This is pretty sweet.
Tracking down the creators reveals they are David and Ian Purchase - the Purchase Brothers - who seem to be a Toronto-based directing duo. They appear to be represented by Sons and Daughters agency in Toronto.
You can see their page on the Sons and Daughters site here, where their other commercials are viewable - or at least will be until traffic nukes the site... I expect this thing is going to get a lot of attention.
I wonder if they're auditioning for a medic for Episode 2?
Dude, that was terrible. Crappy acting and lackluster editing, this is basically cosplay.
Posted by: Frank Lantz | February 20, 2009 at 09:37 AM
Dude - a couple guys did it for free in their spare time, and I frankly don't see it being appreciably worse than much of what is on television or the shelves of my local video store.
Is it an 'excuse' that they did it for free in their spare time and therefore we should forgive its lack of artistic merit? Not at all. But why do we forgive the lack of artistic merit in shit that Fox and Paramount churn out for hundreds or thousands or millions an episode?
Don't forgive the lack of artistic merit, but at least celebrate the fact that they *did it*, more or less on their own, swimming against the current of one of the largest industries in human history.
If nothing else - celebrate the fact that these guys probably learned more getting this thing from an idea in a bar onto millions of monitors around the world than they could have ever learned in filmschool - and probably in less time and for less money.
Posted by: Clint | February 20, 2009 at 11:11 AM
I think it's junk. You disagree. De gustibus! I think if it wasn't videogame related no one would care either way because it's clearly an amateurish attempt to reproduce the most conventional type of boring, mainstream cinema. What's to celebrate?
I kind of like this though: http://www.gametrailers.com/player/usermovies/199649.html
Posted by: Frank Lantz | February 20, 2009 at 12:15 PM
Frank Lantz you are absolutely spot-on. It's the 'acquittal by low standards' that I can't stand. The argument that we forgive lack of merit from big films, so we should do the same here, is ridiculous.
Oh and Clint, don't get the impression that these guys are somehow struggling small-fry; their day job is DIRECTING COCA-COLA COMMERCIALS.
Posted by: ajs | June 11, 2009 at 09:10 AM
If you would *read what I said*, I don't forgive it's lack of artistic merit.
I celebrate that they did it. It's hard to do this. I know, I did it myself.
But if you would like to rehash the same argument a third time, I'm here all week.
Posted by: Clint | June 11, 2009 at 10:18 AM