“Give Me Space” by Brian Carter

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Here’s another of my favorites from this year’s Cal Arts Producer’s Show, held last Thursday in North Hollywood: Brian Carter’s sci-fi comedy, Give Me Space.

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  • Chuck Howell

    Love this! It’s like an animated episode of the TWILIGHT ZONE.

  • http://Juanmanimation.blogspot.com J.m

    I like that this is exactly the opposite of those pretentious films with sharp character designs and colour schemes but no stories, just either chase sequences, or gross gags.

    The character designs here are more crude and generic, but the storytelling and mood are just great. Thumbs up!

    congratulations!

    • Dana

      I don’t think it’s pretentious to strive for visual appeal. Disregarding one or the other—the aesthetics or the story—isn’t exactly ideal. I wouldn’t tell someone “I loved your film, I’m glad you neglected the story so you could focus on the design!” so why is the opposite okay?

      This isn’t aimed at the creator of the film, btw; it’s a well done and enjoyable project and I wish Brian Carter all the best. I just can’t agree with the attitude that appealing visuals are somehow worthless.

      • Flashkid

        I agree, it comes down to either story or design.

        I can sit down and watch a short with a poor story, so long as the visuals can grab my attention and are nice to look at.

        I can sit down and watch a poorly drawn film as long as the story is interesting.

        Not everyone is a storyteller, some people aren’t artists. But that doesn’t stop people from making good films.

      • http://Juanmanimation.blogspot.com J.m

        And yet another comment misinterpreted for the sake of preaching.

        let’s say story ..or better…Content should be 60% visuals 40%. That’s the way I see it.

        Visuals in SOuth park ,in my opinion, are a worthless piece of excrement yet people watch it because it’s funny .

        sucker punch however is visually exquisite and it bored audiences to death.

        what’s more important, seriously

      • Dana

        J.m, I didn’t misinterpret your comment, I took issue with the way you brushed aside films focusing on visual appeal as “pretentious.” It may be true that audiences will generally be more willing to watch something with appealing content and lacking visuals vs. the reverse, but the former could always be greatly improved with stronger visuals, and the latter is not worthless just because aesthetics are its strongest point.

        Your original comment almost sounded like you were complimenting the creator on NOT having strong visuals. Yes, it’s great that his film can stand on story alone, but the lack of style isn’t what makes it great. We all have different tastes; there’s no need to knock down a different approach while complimenting this one.

    • http://www.wallcollective.com/cogspa/wall/ joe micallef

      I never understood the term “pretentious” in criticism of animation. I often hear it as of critique of films, that in my opinion, are very creative and visually appealing.

  • Matthew Koh

    Which one’s the atagonist?

    • Broski90

      Does it need to have one? Well, it also depends what you mean by the “antagonist”

    • http://www.wallcollective.com/cogspa/wall/ joe micallef

      You could say Outer Space is the antagonist (i.e. the environment) and both characters are protagonists.

  • Frank Ziegler

    Fun ! Well done.

  • Rob T.

    I liked that the principal characters were both female without explanation and without resorting to stereotype (except for the “females-are-males-with-something-added” visual shorthand, in this case the hair; also, note that the goofier of the two is a blonde). The choice of gender for the characters did have me wondering how whether I would have enjoyed the short more, less, or about the same with two male characters; I think I like it better this way, for reasons that are hard to pin down (but probably boil down to something like “girls are cuter”).

    I also wonder about what kind of psychological testing the characters had to go through before the mission. Apparently the regimen has a few holes, not only missing an obvious goofball (hereafter referred to as “G”) but a potential psycho killer (hereafter “P”). As an older sibling I sympathize with P’s irritation with her fellow astronaut, but upon reflection I find G’s response to her enforced confinement healthier, taking full advantage of the freedom afforded by zero-gravity conditions.

    Anyway, this was fun and I’m looking forward to seeing what Brian Carter does next. Thanks for showing “Give Me Space” here!

  • Tj

    Brian, this is awesome. One of my favorite films in the show. He’ll of a job.

  • Tj

    HELL OF A JOB!!!