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The teaser trailer for the fourth Alien: 40th Anniversary Short has been uploaded the Alien Anthology social channels and is now available to whet your appetite for Alien: Ore!

As a hard-working miner of a planet mining colony, Lorraine longs to make a better life for her daughter and grandchildren. When her shift uncovers the death of a fellow miner under mysterious circumstances, Lorraine is forced to choose between escape or defying management orders and facing her fears to fight for the safety of her family.

Alien: Ore is scheduled to be released on IGN (and their YouTube) channel on Friday the 5th at 9am PST/5pm BST. This week's short was written and directed by the Spear Sisters: Sam and Kailey!

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Now this looks good :)

This is the one I've most been looking forward to based on the first trailer.

I'm looking forward to seeing this again! It was one of my favourites! :D

Exciting!

Liking the look of that trailer a lot.

Production quality looks top notch. Looks like it will be the best one yet.

I'm hoping this doggo survives, but given this particular series' track record...  :-[

In all seriousness, this looks pretty cool.

Who is shootin the goo? ???

"It's in the dog!"

Are we absolutely sure these things are not actually satire?

I see drool. Buckets of drool.

Looks good! Good and bad, I'm really quite enjoying these short films.

we'll see :-

"Hyperdyne Systems 121-A/3 "Hanks" - Synthetic Safety Officer".... I finally get a last name call out in the Alien universe.

It's up now.

Meet the Filmakers:

It was good, too. Easily the best of the lot, but where are all these eggs coming from?!

Best presentation so far, really nailed the shithole colony look.
Best character motivation to actually turn and face the alien too.

Only really odd thing was the alien, why does it have a spike sticking out of its head? ???

Definitely the best of the lot so far... beating out Specimen by a long shot in my book.  Like XenoHunter99, I am curious where these eggs are coming from.

I was thinking the exact same, I'm sure the synth....the artificial person (hanks) would have knowledge if they were planted by the company

Probably the best, over all, so far. Thought we were only going to see the AC design, but this had the ridged head on it.

Some really nice shots: The opening segue visual. The convincing moving Alien attack (which I assume was CGI, but couldn't tell), which captured the wall-jumping motion really nicely from Cameron's film. The axe showing acid corrosion (which 'Alien 3' should have done!).

Not sure why the observer was showing so much emotion if they were... Well...

Part of me liked the general aesthetics (or at least, the atmosphere which was evoked), but everything was way too bloody antiquated, in terms of the office, equipment and even that elevator. It looked more like a mining operation from the 1980s than anything set in the far future. :/ The computer screens were nice, though. And the believable acting mostly outweighed those odd negatives.

Didn't really buy the lead character's narration about fearing the thing would trail them up. They could have just blocked off the shaft. Especially after emerging and finding it wasn't anywhere near the door.

But, yeah, best in general.

Wow! This is brilliant. How the hell did they pull this off? I really really loved Specimen, thought it felt much better than what the budget would allow, but Ore is on a whole new level. The acting, dialog, lighting, style, atmosphere, idea, execution, all phenomenal. Kudos to the team. I wanna see more of this.

Honestly, I'm shocked these projects are as good as they are. This really brought a smile on my face.

I liked it a lot. I'm no big fan of the "One person/android works for the company, crew is expendable" storyline. Though, as a nod to the movie series, i guess that will accompany us quite a while - like flamethrowers and the revelation of the title screen :D.Has some faults, but the positive aspects clearly win.Technical production quality is great and i like the characters. My favorite so far, I'll even rewatch it  :D

Pretty cool!  Joining this thread..

Best one so far but I can't help but laugh at the sight of a door with a handle and lock in the Alien Universe. :laugh:

Having seen all of these shorts, this and Specimen were my favorite. Rewatching this just now I'm shocked how good the Xeno looks for such a low budget. Everything in this is real top notch.

Very impressive.

Finally a grown alien. Best one so far.

AVP 2010 Designish.
Very 1986 Ovomorph and Xenomorph, but excellent regardless.

The best so far. Really enjoyed it.

1. Specimen
2. Ore
3. Containment
4. Night Shift

So far.

Wow. Some pretty heavy hitters in the credits.

Image Engine (visual FX: Jurassic World, Thor Ragnarok, Logan, The Meg...)
White Noise Ltd  (sound production, contributions to Blade Runner 2049, Arrival, Mortal Engines, a number of Peter Jackson films...)
Victoria Burkhart (producer: Chappie, Elysium...)
Cheryl Marion (production designer: The Predator, Skyscraper, Once Upon A Time...)

TC

It felt intense and eerie, but I would have liked to have seen more of IT doing more of what IT does. Otherwise, good casting and acting as well. I'm not if that spike on his head was the mid-dorsal fin. It looks oddly out of place in the shot, the director  must have not wanted to mess with the design.

Got our Q&A back earlier. Just gotta do prettying duty.  :)

---

Couple of Alien: Ore interviews via HN Entertainment.

https://hnentertainment.co/exclusive-alien-ore-directors-kailey-and-sam-spear-aka-the-spear-sisters-talk-to-us-about-making-their-alien-short-film-and-all-the-little-details-about-it/

https://hnentertainment.co/exclusive-alien-ore-producer-victoria-burkhart-talks-to-us-about-the-short-film-came-together/

Good one-- she had photos/ pin-ups of Jones in her locker, nice touch. 

And our interview is up!  :)

https://www.avpgalaxy.net/website/interviews/spear-sisters/

Liked this one a lot!

Not sure it quite topped Specimen for me, but it was damn close. Some excellent effects work for a low budget short - in particular the shot of the Alien leaping on the wall just before the lights went out looked fantastic. The segue from monitor footage to live-action was neat too. Called Hanks being a droid the second she started drinking the white stuff :P Also twigged a couple of really good references in there - the Aspen beer T-shirt, and the (I assume intentional) misspelling of "insure" on the special order readout, just like in Alien. Kudos to the directors for those fan-nerd nuggets!

Surprised to see an Aliens-style Alien in it!

This might be my favorite one so far

Totally dug this. It felt it had a mixture of Cameron/Fincher feel to it via the cinematography, sets, use of retro-future equipment, and characters.

Plus, I had to take a second look and it does seem they went with the Cameron ridge headed Xeno.

When they found the eggs I kinda imagined David in the background, standing calmly LMAO!

As of now...

1. Specimen
2. Ore
3. Containment
4. Night Shift

Oh, hell yeah! This is how it's done folks, and I don't just mean for an Alien film, but any film. This is a master class in storytelling (which is different than liking something. Whether or not you liked it, there's no denying the craftsmanship here). Don't have time to go into every little thing, so I'll just mention two: editing and character. The editing is top quality, better than lots of stuff you see in theatrical feature films. This kind of tight editing, in my opinion, is only possible when the directors themselves shoot with the editing in mind (which is why James Cameron (who is also an editor) films are always so well edited and tell so much story in less time). Here we've shots that begin in one location (on a monitor) and hand-off the scene to another location; we've got variety of shots (going from drawn out reaction to quick action cuts); we've got transitions within single shots that serve the purpose of presenting new, important information in a clever way; we've got reaction shots that are perfectly times; not one shot in this film outstays its welcome by even a frame. Everything moves fast, but not ever hurried. To accomplish this kind of editing is a thankless job, because it is never recognized (which is the point). If you watch 'Specimen' (which was great), it even had some editing issues with pacing, and shots lasting a bit too long (imo). Okay, so then CHARACTER. Wow. Character is not an attitude presented by an actress. Character is revealed by the WRITER by setting up the stakes, giving a character a reason to really, really WANT something, and then showing what that character is willing to do in order to get that thing. In this case, we all kinds of set up about what's at stake. The shot of the colony sign outside shows that the population has been crossed out, replaced by a much higher number, meaning kids have been born, families have grown. Then we get talk about kids and grandkids, and how the main lady wants a better life for hers. She's MOTIVATED on their behalf. We see her interact lovingly with her daughter. These people may be coarse and "just dumb, dirty miners", but they still care about each other. They're a family. So when this new alien threat appears, and everybody wants to bug out, our hero makes the ultimate sacrifice, willing to confront the alien, rather than even RISK going up in the elevator, which MIGHT allow the alien into the colony. This is truly heroic, and despite how great the actress is, we only know she's a hero because of the writer's great work setting this all up. Of course, when the other colonists decide to join her in the fight, that's icing on the cake--a great, great moment. I'll end my fangirling now, to say nothing of other awesome stuff (the alien looked great, the company villain was so passively insidious, the final shot makes me pump my fist and want to see more, etc) These directors got what it takes (um, and they're cuties...can I say that?).

Having just watched Ore, this easily rivals Specimen and now I'm not sure which one to put ahead of the other. It just goes to show what you can do with a low budget with the right environment, people and atmosphere. This one was very good and I did like the characters,

Spoiler

even though I could see the others understand Lorraine and her motives for not going up, I didn't expect them all to suddenly back her up in fighting the alien at the end. That very good, though I supposed a bond like that should be expect from miners closely working together all the time.

[close]

I also love the fact that this is first time we have seen Cameron's design (at least from the look of it) on screen since Aliens, even if it is a fanfilm. The ridged aliens in requiem were entirely different.

Quote from: Xenomorphine on Apr 19, 2019, 05:09:02 PM
Didn't really buy the lead character's narration about fearing the thing would trail them up. They could have just blocked off the shaft. Especially after emerging and finding it wasn't anywhere near the door.

But, yeah, best in general.

Perhaps she thought It could have potentially hitchhiked underneath the elevator. I think some mineshaft elevators have some opening spots in the shafts and elevator.

On a par with Specimen.  Very nice work.

(https://www.avpgalaxy.net/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/spear-sisters-interview-05.jpg)

(https://i.pinimg.com/originals/d0/68/e0/d068e052043aae9d3ed2bc41527da653.gif)

Aftermath.
How do you think - alien kill all miners?

"Insure." :D

Second best of the lot so far (Specimen is still my favorite) and it absolutely made the most out of its budget. Fun stuff.

Putting this as second best so far. Ending was incredibly dissapointing - all build for no payoff, but looked and sounded great.

Quote from: Nightmare Asylum on Apr 19, 2019, 09:58:20 PM"Insure." :D

As I mentioned, I figured that was a reference to the same mistake in Alien.

Either that or they just copied the '79 film's text and didn't realise it was wrong :P

Quote from: HuDaFuK on Apr 19, 2019, 10:29:23 PM

Quote from: Nightmare Asylum on Apr 19, 2019, 09:58:20 PM"Insure." :D

As I mentioned, I figured that was a reference to the same mistake in Alien.

Either that or they just copied the '79 film's text and didn't realise it was wrong :P

It has to be a reference. I thought it was cute actually, got a chuckle out of me.

It's not a mistake if you're not American ;D

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/insure

I think Lorraine understood that the creature can do things humans can't. It attacked that first miner from above. It used a jump attack on another miner. She was rightly cautious in suggesting the Alien could get out and follow them back to the colony. I thought Hanks was having a Gorman moment watching the miners die. 'Droid or not, she may have been having some sort of inner conflict about her orders.

I liked the ending, but it was wrong. There was nothing clever, furtive, or sneaky about the Alien's approach. It charged into 3 armed and waiting humans with animal rage. Intellectually, it had more in common with the Covenant xeno than the original Big Chap. Outcome: Death for all. I expect the miners would inflict grievous harm with their mining drills, but the Alien would bathe any survivors in its acid blood. Game Over for all of them.

Also, it looks like life in a W-Y colony sucks! These miners are killing themselves just to get by, and the job is generational. There's no upward mobility, no stability, and no guarantee The Company will not sacrifice them to get hold of a lethal alien lifeform. Definitely a dystopian future.

Aliens in the second film charged at people with guns.  The ones in this didn't even have guns.

Aliens in the second movie were under the command of a rather stupid queen. She wasted resources for little real gain.

Gain huh? Never expected a Queen to know much about that.

Quote from: XenoHunter99 on Apr 20, 2019, 01:08:07 AM
Aliens in the second movie were under the command of a rather stupid queen. She wasted resources for little real gain.

Yeah.

That'd be it...

It defiantly hasn't topped Specimen for me personally. But, this was really good!

The Alien was done really well for the budget and I appreciate the use of sound effects to supplement for the lack of budget, to show the Alien killing all the miners. That scream as the axe was dropped worked really well!

Hope the last two are on this level or better than Specimen.

I'm starting to feel like I'm wasting my time with these shorts. Yet another unoriginal, paint-by-numbers derivative short. Why are all of these set on mining colonies (save for the first short)? Why are the leads all female? Why do they all include a chestburster? Why do they all end up being "character creeps around in the dark with a facehugger/xeno lurking in the shadows"? Where's the originality? All of the scenes in these shorts just seem to be cut and pasted together from the original films in terms of story.

Anyway.

This was reasonably well shot, the cinematography, lighting and sound were all passable and an improvement on the dire technical flaws of last week's short. It was nice to see a Xeno for the first time, but once again budget restrictions rear their ugly head and mean we were limited to quick shots of it. Enjoyed the attention to detail with the displays on the monitors appearing to be from the same filmmaking era as the original Alien.

I've given up expecting there to be anything special/unique/new/innovative in terms of story or ideas for these shorts, and unfortunately the technical deficiencies mean I can't enjoy them for what they are as they don't feel polished enough - the obvious budget limitations take an immersion away. Mentioned it last week, but surely someone at Fox had to quality control them?

So, I guess this was the second best short so far by default, but that's nothing to be proud of. Specimen still head and shoulders above the others for various reasons.

Containment - 3/10
Specimen - 8.5/10
Night Shift - 4.5/10
Ore - 5.5/10

Don't think Specimen was on a mining colony, and this is the only one where mining is relevant so I'm not seeing an issue.

I try to enjoy these for what they are - low budget fan-made shorts.

FWIW this one was easily my favourite. Well written, shot and acted. Loved it. Great to see the big fella too.

Quote from: bacchus on Apr 20, 2019, 01:35:40 AM
Why are all of these set on mining colonies (save for the first short)? Why are the leads all female?

The brief for the shorts said to use elements from the original film -- strong female lead and "working class" characters.

QuoteWhy do they all include a chestburster?

Specimen doesn't.

QuoteWhy do they all end up being "character creeps around in the dark with a facehugger/xeno lurking in the shadows"?

Because this basically describes every Alien movie.

Great short! Really enjoyed the cinematography on this one. Every shot was interesting and the transitions between some of the shots were superbly done.

When the directors were first announced I was really excited to see what the female filmmakers would bring to the table as it'd be a first for the franchise; well they've both killed it as far as I'm concerned. Awesome work!

I liked that this one didn't end in dread. Yes the final stand was anti-climactic, but it is the only time I can remember a desperate stand against a xeno being portrayed as truly heroic and not just a terrifying, foolhardy suicide.

Especially enjoyed the Xeno jumping on the wall avoiding the axe swing.

Ah, finally, the mines. That old aliens staple.

3 or 4 bad camera angles and some very minor line delivery issues with 2 of the smaller characters.

It ended a little abruptly, but other than that it was aces.

An exceptional effort and easily rivals specimen.

So far, this is my favorite short. This one needs its own show.

Quote from: Huggs on Apr 20, 2019, 03:05:01 AM
... This one needs its own show.

Agreed!

Disappointing to say the least.  ::)  :(

This short arguably made the most of the 35k budget not sure why anyone is complaining

Quote from: Whos_Nick on Apr 20, 2019, 06:05:38 AM
This short arguably made the most of the 35k budget not sure why anyone is complaining

Spot on.

Pretty good, I think this one was my favourite so far. Only thing I didn't like was the woman's motivations for going back when they were in the elevator. I think it would have made more sense if she needed to go back for somebody else rather to stop the creature from following them.

Quote from: Whos_Nick on Apr 20, 2019, 06:05:38 AMThis short arguably made the most of the 35k budget not sure why anyone is complaining

Absolutely. Especially as most of the complaints seem really misguided.

Quote from: Whos_Nick on Apr 20, 2019, 06:05:38 AM
This short arguably made the most of the 35k budget not sure why anyone is complaining

Agree. Beautiful short.

"They spent their money well" is not a defense against critique ...

My biggest issue with all of these shorts is they're trying to do slow-burn builds in a 9 minute film. They end up spending 6 minutes building and then rushing through any sort of payoff. This was better made than half the others, but it's the worst offender in that regard -- it spends so long getting anywhere that when it does actually get into what should be the meat of the story, it's run out of runtime and has to stop.

Pretty good...but why is every one of those shorts going for the slow-burn of Alien 1?
Seems nobody had the balls yet to make an action oriented one to honor Aliens which is disappointing to be honest.

Quote from: SiL on Apr 20, 2019, 02:41:12 AM

Quote from: bacchus on Apr 20, 2019, 01:35:40 AM
Why are all of these set on mining colonies (save for the first short)? Why are the leads all female?

The brief for the shorts said to use elements from the original film -- strong female lead and "working class" characters.

QuoteWhy do they all include a chestburster?

Specimen doesn't.

QuoteWhy do they all end up being "character creeps around in the dark with a facehugger/xeno lurking in the shadows"?

Because this basically describes every Alien movie.

You're right in that they meet the brief - I'd read the brief a while ago and thought they were more suggestions/prompts rather than hard guidelines.

It doesn't excuse the lack of originality though. Aside from the first short (Containment - which is still the worst one), all of the characters and locations are basically interchangeable and essentially the same story (character finds something suspicious and/or chestburster/facehugger, investigates, jump scare).

Don't care if I get attacked for criticising these, they aren't above it just because they're on a relatively small budget for a short - like I said, there is no excusing a lack of originality. This was a real opportunity to give fans something unique and different, perhaps take a risk or two.

Perhaps the original brief was too strict and Fox played it too safe, I don't know.

Quote from: bacchus on Apr 20, 2019, 10:50:52 AM
You're right in that they meet the brief - I'd read the brief a while ago and thought they were more suggestions/prompts rather than hard guidelines.

Yeah, "working class" and "female lead" are in the suggestions, not the requirements -- but they clearly favoured those stories that met those suggestions. :-\

Interestingly, the brief also contained story prompts, which basically all of these stories have followed so far. So I think between their "suggestions" and their "prompts", they actually had a fairly clear idea of what stories they wanted for these shorts and favoured those ideas which met those expectations.

Yeah, it is definitely sounding like the "Suggestions" were more in the vein of "We suggest you use these ideas if you want us to pick your script."

Quote from: SlangOne on Apr 20, 2019, 10:31:40 AM
Pretty good...but why is every one of those shorts going for the slow-burn of Alien 1?
Seems nobody had the balls yet to make an action oriented one to honor Aliens which is disappointing to be honest.

Possibly because these films are made to celebrate Alien which is turning 40 and not Aliens which isn't.

Yeah, finally a short where we see a full grown alien. Good acting too, and a somewhat believable script. Dug that soundtrack too, got a kind of Vangelis Blade Runner vibe to it. Imo the best one yet.

My list so far would be:

1. Ore
2. Specimen
3. Night Shift
4. Containment

Quote from: HuDaFuK on Apr 20, 2019, 07:56:10 AM

Quote from: Whos_Nick on Apr 20, 2019, 06:05:38 AMThis short arguably made the most of the 35k budget not sure why anyone is complaining

Absolutely. Especially as most of the complaints seem really misguided.

Spot on. Again.

This one is very nice.

Quote from: SiL on Apr 20, 2019, 11:17:52 AM

Quote from: bacchus on Apr 20, 2019, 10:50:52 AM
You're right in that they meet the brief - I'd read the brief a while ago and thought they were more suggestions/prompts rather than hard guidelines.

Yeah, "working class" and "female lead" are in the suggestions, not the requirements -- but they clearly favoured those stories that met those suggestions. :-\

Interestingly, the brief also contained story prompts, which basically all of these stories have followed so far. So I think between their "suggestions" and their "prompts", they actually had a fairly clear idea of what stories they wanted for these shorts and favoured those ideas which met those expectations.

It's storytelling 101 to have an every man/woman character for the audience to relate to.  The shorts are supposed to celebrate Alien turning 40, so a blue collar female lead makes sense

I thought this one was pretty great.

1.Ore
2.Specimen
3.Containment
4.Night Shift

Quote from: 426Buddy on Apr 20, 2019, 07:05:42 PM
I thought this one was pretty great.

1.Ore
2.Specimen
3.Containment
4.Night Shift

Dats it.

This was a close runner up to Specimen, which was perfect! This one had some acting issues, but top notch execution for the most part, a bit unoriginal. Bonus points for bringing in a full grown xeno! :)

This was almost as good as that short film Randy pawned off as Colonial Marines.  ;D

The cliche antagonist, the elevator contrivance and Direction is the reason Specimen's superior, although Ore is excellent.
Also the Alien designs are weak, but the facility itself is fantastic.

Does the spiked head make the raven Canon?

Best one so far.

I'm a tad bummed about the open ending, but everything else was completely on point.

10/10

Dear canon. I got a wish list for you to hear...

(https://media.giphy.com/media/Pj0idw5JtWSN2omk9V/giphy.gif)

I dug this one a lot. Ever since I saw Rodan I've always had a soft spot for "miners dig too deep and find a monster" stories. Also reminds me a bunch of the first Alien level in AvP Extinction.

Quote from: Huggs on Apr 20, 2019, 11:18:30 PM
Does the spiked head make the raven Canon?

Did someone say Canon thread?

Very good, but I'm still putting it behind Specimen which was much more original and introduced a twist style ending with something we've not really seen before. The lighting and editing in this one was probably the best out of everything, but Specimen is a more rounded short and does the most with the 10 minutes.

As a by the numbers Alien film this is about as good as you'll get, but I'm still hoping there's more specimen and less mini Alien films.

Solid 7.

1.Specimen
2. Ore
3 and 4 - Containment and Nightshift draw. 

Quote from: Huggs on Apr 20, 2019, 11:18:30 PM
Does the spiked head make the raven Canon?

I'm more interested in the possibility of Alien eggs being hiding in the dark all over the place.

Quote from: Xenomrph on Apr 21, 2019, 06:49:14 AM

Quote from: Huggs on Apr 20, 2019, 11:18:30 PM
Does the spiked head make the raven Canon?

I'm more interested in the possibility of Alien eggs being hiding in the dark all over the place.

I did wonder if these shorts were to open up the series for a new movie thread since Alien eggs seem to be apparently everywhere.

I don't like the mine shaft thing though, seems a bit too - "Reign of Fire". It's fine for a short though.

All other priorities better be rescinded, nam I'm sayin'?

Spoiler

I like to think that those guys put up a pitiful fight and got torn spectacularly into by the Xenomorph. No Hollywood plot armor here.

[close]

Quote from: Monster Man on Apr 21, 2019, 08:54:37 AM
All other priorities better be rescinded, nam I'm sayin'?

Spoiler

I like to think that those guys put up a pitiful fight and got torn spectacularly into by the Xenomorph. No Hollywood plot armor here.

[close]

That's pretty much how I pictured it going down, too. :P

Was good.
Really didn't need to see the beast lunging towards the camera at the end.
Atmosphere was spot on though.
8/10

Quote from: SlangOne on Apr 20, 2019, 10:31:40 AM
Pretty good...but why is every one of those shorts going for the slow-burn of Alien 1?
Seems nobody had the balls yet to make an action oriented one to honor Aliens which is disappointing to be honest.

'Aliens' was also slow burn. It's an hour or more until the audience sees the Aliens being encountered. It just doesn't feel like it, because Cameron manages to keep the tension going with genuine foreboding and even red herrings, like Ripley's dream scene.

Personally, I would have liked to have seen something unexpected, like a comedy, along the lines of this:



Still curious about the romance one which didn't win in the competition!

The Alien acutally doesn't have any spikes coming out of it's head, that looks like a piece of metal stabbed into it since we know they hit it at least once
Before it gets hit we can see it's fullbody and there is no spike
https://i.imgur.com/wtyumpp.png

It would be cool if one of them was based around the black goo or perhaps a spooky ship. Not sure if they can go there though.

There's only so many ideas you can come up with in 10 minutes that involve an egg or a chest burster.

They had to base it on the first film. .

How do they spell it in the states?

Ensure. Insure is usually reserved specifically for insurance, rather than to guarantee something.

Quote from: SiL on Apr 22, 2019, 02:55:44 AM
They had to base it on the first film. .

Seems kind of a loose framework - Alien/Android/Worker in space. They are still good, would have preferred more Specimen style though.

Specimen is the only one so far that's actually tried to tell a complete short story, rather than a snapshot of a longer movie. I think that's why it worked so well.

Containment tells a complete story, too. It just needs to be longer in the middle.

Ore is the first act of a 3 act story. Setup: introducing setting and characters and their relationships and their situation. Inciting Incident: the xeno attack. 1st act climax: realising they can't go back to normality - they must face the threat.

Night Shift starts well but it's a muddle really.

Specimen's structure is all about setting up the twist ending. (Although I say it's not a twist ending, it's a surprise ending).

https://mckeestory.com/what-is-the-difference-between-a-surprise-ending-and-a-plot-twist/

TC

Containment still feels like it's trying to be a scene from a longer story. It really doesn't use its run time very efficiently.

Quote from: TC on Apr 22, 2019, 05:30:13 AM
Specimen's structure is all about setting up the twist ending. (Although I say it's not a twist ending, it's a surprise ending).

https://mckeestory.com/what-is-the-difference-between-a-surprise-ending-and-a-plot-twist/

I don't see how that isn't a plot twist by this definition.

It makes you go back and reconsider the fact she gets so attached to the dogs even though they're not real dogs, it makes you reconsider the use of synthetic dogs over other synthetics, it makes you reconsider the world the story takes place in -- sounds like a twist.

It also heavily plays on us thinking the dogs going to get face hugged - "I've seen this before"

Specimen is technically the only one with an ending.

It's a complete short.

Quote from: SiL on Apr 22, 2019, 03:34:05 AMEnsure. Insure is usually reserved specifically for insurance, rather than to guarantee something.

Which isn't necessarily just an American thing, it's the same in the UK.

They're more interchangeable in UK English than American English.

Quote from: TC on Apr 22, 2019, 05:30:13 AM
Containment tells a complete story, too. It just needs to be longer in the middle.

Ore is the first act of a 3 act story. Setup: introducing setting and characters and their relationships and their situation. Inciting Incident: the xeno attack. 1st act climax: realising they can't go back to normality - they must face the threat.

Night Shift starts well but it's a muddle really.

Specimen's structure is all about setting up the twist ending. (Although I say it's not a twist ending, it's a surprise ending).

https://mckeestory.com/what-is-the-difference-between-a-surprise-ending-and-a-plot-twist/

TC

Containment is the fourth act where the events of the first three are hinted at.

Quote from: David's Creation on Apr 22, 2019, 06:35:25 AM
I don't see how that isn't a plot twist by this definition.

A twist ending is more deeply rooted in the writer's theme or message. Your understanding of the twist also brings pre-planted clues together so that you now understand the story's meaning.

Surprise endings are easy, you just hit the audience with something unexpected. (If you're a little more sophisticated you can throw out some red herrings beforehand.)

Twist endings are difficult. They require manipulation of the viewer's powers of insight.

Also see SiL's answer, he has a nice way of interpreting what McKee is trying to say. But where I disagree with SiL is - well, you can simply read my response below.

Quote from: SiL on Apr 22, 2019, 07:04:32 AM
It makes you go back and reconsider the fact she gets so attached to the dogs even though they're not real dogs, it makes you reconsider the use of synthetic dogs over other synthetics, it makes you reconsider the world the story takes place in -- sounds like a twist.

You think all these "reconsiderations" are part of Taylor's thesis? OK, every viewer's mileage is going to vary. But clearly you put a lot more thought into the "twist" than I did. I got stuck on the first item in your list.

Is Julie attached to Maggie? The storytelling is contradictory.

a. She is fond of Maggie; because she gives her a name, and playfully throws a ball of paper to her.

b. She is not fond of Maggie; because she is so cool and distant when she discovers Maggie in her death throes. (She doesn't offer any comfort to Maggie. Her facial expression shows annoyance rather than sadness or sympathy. The coverage is in singles - no 2-shots bringing the two of them together in the same frame for intimacy. She euthanises Maggie with a decapitating blow from a spade - is this how you would put down a beloved friend? I think not.)

What's going on here? [Speculation mode /on]
I think Taylor wanted to hit the "twist" as hard as possible. All other priorities rescinded. So in the beginning she fools us with the naming of the dog thing and the wad of paper. Then, post-robot reveal, she changes Julie's character completely to make sure we understand that Maggie is a machine, because it goes without saying nobody has feelings for machines, right? 
[Speculation mode /off]

I'm not saying it didn't work: clearly it does, but at the cost of breaking Julie's character. First she shows one personality, and then, for plot/twist expediency, she shows another. This is a flaw that's no biggie in a short film - lots of shorts work like the telling of a joke: You deliver the set up - you hit the punchline. No more, no less, and nothing deep and meaningful enough to make you "reconsider" anything.

Quote from: SiL on Apr 22, 2019, 05:36:13 AM
Containment still feels like it's trying to be a scene from a longer story. It really doesn't use its run time very efficiently.

Agreed.

I don't pretend to be an expert in short-film script-writing, but I'm beginning appreciate how hard it is. That time restriction is a killer. (Incidentally, not one of the Alien shorts so far has abided by the running time guide of 6 to 9 minutes. They all overshoot.)

I've worked on a few short films for friends and colleagues (not as writer), but I never bothered to analyse the scripts I was given. I worked on them for fun and favours. It's only recently I've been thinking about what makes a short-film script work (or not work).

I think I'm slowly making headway.

I've learned that you can make some outrageous abbreviations in your story structure, not just in exposition and character setup, but also escalations to turning points. These are the kinds of cuts that would be fundamentally egregious in a long-form story, but, for what ever reason, you can get away with it in a short.

It's deceptive, because if the beginning of your short script retains the features of a normal 3-act feature film, everything feels entirely proper and even necessary, because it's so normal; it's what we're used to. It never occurs to you that some elements of structure can be discarded and it will still work. (Elements that have probably been hammered into you by writing lecturers and tutors, books by screenwriting gurus, YouTube videos, etc.).

In Containment, as much as I enjoyed Albrecht's little explanatory speech, it probably should have been discarded and the running time used to protract the scene later on for the purposes of tension and suspense. It also needs some kind of plot point after the chestburster emerges. No, not the space debris collision that causes Albrecht to open the airlock, but some sort of statement about Ward's predicament. That's my feeling anyway.

TC

---

Quote from: SM on Apr 22, 2019, 09:20:51 AM
Containment is the fourth act where the events of the first three are hinted at.

This is interesting. I did not know Fox had prescribed "stages" for each of the shorts, so that they fitted into an over all arc.

TC

Ore I enjoyed, like Containment. Two out of four so far.

Here's hoping they're saved the best two shorts for last.

Last two shorts are sadly among the worst for me lol

Harvest is more in line with the haunted house in space. I enjoyed it. Alone, I loved, but I know it's going to be quite divisive. It's the bravest of the shorts, I think, but how people are going to react to it...I'm interested to see just how this is going to split.

Quote from: Corporal Hicks on Apr 22, 2019, 07:16:29 PM
Harvest is more in line with the haunted house in space. I enjoyed it. Alone, I loved, but I know it's going to be quite divisive. It's the bravest of the shorts, I think, but how people are going to react to it...I'm interested to see just how this is going to split.

So what's your top pick out of all of them?

For me, I think it'd go Alone, Ore/Harvest, Specimen, Containment and then Night Shift.

Just watched Ore. Enjoyed that.

Haven't checked the cast list but the woman that was hugged and went back up in the lift looked just like Abi Franklin from Coronation Street  ;D

QuoteThis is interesting. I did not know Fox had prescribed "stages" for each of the shorts, so that they fitted into an over all arc.

They haven't as far as I know.  What I meant was - it's the scene in the shuttle in Alien, or on the Sulaco in Aliens or on the Betty in Resurrection.  Stuff has gone down on the ship we see breaking up and the film is what happens when the characters think they've escaped.

Yeah, as Ridley Scott would say;

"So here I thought, an end, on an end, on an end and on an end. Brilliant."
Seen previously, the Alien surviving onboard the Narcissus, Sulaco and surviving a furnace.

Quote from: SM on Apr 22, 2019, 10:03:47 PM

QuoteThis is interesting. I did not know Fox had prescribed "stages" for each of the shorts, so that they fitted into an over all arc.

They haven't as far as I know.  What I meant was - it's the scene in the shuttle in Alien, or on the Sulaco in Aliens or on the Betty in Resurrection.  Stuff has gone down on the ship we see breaking up and the film is what happens when the characters think they've escaped.

Oh, I see. I completely misunderstood you before, didn't I? LOL

And yes. You're right. Good call.

TC

Just watched this again.

The actress playing Hanks is fantastic.

https://tongal.com/blog/articles/creator-interview-kailey-and-sam-spear-on-the-making-of-alien-ore

Interview via Tongal.

---

Apparently this was Tongal's biggest competition. It's great to know Alien's pulling power is still there.

It's Alien AP!

Meh...so what all we are gonna get is rehashing of parts of the same story that we have already seen, only with inferior actors? I've yet to be impressed with any of these.

Its pretty obvious that we will not seen much of the creatures in any of these. Either for legal or budgetary reasons. Which makes these even less appealing to me. 

Just watched this. It's by far the best of the releases so far, in my opinion. Well shot, well acted, and with good use of limited cgi.

The only problem with this short is they spelled "or" wrong.

Imbeciles...

Quote from: brokentusk420 on Apr 24, 2019, 08:07:10 PM
Meh...so what all we are gonna get is rehashing of parts of the same story that we have already seen, only with inferior actors? I've yet to be impressed with any of these.

Its pretty obvious that we will not seen much of the creatures in any of these. Either for legal or budgetary reasons. Which makes these even less appealing to me. 

It's the anniversary of the first film.

The money's not there, and we're not supposed to see much of them because they're in the spirit of the first movie.

Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 25, 2019, 12:37:39 AM
The only problem with this short is they spelled "or" wrong.

Imbeciles...

I don't get it.

Alien: or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Beast

Quote from: Highland on Apr 25, 2019, 02:42:25 AM

Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 25, 2019, 12:37:39 AM
The only problem with this short is they spelled "or" wrong.

Imbeciles...

I don't get it.

Because it's an awful joke. That's below Dad Joke level. Way below. Disappointed.

---

Quote from: brokentusk420 on Apr 24, 2019, 08:07:10 PM
Meh...so what all we are gonna get is rehashing of parts of the same story that we have already seen, only with inferior actors? I've yet to be impressed with any of these.

Completely disagree. Containment does feel a little like that, but the rest, no. That said, they are supposed to evoke the Alien sensation and I think they're doing great.

People also have to remember these things were made with $35,000 and aren't exactly big screen productions. Personally, aside from the one, I've been really enjoying these Shorts and they've made so much with so little.

Yeah, I feel like some people need to bear in mind what these productions had to work with.

A tiny budget and amateur crew don't forgive all their faults, but I'm gonna give them a lot more credit than if these were coming from a proper film studio. Considering what little they had to work with all of these have impressed me in one way or another. And Specimen and Ore have been downright remarkable.

Quote from: Corporal Hicks on Apr 25, 2019, 07:35:34 AM

Quote from: Highland on Apr 25, 2019, 02:42:25 AM

Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 25, 2019, 12:37:39 AM
The only problem with this short is they spelled "or" wrong.

Imbeciles...

I don't get it.

Because it's an awful joke. That's below Dad Joke level. Way below. Disappointed.

Yes!!!  I was shooting for "way, way below" so anything above that is a win!

Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 25, 2019, 10:25:41 AM

Quote from: Corporal Hicks on Apr 25, 2019, 07:35:34 AM

Quote from: Highland on Apr 25, 2019, 02:42:25 AM

Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 25, 2019, 12:37:39 AM
The only problem with this short is they spelled "or" wrong.

Imbeciles...

I don't get it.

Because it's an awful joke. That's below Dad Joke level. Way below. Disappointed.

Yes!!!  I was shooting for "way, way below" so anything above that is a win!

If it helps, Scooby, I think it's way, way below.

(https://gifimage.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/mission-accomplished-gif-12.gif)

Hello all! Just popping in to say thanks for watching ALIEN: ORE!
We are honoured to have been able to make one of these shorts to celebrate the 40th Anniversary of such an amazing film! :)
-k&s

Quote from: SpearSisters on Apr 27, 2019, 10:37:18 PM
Hello all! Just popping in to say thanks for watching ALIEN: ORE!
We are honoured to have been able to make one of these shorts to celebrate the 40th Anniversary of such an amazing film! :)
-k&s

I loved it! 👍

Thank you both very much for making it, it's a fantastic Alien Universe addition and easily amongst the top three.

Quote from: Roby on Apr 28, 2019, 12:37:09 AM

Quote from: SpearSisters on Apr 27, 2019, 10:37:18 PM
Hello all! Just popping in to say thanks for watching ALIEN: ORE!
We are honoured to have been able to make one of these shorts to celebrate the 40th Anniversary of such an amazing film! :)
-k&s

I loved it! 👍

Yeahh! That makes us happy  :D

---

Quote from: The Old One on Apr 28, 2019, 02:51:28 AM
Thank you both very much for making it, it's a fantastic Alien Universe addition and easily amongst the top three.

Thank you so much! We're thrilled you liked it!

You're more than welcome.

Official poster for #AlienOre. Created by the fantastic @Eljayay & Kaitlyn Hunter https://t.co/IwA0x4Subu
 #Alien #AlienOre #AlienAnthology #Alien40th pic.twitter.com/RbT20V0dRL

— Sam Spear (@SamSSpear) May 6, 2019

Pretty cool poster.

Nice one, I dig it.

I love the minimalist style of that poster.

Nicely done.

It's good, I'd love a poster for each.
Specimen and Ore have one each now, afterall.

Some Ore inspired artwork: https://www.artstation.com/artwork/w8vKVY

(https://cdnb.artstation.com/p/assets/images/images/017/415/719/large/pixel-slayerr-ore.jpg?1555907440)

Really love the poster for this.

I know that i gonna be in minority now but honestly i was bored with Ore. I don't eager to rewatch it any time soon and i can' t say the same about Harvest and Alone. I didn't buy that ending at all: people should be scared to death by the Alien but not try to fight in the first encounter with bare hands. For me it was too sweety and unrealistic.

GGI was good though.'

Quote from: Corporal Hicks on May 12, 2019, 06:30:34 PM
Ore inspired artwork: https://www.artstation.com/artwork/w8vKVY

(https://cdnb.artstation.com/p/assets/images/images/017/415/719/large/pixel-slayerr-ore.jpg?1555907440)

Awesome artwork.

Obviously the most Aliens inspired.
The whole community working together is a decent story arc, lead by a older member.

http://www.nicksmovieinsights.com/2019/05/alien-ore-QandA-part-one-mikela-jay.html
http://www.nicksmovieinsights.com/2019/05/alien-ore-2019-part-two-meet-the-directors.html

http://www.nicksmovieinsights.com/2019/06/alien-ore-2019-tara-pratt-part-one.html

Nice interview. I wonder what's Fox/Disney's reaction to how these projects were received.

At some point I'm gonna have to trawl through all these threads and catch up on all the BTS stuff I've missed!

Eagerly awaiting the rest of the interview.

Part Three of NickIsSmart's Q&As: http://www.nicksmovieinsights.com/2019/07/alien-ore-2019-leonty-music-part-three.html

I'd be up for a Spears Sisters or Noah Miller Directed feature length film, but Kesley Taylor particularly.  ;D

How cool is the Xenomorph @ImageEngine made for #AlienOre!? Such awesome work done by such an awesome team! ⭐️💚@AlienAnthology #alien40th https://t.co/uo3575e4VW

— Kailey Spear (@KaileySpear) August 31, 2019

Nice! The CGI Alien was well done, I was more than impressed.

http://www.nicksmovieinsights.com/2019/09/alien-ore-2019-ambrose-gardener-part-2.html

I've enjoyed his interview series related to this.

Quote from: Corporal Hicks on Jul 22, 2019, 09:03:35 AM
Part Three of NickIsSmart's Q&As: http://www.nicksmovieinsights.com/2019/07/alien-ore-2019-leonty-music-part-three.html

Isn't that the guy you banned?  :laugh:

It is. I wasn't going to mention it.  :laugh: I've been sharing them anyway, since he's not being a pretentious jerk in his articles and they've been good.

 :laugh:

Exactly 1 year ago we started shooting #AlienOre. Where did the time go!? #spearsisters #alien #alien40th @AlienAnthology pic.twitter.com/ZwXNCemcRM

— Kailey Spear (@KaileySpear) October 15, 2019

I don't know. But I hope it gets a Blu-ray release, and they get to direct at least one episode of an official Alien series someday.

I thought these shorts would be included with the 40th anniversary release of Alien, but I guess not? What I've read is that it's the same blu-ray that was in the Anthology release, so I didn't buy it.

They were included as download codes iirc? They've not had a physical release yet.

Yes the download has them under "extras" on the 40th anniversary 4K release. And they're definitely better picture quality than YouTube as you're not streaming them.

I believe this film ultimately represents: The Alien/Xenomorph XX121

(Sighs) I wish there were more of these coming.

Quote from: Huggs on Mar 05, 2020, 01:09:50 AM
(Sighs) I wish there were more of these coming.

You do have

Spoiler

Burning Bridges.

[close]

:P

By far the most popular of the films, very simple, very cliche, but very good regardless, really I'd happily see an Alien film Directed by the Spear Sisters, for me it's second place

Hey guys, First post from a long, long time lurker. Love the site! This and Specimen is what the Alien world has been lacking for years. Good characters, simple scenario and l love the camera work on the old monitors. I kept telling my kids that the Alien franchise was dead(not that they care) after Disney acquired the series. After Isolation, these films and Disney announcing they have some projects has restored some hope.

Yeah! A Leo Award for Best Direction! This award is obviously shared with our incredible crew and cast and everyone who made ALIEN: ORE possible ♥️ #AlienOre #BCFilm #LeoAwards #leoawards2020 #Alien 🍾 pic.twitter.com/ACESFQRbj7

— Kailey Spear (@KaileySpear) July 30, 2020

Congrats! And very well deserved!

Nice!

Well done!

Indeed!

https://twitter.com/KaileySpear/status/1386834331549667329

To show how far my fandom has died with the series.  Still haven't watched all of these.  If this was fifteen years ago, I would've watched them minutes after they came out. 

I say give Specimen, Ore and Alone a shot then, if that does not do it for you the rest probably will not either.

Quote from: Kimarhi on Apr 27, 2021, 03:05:59 AM
To show how far my fandom has died with the series.  Still haven't watched all of these.  If this was fifteen years ago, I would've watched them minutes after they came out.

Um, what are you doing here then ?

Don't be mean man.

Am I ?

Can be interpreted that way certainly.

Quote from: Kradan on Apr 28, 2021, 03:38:26 PM

Quote from: Kimarhi on Apr 27, 2021, 03:05:59 AM
To show how far my fandom has died with the series.  Still haven't watched all of these.  If this was fifteen years ago, I would've watched them minutes after they came out.

Um, what are you doing here then ?

Died was probably the wrong word.  Fallen would've been better.


It is really the only fandom I have ever followed to this degree, so even if it has fallen off, it is still about base level with all my other interest.



At one time I was a diehard Detroit Pistons fan, and since they've sucked for so long, it is kind of the same feeling. 

Quote from: Kradan on Apr 28, 2021, 03:38:26 PM
Um, what are you doing here then ?

He's just here for your Wonderful Life thread. Don't disappoint him son.