Final Fantasy VI Fan Film Aims to Bring Classic RPG to Life

[elvor0]

Even Square Enix can't make a good FF movie, so I don't see much point in this. Maybe if they made it with 2d animation or something. Honestly, the plot wasn't that good, and neither was the writing. I found the lead characters somewhat dry, and the villain was awful. He was basically a Saturday morning cartoon villain, except with less depth. Why would he want to destroy the world? What profit is there in that? "lol I'm crazy" isn't much of a motivation. Even Elmer Fud has more characterization than that. Best of the FF's it was not. People hate on Sephiroth, but atleast he was working for personal profit and had some tragedy to his story.

Maybe FF4 or Chrono Trigger, that would be interesting. I would love to see more of Chrono.

For its time it was pretty revolutionary, and the characters are pretty fleshed out, plus a lot of the background for them was subtle or in hidden scenes and whatnot, as opposed to exposition. It's not always the plot that's great, it's the story that matters, which is still a lot of fun.

That and it's got a heap of iconic moments (The Opera, The Ghost Train, Dancing Mad, Celes Suicide, the actual end of the world to name a few) and I think the point with Kefka was that he wasn't some tragic villain, or some misunderstood hero, or even someone who got in way over his head and cocked everything up, not every villain needs to be so; he was just some crazy ass nutjob who wanted to blow up the world because he could, (and did) because he thought it'd be fun. I mean how many villians get to say they actually managed to take over and bring about the apocalypse?

I mean heck, people love The Joker and most of em don't even know his origin (which technically would make him a tragic villian by any standard(ugh far too many arguments about the joker who only know Ledgers version)), they just love him because he's a crazy villain that does stuff for the lulz.

OT: eeeeh can't say I'm enthused. This'd do better animated traditionally or CGI. Edgar and Celes don't even look right, Edgars blonde for fuck sake AND is supposed to be devilishly handsome, not some teenager in a dodgy larp outfit, Celes isn't even wearing the right outfit! Waaaaay too much green screen, shaky voice acting, generic Hollywood style trailer. I mean I know this is a fan film, but sometimes you gotta accept that things are beyond your scope.

One thing I will say is their Kefka looks genuinely creepy.

 

[Akytalusia]

i'd love to see a movie based on FFVI, but not like that. it's evident a lot of effort went into this trailer, but there's only so far you can get on pure enthusiasm if you lack the resources to support your ambition. third parties can only see the product. the intangible love that you put into your work is invisible to them, and they're the ones that ultimately determine a things worth and place in history. thus it would be better handled by someone with resources adequate enough to satisfy the expectations of the fans. that's the nicest way i can put it.

 

[Fox12]

Even Square Enix can't make a good FF movie, so I don't see much point in this. Maybe if they made it with 2d animation or something. Honestly, the plot wasn't that good, and neither was the writing. I found the lead characters somewhat dry, and the villain was awful. He was basically a Saturday morning cartoon villain, except with less depth. Why would he want to destroy the world? What profit is there in that? "lol I'm crazy" isn't much of a motivation. Even Elmer Fud has more characterization than that. Best of the FF's it was not. People hate on Sephiroth, but atleast he was working for personal profit and had some tragedy to his story.

Maybe FF4 or Chrono Trigger, that would be interesting. I would love to see more of Chrono.

For its time it was pretty revolutionary, and the characters are pretty fleshed out, plus a lot of the background for them was subtle or in hidden scenes and whatnot, as opposed to exposition. It's not always the plot that's great, it's the story that matters, which is still a lot of fun.

That and it's got a heap of iconic moments (The Opera, The Ghost Train, Dancing Mad, Celes Suicide, the actual end of the world to name a few) and I think the point with Kefka was that he wasn't some tragic villain, or some misunderstood hero, or even someone who got in way over his head and cocked everything up, not every villain needs to be so; he was just some crazy ass nutjob who wanted to blow up the world because he could, (and did) because he thought it'd be fun. I mean how many villians get to say they actually managed to take over and bring about the apocalypse?

I mean heck, people love The Joker and most of em don't even know his origin (which technically would make him a tragic villian by any standard(ugh far too many arguments about the joker who only know Ledgers version)), they just love him because he's a crazy villain that does stuff for the lulz.

OT: eeeeh can't say I'm enthused. This'd do better animated traditionally or CGI. Edgar and Celes don't even look right, Edgars blonde for fuck sake AND is supposed to be devilishly handsome, not some teenager in a dodgy larp outfit, Celes isn't even wearing the right outfit! Waaaaay too much green screen, shaky voice acting, generic Hollywood style trailer. I mean I know this is a fan film, but sometimes you gotta accept that things are beyond your scope.

One thing I will say is their Kefka looks genuinely creepy.

I don't know, I think the Joker had a lot more depth and motivation then Kefka did. He's kind of like The Comedian from Watchmen, he saw how messed up the world was and he decided to become a parody of it. He wanted to show the world what (he thought) reality was really like. I didn't get that with Kefka.

To be fair, I was a little harsh. The game wasn't terrible, it just didn't do it for me. I love FF7, and lot of people hate it, so it's really just a matter of taste. That is the great thing about the series, almost every game has a fraction of loyal fan, there's not an obvious "best." Some people like 4 best, some like 6 best, some like 7, 8, 9, 10, ect. Then some think 13 is the best, and everyone stones them. I guess I can see the appeal for 6, it just doesn't do it for me.

 

[gmaverick019_v1legacy]

while it wasn't that good, holy fuck are you guys judgemental, damn...and I thought video games sometimes got it bad.

OT: I wouldn't mind a ff6 movie, but it probably shouldn't be fan made.

When we see things like Link's Shadow (look it up), we have a right to be judgemental. Especially since they botched the costumes, the designs, the greenscreen, and pretty much every single thing in that video. Hell, Kefka? Looks nothing like Kefka. Same with Locke, Celes, Edgar...

I am sorry, I am a HUGE fan of FFVI and consider it the second best FF behind FFXI and... well this was really bad.

as mentioned in my first words, it wasn't that good...but then again, maybe i've been exposed to alot worse than the escapist has, it is utterly horribad some of the 5 dollar productions i've seen tossed together for trailers, from people using blankets as capes and jedi robes to laundry baskets being used as animal cages...

i am a little shocked you put 11 as your best ff, not everyday you see that.

 

[2xDouble]

For a fan-made trailer, it's not too bad. A couple things could do with some improvement, or are outright wrong:

Locke and Edgar need some brighter, more distinct colors in their costumes, like Terra's, to help identify them.

Celes could use some metallic-looking armor pieces in her outfit, particularly on her legs and shoulders, and could use some more/brighter color as well.

(...it occurs to me that having bright green costumes, like Edgar's and Celes's, against green screen may not be the most functional idea. Same goes for Locke's blues. Still, did they have to make it so dark and dull?)

Really should at least allude to Edgar and Sabin's side story/subplot. It's about as "main" a story as the series of interwoven subplots can have, and rather integral to their motivations for helping Terra and Locke. I find it extremely difficult to believe they couldn't find someone with Sabin's physique who looked similar enough to the actor playing Edgar... hell, just have the "Edgar" do double duty, if he's up for it.

Should have brief/flash appearances by a few other key characters, such as: Setzer, Cyan, Shadow, Strago and Relm, and General Leo... as well as Mog and the Moogles, if time and budget permit.

Where the f*%& is Tritoch? Tritoch was the whole purpose for the invasion of Narshe, and its reaction to Terra is a major turning point in her life.

Nobody ever actually told Locke to find Terra in Narshe. Locke was looting imperial stashes when he found Terra unconscious in the snow after her encounter with Tritoch.

Banon died before the World of Ruin and would have known little of Kefka's importance. Banon's beef was with Emperor Gestahl. At that point in the story Kefka was just an arbitrary dick "supervising" General Leo for the Empire. For that matter, Celes never met Banon, and neither Terra nor Banon would have had any reckon of her life before the dark times, before the Empire. (heh) Who is asking about "the world before Kefka"? and why is she asking Banon?

At no point in the game are Edgar and Celes alone together; especially not against a Magitek armor. (meh, "artistic licence")

Edgar wields a Spear as his main weapon. The Autocrossbow, though arguably his best attack for most of the early game, remains hidden until he's about to fire it. (again, "artistic license". totally fine with that). Furthermore, Edgar wouldn't pull out his Autocrossbow against a single enemy, even a big one. His spear (or a different Tool) is much more effective against one enemy, and Edgar knows that. He says so explicitly when you pick one up.

Terra's little "flame incident" happened months or perhaps years before she met up with Locke, and didn't happen in Narshe, nor it's cave systems.


Basically, this is a cool idea, and I'd love to see a series on it. Let's face facts: No single movie can cover the intricate tapestries of subplots, side-stories, and background exposition that make up Final Fantasy 6. (I've seen entire seasons of anime series have less complex storytelling.) I'd also like to see a bit more creativity in implementing the costuming and special effects, as their current techniques simply aren't adequate.

 

[dragongit]

Ugh... a bit more effort could have gone into it. It reminds me of the Sonic fan movie, or the Megaman one, and that... ugh... maybe this was made a while ago, but there are some good reference on how the Magitek armor looks from FFXIV. If you try to make it in the future, use that as a reference. These things look... like ass.

 

[RandV80]

I don't know, I think the Joker had a lot more depth and motivation then Kefka did. He's kind of like The Comedian from Watchmen, he saw how messed up the world was and he decided to become a parody of it. He wanted to show the world what (he thought) reality was really like. I didn't get that with Kefka.

To be fair, I was a little harsh. The game wasn't terrible, it just didn't do it for me. I love FF7, and lot of people hate it, so it's really just a matter of taste. That is the great thing about the series, almost every game has a fraction of loyal fan, there's not an obvious "best." Some people like 4 best, some like 6 best, some like 7, 8, 9, 10, ect. Then some think 13 is the best, and everyone stones them. I guess I can see the appeal for 6, it just doesn't do it for me.

A lot depends on when you started playing them, you gotta keep in mind the evolution of the genre. It isn't just about graphical updates, the earliest JRPG's had pretty much no characterization and little story, rather it was all about the quest. You started to see some shift in the latter end of the SNES era games, with emphasis on deep stories and character development starting full force early in the PS1's life cycle. FFVI was one of the leading pioneers for this transition, especially for Squaresoft, so it ended up being more of a hybrid game between the old and the new. You say Kefka never showed a lot of depth or motivation and that's pretty much why, but there's plenty of lore in the gameworld to fully flesh him out properly (along with everyone/everything else in the game) to flesh them out more like a modern JRPG. As the game is though it's more left up to your imagination to fill out the blanks, and for people who played the earlier JRPG's back in those days that was pretty much what you did because the games never gave you much to work with.

Also I don't think anyone really hates FFVII, they just don't think it's worth the unadulterated love it gets from it's biggest fans. Especially FF fans who started with the earlier or later games in the series.

Anyways for the topic article, it's decent for a fan film project but not something I'd really be interested in seeing as a full length movie. First off you'll never be able to make FFVI work as a movie without butchering the whole thing, second it's a property I love to much to see it get made by such a cheap production. I'd want it to be at least "There will be Brawl" quality, where it's headed by some industry veterans who can actually fund a bit of money into it and do and use wider casting net to get the right people.

Or going by people just making trailers, here's an example of something done by legit small time film makers from the Vancouver film industry:

Spoiler

The FF: Terra trailer in comparison has the special effects going for it but it otherwise looks like a film student project. Again nothing wrong with that, but not something I see as worthy of getting Square's approval. If anything Square shold get behind this:

Spoiler

Now that would be awesome!

 

[Bara_no_Hime]

As one of the supporters of the recently killed FF7 webseries project, I kinda doubt this is happening. SquareEnix is pretty guarded about their IP.

Which I have no problem with in theory, but it sucks that they let the FF7 people run with their idea for several fucking YEARS before giving them the legal smackdown. Apparently when they were spending their own money on the project, that was fine, carry on, but as soon as they started raising money, in come the lawyers. If they were gonna pull that, they should have done it years ago is all I'm saying.

So yeah... I wouldn't mind watching a completed fan film, but I think it's incredibly unlikely. More likely than not, Square will do what they did with FF7 - not reply to any e-mails unless/until they try their KS, and then smack them with a C&D - and then go back to not replying to e-mails.

 

[Bara_no_Hime]

Or going by people just making trailers, here's an example of something done by legit small time film makers from the Vancouver film industry:

Spoiler

**opens mouth**

**closes mouth**

Fuck! Now I want to see that Archie movie! That trailer was fucking amazing!

Can I Kickstart them to do a full movie instead of just a trailer? I don't even like Archie, but that was fucking awesome.

Edit: On second though, Archie Comics is even MORE bitchy about not "misrepresenting" their characters than SquareEnix is, so that is probably not happening. But... shit, that was incredible.

 

[elvor0]

-snip-

I don't know, I think the Joker had a lot more depth and motivation then Kefka did. He's kind of like The Comedian from Watchmen, he saw how messed up the world was and he decided to become a parody of it. He wanted to show the world what (he thought) reality was really like. I didn't get that with Kefka.

To be fair, I was a little harsh. The game wasn't terrible, it just didn't do it for me. I love FF7, and lot of people hate it, so it's really just a matter of taste. That is the great thing about the series, almost every game has a fraction of loyal fan, there's not an obvious "best." Some people like 4 best, some like 6 best, some like 7, 8, 9, 10, ect. Then some think 13 is the best, and everyone stones them. I guess I can see the appeal for 6, it just doesn't do it for me.

Oh quite, Joker and Comedian have waay more depth than Kefka, but then they've got the advantage of Alan Moore being a much better writer overall, and Joker has many years of stories. But on a basic level Joker and Kefka have that "chaotic insanity" appeal. I think you're right that /Ledgers/ Joker and The Comedian have more in common though, given even though Comedian was a bit dubious morality wise, he was still in charge of his marbles, which is the impression I got from Ledgers Joker, a calculating psychopath rather than the insane clown he is in the comics or the snapped everyman he's presented as in Moores Killing Joke.

I think 9 and 4 have to be my favourites though (New age and Retro eras respectively), even if Kuja was sorta channelling Kefka motivation wise, and 10s certainly up there. I mean 6 isn't even the best from Squares retro era despite the love it gets, that honour would have to go to Chrono Trigger (which I totally need to play again), which because it doesn't bear the FF brand, doesn't get as much exposure, even if it is beloved. But for the time, the sheer scope of FF6 and the aforementioned iconic moments are what propel it into the limelite. With the exception of 4 (and 5 because that's a whoooole other beast), it was one of the RPGs instrumental in introducing that style of having proper characters, game worlds with back story, lore and depth. Before then, it was mainly blank slate characters in pretty shallow worlds just doing the quest...because reasons.

 

[RaikuFA]

As one of the supporters of the recently killed FF7 webseries project, I kinda doubt this is happening. SquareEnix is pretty guarded about their IP.

Which I have no problem with in theory, but it sucks that they let the FF7 people run with their idea for several fucking YEARS before giving them the legal smackdown. Apparently when they were spending their own money on the project, that was fine, carry on, but as soon as they started raising money, in come the lawyers. If they were gonna pull that, they should have done it years ago is all I'm saying.

So yeah... I wouldn't mind watching a completed fan film, but I think it's incredibly unlikely. More likely than not, Square will do what they did with FF7 - not reply to any e-mails unless/until they try their KS, and then smack them with a C&D - and then go back to not replying to e-mails.

You forgot about that Chrono Midquel. It got C&D at 92%. I think it was still released or at least put on youtube.

 

[AzrealMaximillion]

Why make a movie about a game that's dozens of hours long when a series would be more appropriate?

Seriously, they'd be better off Kickstarting a one hour episode to show Square Enix that they can faithfully do the series. That'd be better than having an entire movie done in green screen.

 

[Fox12]

-snip-

I don't know, I think the Joker had a lot more depth and motivation then Kefka did. He's kind of like The Comedian from Watchmen, he saw how messed up the world was and he decided to become a parody of it. He wanted to show the world what (he thought) reality was really like. I didn't get that with Kefka.

To be fair, I was a little harsh. The game wasn't terrible, it just didn't do it for me. I love FF7, and lot of people hate it, so it's really just a matter of taste. That is the great thing about the series, almost every game has a fraction of loyal fan, there's not an obvious "best." Some people like 4 best, some like 6 best, some like 7, 8, 9, 10, ect. Then some think 13 is the best, and everyone stones them. I guess I can see the appeal for 6, it just doesn't do it for me.

Oh quite, Joker and Comedian have waay more depth than Kefka, but then they've got the advantage of Alan Moore being a much better writer overall, and Joker has many years of stories. But on a basic level Joker and Kefka have that "chaotic insanity" appeal. I think you're right that /Ledgers/ Joker and The Comedian have more in common though, given even though Comedian was a bit dubious morality wise, he was still in charge of his marbles, which is the impression I got from Ledgers Joker, a calculating psychopath rather than the insane clown he is in the comics or the snapped everyman he's presented as in Moores Killing Joke.

I think 9 and 4 have to be my favourites though (New age and Retro eras respectively), even if Kuja was sorta channelling Kefka motivation wise, and 10s certainly up there. I mean 6 isn't even the best from Squares retro era despite the love it gets, that honour would have to go to Chrono Trigger (which I totally need to play again), which because it doesn't bear the FF brand, doesn't get as much exposure, even if it is beloved. But for the time, the sheer scope of FF6 and the aforementioned iconic moments are what propel it into the limelite. With the exception of 4 (and 5 because that's a whoooole other beast), it was one of the RPGs instrumental in introducing that style of having proper characters, game worlds with back story, lore and depth. Before then, it was mainly blank slate characters in pretty shallow worlds just doing the quest...because reasons.

Yeah, I kind of feel like FF6 gets some of its popularity from FF7 blowback, if that makes sense. Many feel FF7 is overrated, and in a lot of ways it expanded on what FF6 did right. FF7 ushered in the more "modern" era of FF, and people who preferred the older versions tended to pine over FF6. I agree FF4 and Chrono Trigger were superior retro games overall, and had a more interesting atmosphere.

Lavos felt more like a calamity than an actual character, which is why I let him get away with no discernible motivation, and the other cast members were developed far more than was typical of the time. I can definitely see the influence it had on later titles, such as FF7 and the character of Jenova.

 

[Fox12]

Or going by people just making trailers, here's an example of something done by legit small time film makers from the Vancouver film industry:

Spoiler

**opens mouth**

**closes mouth**

Fuck! Now I want to see that Archie movie! That trailer was fucking amazing!

Can I Kickstart them to do a full movie instead of just a trailer? I don't even like Archie, but that was fucking awesome.

Edit: On second though, Archie Comics is even MORE bitchy about not "misrepresenting" their characters than SquareEnix is, so that is probably not happening. But... shit, that was incredible.

Holy cow, I guess everything needs a gritty reboot nowadays, huh? I don't even know anything about the Archie comic and I would probably check this out if it were real.

 

[Bara_no_Hime]

Holy cow, I guess everything needs a gritty reboot nowadays, huh? I don't even know anything about the Archie comic and I would probably check this out if it were real.

That wasn't just gritty, that was deconstructionist - breaking down genre to explore how the situation would play out in the real world - and I love me some deconstructionist fiction.

I only know the vaguest details about Archie (the names of some of the characters, partly thanks to TV Tropes) but yeah, I'd watch that if it was an actual movie.

 

[RandV80]

Or going by people just making trailers, here's an example of something done by legit small time film makers from the Vancouver film industry:

Spoiler

**opens mouth**

**closes mouth**

Fuck! Now I want to see that Archie movie! That trailer was fucking amazing!

Can I Kickstart them to do a full movie instead of just a trailer? I don't even like Archie, but that was fucking awesome.

Edit: On second though, Archie Comics is even MORE bitchy about not "misrepresenting" their characters than SquareEnix is, so that is probably not happening. But... shit, that was incredible.

No it was done a couple of years ago and only ever intended to be a 'trailer'. The film maker shot a few other 2-3 minute comedy shorts at the same time I guess to put together a showcase demo, and my girlfriend played a small role in one of them. I don't really know these people since I tend to forget faces and names almost immediately but I meet a lot of them attending events with the missus.

You see what happens is when you have a number of shows shooting in town like Smallville, Supernatural, Fringe, etc, where while the big shots are the big shots that do bigger shows all the people doing the menial stuff like lugging around cameras & equipment are likely film school graduates of some sort and aspiring directors/writers/filmographers/etc. Same thing with the small part one line actors, they're usually all highly trained and capable of bigger roles. Pretty much anyone can make a short film or a web series these days, and there's tons of student projects out there, but it's when those people collaborate that you get the higher quality productions. Or at least that's what I can tell from my limited experience.

 

[silverhawk100]

Final Fantasy VI: Terra

Let me just stop you right there. Part of what made VI so unique and interesting and good was that it didn't focus on one character. By subtitling it Terra, you're implying that you're just focusing on Terra's story. So you're going to ignore Celes' complex ethical struggles, Cyan's conflict between accepting loss and honoring his family's memory, Edgar and Sabin's different approaches towards duty, or even Gau's childlike desire to belong to a group of humans.

Yes, the game's run-time was on the order of 36 hours and it's story-run-time played out somewhere in the region of 6-10 hours. VI was an ensemble game that could allow itself to pay attention to many different characters and their interactions with each other. It had the time to enjoy itself. Yes, by condensing it into a film, you have to, by necessity, focus on a few of these characters and even if you make it an ensemble-driven story, you're going to lose a lot of that depth. Goodness knows, that the depth of the characters is the only thing going for it right now.

A fan tribute to this game would have to be another game. Anything less would just be masturbatory adulation. FFVII: Advent Children proved this with it's failed wink and nod style to all the other characters, but concentrating on Cloud's struggle to not just be another clone of Sephiroth. Advent Children ended up not being FFVII, but FF Sephiroth Fanfiction.