Shows That Inspire Animations
Steve K
Posts: 3,245
I enjoy doing short animations, and am always looking for good stories that inspire variations. A great favorite is the original "Twilight Zone" with many great episodes by Rod Serling and others. I've recently signed up for Netflix, and have been watching "Black Mirror" which is very good, sort of in the same spirit as TZ but more contemporary. Generally the stories are way too complex and too much dialogue for my little 5 minute videos, but an element or two can be pretty inspiring. Any other shows out there that inspire you?
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I saw a remake of twilight zone but only one episode. It was the one with the comedian and I thought I might write an alternative ending but have not yet.
That sounds like the current series by Jordan Peele, which I don't have access to, yet. One of my alltime favorites from the original series is "The Monsters Are Due On Maple Street", 9.0 on IMDB. Clips here (spoilers!):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9z1f9kL_CY
Trivia: "The aliens are wearing uniforms left over from the 1956 science fiction film Forbidden Planet. Also, the mockup set of the retractable stairway, leading into the lower half of the C-57D cruiser from the same film, is reused for this scene. At the end of the episode, a stock footage effects shot of the cruiser in space can be seen. (The same shot was also used in "Third from the Sun".) This technique was also used in "To Serve Man". The cruiser is shown upside down when compared to its orientation in Forbidden Planet." Mr. Serling had a budget, after all.
Top ten twist endings from the original series here (spoilers, of course):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lEFdCUk1deM
Remake of "Monsters" here, full episode:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jlHSD6uo7Mk
Alfred Hutchcock had a couple shows (presents and hour). Night Gallery also comes to mind. Maybe One Step Beyond? I know there were similar programs, so curious what others will mention.
Yes, I've watched some Hitchcocks and "Night Gallery", some good story ideas. I don't remember "One Step Beyond", but I vaguely remembert "Alcoa Presents" (the sponsor for the show and part of the title). Its now in my Amazon cart, all 70 episodes for $12.
I should have mentioned above that the 1956 movie "Forbidden Planet" is pretty inspiring. In fact, it inspired me to do this short animation, including the poster:
https://www.youtube.com/user/SteveK77536?app=desktop
Another genre in the 48 Hour Film contest is "Western", which most teams want to avoid. Horses? Old west towns? It may be a little easier for animations than live action teams (the vast majority). A good inspiration for me is "Have Gun, Will Travel", (8.5 at IMDB), some episodes with pretty good stories. San Francisco in the "Barbary Coast" days.
waiting for inspiration on animated logo
the hopping lamp is already taken.
boy on the sickle moon fishing is already taken.
i kinda like the game of thrones opening credits. just glue some gears on it
Probably not what you're after, but I like this 30 second intro to "Halt and Catch Fire", I'd call the music "Techno" (appropriate), but I'm no expert.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yD_kCKiSkoI
Hold it! I didn't say I was waiting for inspiration on animated logo. Hmmmm.
RE: Westerns
Tales of Wells Fargo
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0050066/plotsummary?ref_=tt_ov_pl
Yeah, I have trouble editing out the old comments for brevity. Still, feel free to get inspired ...
Looks good, 7.9 at IMDB. The DVD's at Amazon are pretty expensive (evidently rare), but its on Prime with a Starz subscription, which has a 7 day trial. Maybe I can watch a bunch in a week.
One that I did get on DVD's is "Death Valley Days" (DVDs?), 7.7 at IMDB. Remember the 20 mule team (sponsored by 20 MT Borax)?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twenty-mule_team
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/20_Mule_Team_Borax
It was unlike most westerns in that it was based on real stories, undoubtedly punched up, but not the usual good guy/bad guy/six shooter/horse chase cowboy opera. Which reminds me of a great short video about old cowboy radio shows (stay with it for the choreographed sound effects team):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hZ43UC5tIOY
I wouldn't spend a any money for the Wells Fargo series. I saw some episodes on a channel that just shows westerns and thought it was interesting. There were lots of alternatives.
Here is some random TV western series stuff.
https://tv.avclub.com/a-beginner-s-guide-to-classic-tv-westerns-1798270445
You have Netflix...
It's crazy, gory, and not to be watched by children I think... but the new Love, Death + Robots is some amazing animation work. Each episode is not just an entirely different story, but an entirely different style of animation as well. Nudity and gore, however, so be mindful of when/where you try watching it!
On an entirely different note, Rosie and I just went for a bit without internet and pulled out some movie dvds to watch during that week. First we watched the entire Harry Potter saga and then Pirates of the Caribbean - which we're not done with yet. I wasn't actually try to inspire myself with animation ideas but ended up with all manner of it!
Then I pulled out my Collector's Edition of Jim Henson's 'The Dark Crystal'. OMG! It has a whole DVD devoted to the behind the scenes works! So I watched that one first, then the movie. Awesome!
Of course... not short. But long things can also inspire shorts too ;)
Interesting article - I've enjoyed the AV Club but for individual series ("Orphan Black", "Halt and Catch Fire"). This genre essay is a different thing. "The Western isn’t just the story of the sheriff keeping the peace. It’s about cowboys riding from town to town on a season-long drive, women pioneers settling the frontier in vignettes, and a Native American U.S. Marshal. It’s a cop show, a historical adventure, a small town dramedy, a legal procedural, a spy-fi hybrid, and sometimes an art drama without the prestige ... Where Gunsmoke is stuck to its hub and Wagon Train is stuck to its formula, Have Gun travels all over the country, getting tangled up in land disputes, murder mysteries, camel races—you name it. The Old West was an epic poem, and here was its knight-errant." The 48 Hour Film Contest (a five minute video in two days) kicks off on a Friday evening with each team drawing a genre out of a hat, about 30 total - Drama, Comedy, Detective/Cop, Mystery ... and the dreaded Western. The only worse pick is Musical. Interesting that "Have Gun, Will Travel" seems to cover most of the genres. Maybe not Musical ...
Dartanbeck -
Okay, I've added "Love, Death & Robots" to my Netflix watch list (8.8 at IMDB, about as high as it goes). Amazon has a DVD collection with "The Dark Crystal", "Labrynth", and "Mirrormask" for under $10, five stars out of five. You come up with good suggestions.
"Pirates of the Carribean" (the first one) is an alltime favorite. Johnny Depp is at his peak IMHO, claiming he's channeling Stones guitarist Keith Richards. It's the kind of thing I'm talking about, inspiring this short animation:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=exFoTsx1934
wester stuffs?
how bout that movie with yul brenner robot. saw it as a youngin scared the bejeez out of me. before terminator existed i think.
Yup, "Westworld" (1973), a decade before "Terminator". The NYTimes called it "Doomsday in Disneyland". The 48 Hour Film Contest encourages mixing genres, so sci-fi and western (& horror) would work. I've got a LOT of robots ...
That's Awesome!!! :)
That HMS Victory is one helluva model, eh? Impressive how much detail there is while still having a manageable asset. I've had a lot of fun working with the shaders - still not quite done though. I really love how well it renders!
Working with Medusa right now but that darned problem I have with my PC only lets me get so far before it crashes. I hope that the save I did last night didn't save the corruption that forced a quit shortly afterward! :| (no keepable renders yet)
I really like winnston_1984 (rendo)'s The Wave Cutter. I like the shape of it... the style. It doesn't have any cannons... just FYI
And this cool merchant vessel (one on left) comes with Faveral's awesome Lake Village kit... which is an amazing scene itself. Well...all of the boats in this render come with Lake Village.
Yes, the Victory, Wave Cutter, and Lake Village with a handful of sailboats, all great stuff that I've used for a long while. The Age of Sail is a great time for stories, I just finished a Hornblower novel by C. S. Forester, "The Atropos", in which Capt. H has some unusual adventures, e.g. a wild ride as captain of a canal boat, in part through a long tunnel propelling it with their feet against the wall. Also an assignment involving a barge with Admiral Nelson's body in a long procession of barges carrying poobahs on the way to his funeral ... and the barge is suddenly taking on a LOT of water. Not a good career move to sink the funeral barge of Nelson.
Here's an old 2 minute animation that has the Victory firing:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dx7h419JEuE
I love that movie, Action Figure! Man, she sure has a LOT of guns, eh? Quite the battleship! I really like your firing of them! Bravo!
Thanks. Today's virtual models are probably more inspiring to the imagination, e.g. firing cannons, interior views, animated characters ... but some of the real world scale models are pretty good:
https://www.houstonmaritime.org/explore-hmm
Awesome! I live in a land of shipbuilding. Besides tourism, it's been our major industry. Sturgeon Bay's man made canal really put us on the map in that regard.
Rosie was living in a house just behind the big blue crane on the left side of the image (looks like a light blue swing set) - that thing is gianormous!!! - when I first started dating her.
We might be taking Garstor and Evilproducer on this Tall Ship when they visit this fall:
She's a beautiful schooner by the name of Edith M. Becker
She has circumnavigated the globe twice so far.
Very cool. We had the Tall Ships visit Galveston a while back, I did a short video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-5NSCdTDZc&t=6s
The tall ship Elissa is docked permanently at the Texas Seaport Museum in Galveston, about an hour's drive for me:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elissa_(ship)
witcher 3 makes me want to render
and dead pool
garden partiesrender challenge ideas come to me after irs over sometimes long over lol
"Deadpool" is a favorite of mine, and I'm not a superhero movie fan. Great humor, like when he meets a vehicle driver: "Johnson, Jim." "Pool, Dead."
one of my favorite lines was when he fighting colossus on the bridge. coluusus throws him
dead pool: sh-- just went sideways in the most colossal way,
meanwhile he literally thrown sideways
lmao when negasonic calls him doosh pool
when dead pool calls cable thanos
when his friend at the bar gives him jared's card he's like : i dunno might further the plot
doh now i hazta watch it again
Here is a little "Have Gun, Will Travel" related retro advertizing.
Yes, "Paladin" was a good choice to sell stuff, a popular hero. More old stills and that memorable theme song here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgvxu8QY01s
books inspires too. remember the darkover novels
sff novels