"A future that might have been but never was."

December 21, 2010 12:46 PM

1884: Yesterday's Future. A story of outstanding heroism in the face of deception, subterfuge and treachery. Conjuring up the belief that it was made forty years before film was even invented, 1884: Yesterdays Future tells of a future that might have been but never was. Directed by Tim Ollive, the film is a mix of animation, puppetry and two dimensional and three dimensional computer generated imagery (CGI) set against backgrounds created using stunning artwork, model sets and period photographs from the Hulton Picture Library division of Getty Images.

This promotional video was produced from test material filmed by Tim Ollive (on his kitchen table!) using amateur equipment in order to prove the techniques to be used in the production of 1884: Yesterday’s Future. The film proper will retain the “clunky” charm of the original test material but will be produced to the highest possible standards.

Terry Gilliam is godfathering "1884," to be co-produced by U.K.'s Steam Driven Films and France's 2d3D Animations.More info here. And here. And here.

posted by Fizz (5 comments total)

I'm a sucker for dirigibles, sepia, CGI, puppets, and Terry Gilliam and yet this did little for me. It's way better without sound and if you skip the last :26.
posted by cjorgensen at 12:57 PM on December 21, 2010

Reminds me of The Mysterious Explorations of Jasper Morello (Full film. Wiki.)
posted by twoleftfeet at 12:57 PM on December 21, 2010

Yeah, somehow the whole is far less than the sum of its parts.
posted by absalom at 1:07 PM on December 21, 2010

I have self-diagnosed myself as a sepia steampunk puppet.
posted by jph at 1:24 PM on December 21, 2010

Ah yes, a concept ahead of its time. It's basically Thunderbirds meets Le Voyage Dans La Lune meets BioShock Infinite meets Spies Like Us...
posted by The Winsome Parker Lewis at 3:30 PM on December 21, 2010