FOUR/SIX-C is a 14-minute 2D animated sci-fi short film that me and my friend co-directed independently over the span of 2 and a half years. The film is currently on a festival run, and will be released publicly sometime later this year.
The movie specifically focuses on the feeling of isolation, battling your own mind for sanity and the overwhelming feeling of guilt. Sal is now down to his one last attempt to create Eve and fears losing her forever.
This is my attempt at documenting the visual side of things, which I was fully responsible for.
Also, spoiler alert! and gore content warning.
The act structure and color script is loosely based on the various stages of grief our protagonist goes through
ACT 1 > Denial
ACT 2 > Isolation
ACT 3 > Anger
ACT 4 > Depression
ACT 5 > Bargaining
ACT 6 > Acceptance
ACT 1 > Denial
ACT 4 > Depression
ACT 2 > Isolation
ACT 5 > Bargaining
ACT 3 > Anger
ACT 6 > Acceptance
A DESOLATE WORLD
FOUR/SIX-C takes place in an unknown city on a planet that’s similar to earth. Solar panels keep the city alive and running. Also there are signs of destruction and vandalism indicating something happened. Why is everything so eerily calm?
All paintings are fully made in 2D.
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HOMELY ABODE
Sal’s room is a cluttered mess but an organized chaos of books, paintings and notes. Despite the jumble, he knows where every single thing is. The outer world is a complete contrast to Sal’s home, it’s dimly lit and cluttered. Both places are contrasting yet complement Sal’s personality in one way or the other.
For almost all interior shots, we collaborated with Jwalin Adhyaru, to make a 3D base model which I then painted over.
EVE'S MARK
A vintage establishment that exists in the middle of a futuristic city. This supermarket was a big target for protesters, anarchists and even people just trying to get by when the world was spiraling into madness because of Sal’s doings.
HALL OF SHAME
Living room..hehe what an antonym. Since this room is unused, Sal has now converted this place into a ‘hall of shame’, displaying his failures in front of him so he could study them and learn from his mistakes.
SAVE YOUR SOUL
Informally, the headquarters of SAL INDUSTRIES and the home of Project FOUR/SIX-C, this is Sal’s playground where all his experiments, his projects and essentially all creations take place. But as we know, he’s just obsessed with one particular creation and the lab is full of more failed attempts put up on display.
What Lurks Beneath
WHITESPACE is Sal’s subconscious brain visualized. Initially, the nightmare sequence plays in this space but later we learn that Sal also has the ability to control this space with his thoughts. After the intense creation sequence which is the climax of the film, Sal goes back to this space, which we see as a calm and serene beach with red water.
Visual development
Visual development is a very broad term and could mean a lot of things, so here are a few things I could not categorize into anything else.
TRAILER
FOUR/SIX-C is a labour of love and it would not have been possible without the help of an amazing bunch of people who helped us with it, with no expectations and just out of love.
The movie is currently on a festival run and will release online later this year.
If you would like a digital copy of FOUR/SIX-C’s artbook please reach out to me on hello@toashbhat.com and tell me what your favorite movie/show/video game is 😀
Co-directed by: Toash Bhat and Mazhar Kothari
Produced by: Fazle Kothari, Zarina Kothari and
Prateek Sethi for Trip Creative Services
Background Design, Visual Development, Compositing, Assisting Animator and Production Manager: Toash Bhat
Character Design and Lead Animator: Mazhar Kothari
Cleanup and Coloring: Toash Bhat and Mazhar Kothari
3D Modelling: Jwalin Adhyaru
Title Design: Anusheel Gurjar
Watercolor FX: Maithili Naikare
Asst. Storyboard Artist: Harsh Tikkha
Sound Design: Troy Vasanth
Voice Acting: Sarthak Karkare as SAL, Dakshaini Aatluri as EVE
Music provided by United Sound Records Ⓒ & ℗
Song by Sanoli Chowdhury
“a lie that we lived together”
Our crowdfunding campaign for post-production and distribution was backed by 58 amazing people <3 and to all our friends, family and peers who supported us and contributed in many many indirect ways.
