UNEARTHED and Dalang Films [Short Film]

DalangFilms

 Description of UNEARTHED by Dalang Films on YouTube...

"On the edge of space, a mining ship, The Ezekiel, finds an uncharted planet that reveals signs of a possible fuel resource. Two crew members undertake a mission to the desolate rock to take samples for later analysis. The mission goes well until they unearth a dark and terrifying truth." -DalangFilms

This short film has got to be my favorites recently because of how well done it is.  This is the type of stuff I'd like to see in the theaters more.  This is the type of thing that inspires me to want to get into production in some kind of way, or even science in general.  Dalang Films seems to be making a name for themselves, and I'd like to see them make a feature or two ...or ten.

via DalangFilms.com

Some random ranting...

Now I don't like the idea of reviewing films; I really just like to point people to films and media that I believe are made well or deserve recognition from the amount of effort that seems to be shown.  So I'm not going to pick out technical flaws because I'm not a trained filmmaker, so I don't feel I have the authority to pick out too many flaws unless they are blatantly obvious.  (I actually didn't really even see any in this particular film.)

I have no idea how they do stuff like this so well. (via DalangFilms.com)

Production companies like Dalang Films are the ones I would like to see making great sci-fi features.  Oh, and you know those Syfy Original Movies you see on basic cable?  A lot of those are just cheap "rip off" TV movies made to fill up time.  Why not hire production companies like this to make those?  (Well maybe Dalang Films wouldn't like to do something like that, but the quality of original TV movies would increase by a large margin if this is the sort of thing TV executives liked to see.)

That would ruin someone's day.

Don't get me wrong cheesy movies can be fun sometimes, but cheesy sci-fi has been done to death probably since the 1950s.  Why not replace some of them with some quality story telling?

Back to UNEARTHED...

Like I said.  The stuff Dalang Films is making are great examples of the type of science fiction I'd like to see more of.  There is some of it out there in the main stream, but I don't think it competes nearly enough with other types of films in a respectable way like UNEARTHED does.  It's awe inspiring story telling. 

From even just the 22 minute 7 second run-time I felt invested in the characters and actually cared if something bad were to happen to them.  They don't waste a lot of time with random scenery shots to show off photography and camera work like many short films tend to do.  They get right into the story, and that makes it shine.

As for inspiring...  I actually considered changing my major in college to Geology from watching this the first time a couple months back.  If something gets me to consider changing my life I find it very well done and worth the time to watch.

More from Dalang Films...

via DalangFilms.com

Here is a still from Dalang Films next film Point Zero.  There is no trailer, that I can find, right now but the stills look amazing.

via DalangFilms.com

Here is the description of Point Zero from their site...

"In the inhospitable, freezing ice cap of the Arctic a team of civilian scientists and geologists are on a routine supply run to the Numea Research Station. Little do they know that at the top of the world the future of mankind hangs in the balance.

Through the raging blizzards they stumble upon a government secret that will plunge them into a war between nations that will stop at nothing to retrieve the one thing that will bring them ultimate power." -DalangFilms

I know I'm looking forward to this, and hopefully I have gotten you into something you may find interesting.

FYI:  Again, I do NOT claim to own any embedded or linked videos, material, or information on this blog.  I am just putting the information out there to hopefully help their owners find an audience and recognition.

Edit: Sorry, it seems that the links to the stills and images have been broken, but if you click the links you can check out the site for yourself.  But, hopefully they will show up for you.

Mass Effect Fan Film RED SAND Looks Impressive [Trailer]

UATDV

I loved Mass Effect since the first game.  The depth of the characters and the story really made those games amazing and addicting.  The art design for those games are also great and them unique.

I figured with the release of the new Extended Cut DLC for Mass Effect 3 coming out today I'd show you something some fans from the University of Advancing Technology have been cooking up for some time.

The thing that caught my attention was the star's name, Mark Meer.  Now that might not sound familiar to you right away (unless you're as obsessed with IMDb as much as I), but he is actually the voice of Shepard from the games.  That's right, Shepard himself is doing a fan film based on the lore of the games.

Here is the description of the plot from the video's description...

"Serving as a prequel to the MASS EFFECT game series,"Red Sand" is set 35 years before the time of Commander Shepard and tells the story of the discovery of ancient ruins on Mars. Left behind by the mysterious alien race known as the Protheans, the ruins are a treasure trove of advanced technology and the powerful Element Zero, an energy source beyond humanity's wildest dreams. As the Alliance research team led by Dr. Averroes (Ayman Samman) seeks to unlock the secrets of the ruins, a band of marauders living in the deserts of Mars wants the ruins for themselves. Addicted to refined Element Zero in the form of a narcotic nicknamed "Red Sand" which gives them telekinetic "biotic" powers, these desert-dwelling terrorists will stop at nothing to control the ruins and the rich vein of Element Zero at its core. Standing between them and their goal are Colonel Jon Grissom (Mark Meer), Colonel Lily Sandhurst (Amy Searcy), and a team of Alliance soldiers tasked with defending the ruins at all costs. At stake - the future of humanity's exploration of the galaxy, and the set up for the MASS EFFECT storyline loved by millions of gamers worldwide."  -UATDV

According to a comments made by UATDV on the trailer video on YouTube the film will be around 10 minutes in duration and should be released later this summer.


Here is the original teaser showing more of Mark Meer's character, Grissom...

Now I have to admit I thought this was just going to be about the drug called "Red Sand" that was referenced in Mass Effect 2 when I saw this teaser back in February and not actually based on stories alluded to in the games.  The fact that I thought that shows how "well versed" on the lore I am.  Oh well, I do understand it now though.  If this ends up being done well I think it could prove that a Mass Effect film franchise is possible.  I'm pretty sure there is an official one in the works based on the original game, but you never know what will happen.  As far as I know there is just a script for now, it could be scrapped completely like the Halo movie was.

Hopefully they change the official Mass Effect movie to be about something else in the universe and not based solely on the original game's story because that can have several different outcomes.  Maybe have it about completely different characters.  I don't know... Time will tell.  This is a topic for another time.

Hopefully I enlightened you to something you may not have seen before.  This is my goal for this blog; to help people get their art noticed.

Reality TV is Lazy, Let's Make Better TV

Reality TV, it's everywhere, and almost unavoidable when you sit down to watch TV.  There is some obsession among TV networks to produce very cheap (and at this point) uncreative television.  Why not cheapen the production of the shows to bring in more ad revenue?  Sure, I admit that makes sense when running a business, but in the entertainment industry I find it just plain lazy.  I mean most people wouldn't want to eat low grade food would they?  Why watch low grade TV?

Anyway, I find reality TV to be lazy because most of it isn't "real" it's made up or edited to seem more exciting than it actually is.  A lot of it is also filled with shots of random locations.  I've seen a few of those "housewives" shows, and noticed a lot of filler, but I pretty much consider a lot of those shows "filler" in a way.  Don't get me wrong, but most people's lives' aren't at all interesting.  Hell, I've been home all day not really doing anything, and I just randomly decided to start this blog.  Not much is going on with me.  A show about me would be pretty boring if a network didn't pay me to do interesting things or at least edit footage of me typing this blog to "O Fortuna".

Then again, this can make taking a dump even seem epic.

I'm not saying all reality TV is bad though because there are a few decent ones.  One that comes to mind is "Deadliest Catch".  Unlike those "housewives" shows or "The Jersey Shore" the people on this particular program are actually doing productive, hard, and interesting work.  They might edit in some extra tension before commercial breaks and use some music, but they don't seem to over use it.  I can respect a reality show that has a sort of documentary style feel to it because that seems more realistic.

My idea on how to fix it.

Now there has to be some sort of budget used in the production of these shows.  People who already have a decent amount money are getting paid to have a camera crew follow them around, and the producers and camera crew are as well and they use minimal creativity or original (most of the time).

If I were a network executive I would look to the student filmmakers or hobbyists that have the ability to produce high quality dramas, comedies, cartoons, etc. and give them the budget of some reality shows and see what they turn out.  There are plenty of people on the Internet who can produce great, entertaining, and unique stuff with relatively low budgets (some higher and lower than others).  I think it would be a great way for people to get their work out there in a more mainstream manner than they wouldn't normally have the opportunity for.

Some examples of people I'd like to see have their careers advance in the entertainment industry...

CorridorDigital

Well CorridorDigital has been around for awhile so they have a pretty damn decent footing on the Internet, but I just wanted to show an example of what is possible when people with real honed skills produce videos with a low budget.  They also run a great web series through a separate channel.  It's called SYNC.
 
I should also add that these lower budget productions also feature "unknown" actors in them, and if these were brought into the main stream it would help them out as well.  Hey, this idea of mine could help create some jobs.  There would be more of a demand and an appreciation for everyone taking part in these productions.  Plus real original, well-made, and entertaining content is always better.

Anyway, moving on...

brettsk8

Okay. Now the acting isn't the greatest, but I'm not really concerned about that because everything else about this is so great.  Brettsk8 isn't as well know as CorridorDigital (above) so they probably have an even lower budget and a bit less experience which makes this even more impressive.  (Keep in mind this video is from 2010, so I'm sure he has gotten even better at his art from the more recent videos I have seen.)  This is probably one of the best examples of a low budget production I have found so far.

I should mention a lot of these I find use post-apocalyptic settings.  I kind of compare this idea to old westerns.  It makes things cheaper to use this as the setting.  Just find abandoned buildings and deserted places and you're good to go.

Moving on...

KarmaPirates

I love everything about this; it's so stylish and the acting/writing is great.  It's amazing this doesn't have far more views on YouTube than it currently does.  I don't think I can explain it.  You'll just have to watch it for yourself.

Some more...

TheRogueDivision

I have only just found this recently, and damn I think this looks like it could be great.  Too bad it's not out yet.  They have an ongoing "behind the scenes" series which I think is great because it shows how they do it.

Another...

WaysideCreations

I was trying to avoid "fan-made" series, but this one is great.  This shows how great "crowd funded" productions can be. This series started after they made a short film by the same name and it became a very popular web series based on Fallout: New Vegas.  Season one is complete and you can watch it on YouTube.   After a very successful Kickstarter campaign this series will be back for a second season with an even bigger budget and hopefully an even better story.

These are just some of the best of what I've found and have followed, but there are many others out there.  You just have to go and find them.  I'll start looking for some more series and start reviewing them and bringing them to your attention, so that these filmmakers can get the recognition they deserve.

FYI:  I do NOT claim to own any of the embed or linked videos, information, media, etc. on this site.  I'm just linking them to enlighten audiences to their existence.  That's all I am doing.  Think of this as a review site. (Just being safe.)