cameras and audio, crew and cast to work for free and not be fed, etc. and put plenty of time into it while having enough income to do so. Agree with Ted. No outside funding would be putting it better.
 
$0 budget is a nice gimmick. I really liked it. It was way damn cool. However I think the budget realistically was probably like $1,200 bucks. I mean gas alone is for a truck is like $90 bucks. Electric bills, them hitting up Denny's late nights, crack assuming their addicts, all adds up.

Well done to them.
 
I enjoyed the film. It certainly seems like a teaser intro for a feature. Hopefully you will get the budget to continue the story, as it is certainly one i would go and see.

As for the $0.00 thing, yes its a gimmick, and almost certainly not true (a budget is still a budget even if you don't write it down: hey did you consume any coffee while all that rendering was happening? Budget.). Having said that, I watched the film, so the gimmick worked!

Just my $0.02... Hey, my opinion is worth more than your movie! ;)
 
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