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The Mantis Parable - BrettM - 09-20-2006
Anyone up for a CGI-animated short by a first-time filmmaker?
Now, this particular first-time filmmaker is Josh Staub, the Art and Visual Design Director for Cyan Worlds, Inc., which created the Myst/Uru series of games. And his 8-minute short has racked up an incredible number of awards at various film festivals since last year. Sound better, now?
"The Mantis Parable" is available on iTunes for $1.99, but, for the low, low price of $15, you can order the Special Edition DVD with the short and a bunch of special features from the artist's Web site at http://www.thestaubs.com/themantisparable/mantisshop.htm.
This is the story of a poor caterpillar caught by a bug collector and trapped in a jar. The bugs in the film are not in the least cartoony-looking and do not speak, yet he wrings an incredible amount of emotion out of them through body language and use of musical cues. The story is touching, yet never becomes cloying or preachy. And the visuals are superb -- just watch the intro on Staub's Web site.
I can't wait to see more from this guy, though it will probably take him a while since he worked on this in his spare time and it took 18 months for the first one. He could easily quit his day job and make a living at this if he can keep up this level of quality. (But, I hope he doesn't, because I love the work he's doing for Cyan.
)Brett