Elephants Dream
- Tygo Gernandt: Proog
- Cas Jansen: Emo
Elephants Dream is a surreal, computer-generated short film that was created almost exclusively with free software and released under a free Creative Commons license. Based on the positive reactions as well as the experience gained from this project, a second film under Creative Commons license was issued on April 10, 2008: Big Buck Bunny.
The language of the film is English, but there are subtitles in over 30 languages.
History
The film was first announced in May 2005 by Ton Roosendaal, chairman of Blender Foundation and chief programmer of Blender. Blender is the main program used in the production of the film. Shortly after the announcement, the Blender Foundation pre-orders of the DVD began to accept the film. Anyone who had pre-ordered the DVD before 1 September 2005, mentioned in the credits.
Production began in September 2005 by the Orange project, a team of six artists and animators from around the world. The film was originally called Machina, before being renamed Elephants Dream. The new title is based on a Dutch tradition of bedtime stories and has intentionally no apostrophe. The first performance was in Amsterdam on 24 March 2006.
The aim of the film is primarily to show the power of open source software and Blender as a professional tool for movies. During production of the film several new features, such as hair and fur rendering, were installed in Blender.
The content of the film ( including the production files ) is released under the Creative Commons Attribution License ( CC- BY).
Elephants Dream and the production files were released on 3 May 2006 on DVD. On May 18, the film and the production data were also published on the Internet. Elephants Dream is officially available as the first German film to HD DVD on 14th August 2006 with this he is also the first European title in this format.
Action
The film is invariably in a huge surreal machine, a dream world. The old man Proog ( Tygo Gernandt ) leads the young Emo ( Cas Jansen ) by a machine. The viewer sees this tour from the eyes Proogs, which it obviously suffers from severe delusions, but always safe and learn acts as Emo, however, acts scared and always stays close at Proog. The two always go through several different-looking areas of the machine, which usually have no transition to each other and Proogs representing abstract hallucinations.
At the beginning they are in a room consisting of a giant telephone switchboard. Proog saves Emo from flying plugs and stressed that it was not safe in the machine. The next room is very dark; there are thousands of electric cables and bird-like robot in it. Emo and Proog go the only way along, when suddenly the bird-like machines take up the chase. Head over heels they escape and land immediately in the next room. A phone rings, then Emo would lift the handset. Proog prevents him and tells him that it's a trap. In the room there is also a robot -like creature who is part of a typewriter and typed in on itself. Emo can only laugh about it.
The next room is similar to the second: it is dark again. A huge chasm leaves a traversal of the space does not seem to. However, as in the Proog Nothing beats appear from the bottom metal supports, which carry him. Proog moves through space with ease, he dances, explaining Emo during which the machine was like clockwork, one wrong step and you would be crushed. Emo other hand, running almost bored through the room and seems to be the stilts, carrying him not to notice. The two entered a sort of lift, which is accelerated and propelled by several threatening aperture blades. Proog calls on Emo to close his eyes. When he does this, both are suddenly enveloped in darkness. Proog Emo asks what he sees; Emo replied truthfully that he saw nothing. This seems to confirm Proog, and they come in the next room. A projector projects the image of a door on the wall, penetrates from the music. Emo wants to go through the door, Proog, however, thinks it is dangerous. He takes his stick and presses a red button that is located on it. The projection is shaken briefly, but does not disappear. Only after the third push of a button fades the room and is replaced by a narrow and oppressive.
Proog Emo asks why he does not recognize the beauty, the perfection of the machine. Emo is now the first to speak out his mind, namely, that the machine does not exist. Proog Emo is a slap in the face, scared responds to the Emo and moves away from him. Just before he threatens to collide against the wall, it moves away from him. He imitates Proog now and trying to show the absurdity of the machine. He claims that the whole machine is only there alone for Proog and that now are the Hanging Gardens of Babylon to the series. The room gradually dissolves and everywhere spring up metal creepers. Now he explains Proog mockingly that now is the Colossus of Rhodes was coming, and the only Proog. The constructed of Proog fantasy world to protect against the real world threatens to fall apart. Two giant hands appear and throw Proog to the ground. Proog feels threatened and suggests Emo down with his stick, to bring it to silence. Then the hands and arms disappear again, the machine is back in order. Proog asserts that the machine exists.
Persons involved
- Ton Roosendaal - producer
- Bassam Kurdali - animation director and director
- Andy Goralczyk - Production Designer
- Matt Ebb - Artists
- Bastian Salmela - Artists
- Lee J Cocks - Artist
- Toni Alatalo - Technical Director
- Jan Morgenstern - Composer
Software used
- The 3D software Blender
- The graphics software CinePaint
- The image editing program GIMP
- The Python programming language
- Apple's photo editing software Seashore
- The Subversion version control
- The music production software reactor ( proprietary)
- The network application framework Twisted
- The network protocol verses for real-time graphics programs