2:26 AM, Hollyweird time.
The video is uploading now and I’m terrified.
Anyone who has worked freakishly hard on a project to be shown to the public must feel like this. I slaved, I sweated, I bled and I lost sleep over this, and by god it was worth it. Can’t wait to do it again.
This is sincerely the best video I’ve ever made, and I’m scared nobody is going to like it.
An irrational fear, obviously. On a spinning rock populated by 6 billion people SOMEone is bound to like it. I mean in a world where Pauly Shore was king for a day there’s hope for anyone, right?
2:36 AM, Hollyweird time.
Oh god oh god oh god oh god oh god.
3:00 AM, Hollyweird time.
Ok, I’d better stop freaking and just get to explaining the video already.
The video below is the product of well over 40 hours of hard work, fits of rage and confusion and quite a lot of caffeine. Before you ask, soda was the only substance abused in it’s creation at all levels (read: No I did not get “high”… my brain is just that fucked up).
All of the materials I used are either public domain or from http://www.sxc.hu, which is a lovely site by the way and an incredible resource for all artists. The song is “Don’t try it for it can’t be done,” by Riley Puckett which I chose as it resonated with many people’s opinion of my efforts and skills. It is also in the public domain, which is rather nice I think.
The animation was done in Anime Studio 5, which in spite of the name and stated purpose is quite a lovely, if ill tempered, program1. No, I won’t teach you and no, I don’t have any tips. Just because you fiddle around with a car long enough to figure out how to drive does not qualify you to teach, in spite of every DMV ever.
The script was written by me in about 30 minutes after having mulled over bits and pieces for probably weeks beforehand. I’m proud to say that it’s some of the funniest shite I’ve ever written, and I can’t wait to do more.
All of the voices, with the notable exception of Toby were done by me. Toby was played by the incredibly talented “Leah” pictured at the end of the video. She doesn’t always have the skull on her head, but when she does she looks just smashing. The skull is named Octovillikahn2, by the way.
As far as I’m aware, this is the first ever animated Steampunk comedy sitcom, and I hope it flies.
This is the combined result of every single talent I have cultivated in the past five years: photomanipulation, animation, scriptwriting and learning cinematography and directing.
It’s my opinion that it’s the best thing that I have ever done. Please be gentle.
William Butler Yeats – He Wishes For the Cloths of Heaven
HAD I the heavens’ embroidered cloths,
Enwrought with golden and silver light,
The blue and the dim and the dark cloths
Of night and light and the half-light,
I would spread the cloths under your feet:
But I, being poor, have only my dreams;
I have spread my dreams under your feet;
Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.
Haberdashery – Episode 1 from boh3m3 on Vimeo.
Dedicated to Terry Gilliam, Mel Brooks, George Carlin, and every incredible comedian who has shaped my view of the world and made me better for it.
I would also like to thank Leah, for doing such a great job with the voice work, sxc.hu and the public domain catalogs for providing such incredible materials, and you all for watching and supporting my mad thoughts. I hope to continue making many more episodes to come.
I would also like to extend a special tip of the hat to Site5 for providing such excellent website hosting and recently allowing me to have unlimited bandwidth for $5.55 a month under Matt’s Birthday Special. Even though very few people will get that special deal, I recommend anyone looking for an inexpensive and excellent service check them out.
To my dear friends who I offered voice acting roles to and then quickly decided against it, accept my apologies. It’s not easy being this weird.
(added 9:14 AM, Hollyweird time)
Haberdashery - Episode 1
- I laughed, I cried, I want to donate (but probably don't have the money to in an economic crisis) (86%, 134 Votes)
- I didn't like it and I want to hurt your feelings. (14%, 21 Votes)
Total Voters: 155
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1: Forgive my lack of respect for Anime “art” and especially Anime culture. It’s been my [limited] experience that many of the people clinging to Anime are just looking for something different and settling with Anime in spite of the majority of shows being artistically challenged. Seriously. It’s repetitive, formulaic, and not detailed. I’m speaking, of course, of DBZ and Naruto and it should be clarified as a critique on art and not story, characters or the seemingly intense 20 minutes it seems to need in order to create a 20 minute episode. I will however say that Anime such as Blood: The Last Vampire is innovative, intelligent and beautiful. It’s just a shame it’s drowning in a sea of mediocre productions.
2: I have no clue why either.
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interesting. i can’t honestly say i loved it, but i’d definitely watch more. I realise that this is your new direction, but please give us a few blogs/rants/dear tables (if you become a waiter again) in between these animations, i really miss them!
@Zsmart: Personally I’m deeply indoctrinated enough that I like Ben, and I’ll keep watching whether it’s good or bad just to see what he’s up to. I won’t, however, lie to him; if I thought Haberdashery was shit I’d say so (tactfully).
Fortunately, I don’t :)
well now that was quite messed up. and yet. i liked it.
bloody good show old chap!!
you chunky looking, stinky smelling, nicotine encrusted, turdball. you did GREAT!
no really fuck you. that’s the most original thing i’ve watched in forever
…Oh dear lord man. XD
Excellent
I checked YouTube on Saturday which happened to be my birthday and this little gem was sitting in my subscriptions box. I couldn’t have asked for more.
Brilliant stuff.
11/10
holy god damn that was funny XD
i bout soiled muhself
that was definitely new and muchos highlarryus
i dig it :3
^_^-b make moar
Quite well done, Ben. Been much too long since I’ve seen something from you. I lol’d.
Keep up the excellence, as always.
Nice work! Awesome work! Keep it up, we need folks like you to bring us the funny.
Honey, everything you do is excellent. I am happy that you want to set higher standards for yourself because that shows your passion for excellence in expression. It show that you will not ever stagnate and that you won’t stand for mediocrity. You do not have to justify yourself or your talent to anyone. I suppose that some people just feel like they have to be negative. Maybe they suffer from terrible self esteem issues. Maybe they were beaten as children. Who knows. I think that the Hemmingway quote was very applicable here. But there are so many people out there that love you simply because you are who you are. I for one am very lucky because I had the pleasure of knowing you intimately for quite some time. I had the plesure of being entertained personally by your wonderful wit and laughing until I fell off my bed…often. You are beautiful and special and fuck those who cannot see that. Just know that you do mean a lot to a large number of people. And as I have told you before, I am so happy to see that you are writing again. I always hoped that you would do more of that. I love you, Benny. -Yur Beena
Excellent work, Ben. I appreciate the work you put into Haberdashery. I laughed, I cried, I choked on my gum… “His dinner coat is two years old!” I had no clue you did any voice acting, good stuff. I look forward to the next episode. Keep up the wonderful work.
:)
Haberdashery = Win.
your silly. you are a silly, silly man.
Congrats on the hitting the “featured” page again!!
I know you are glad to be off YT but I hope the exposure helps ya!
Okay, a couple of comments:
1) Editing and images looked pretty good. No real issues with the animation.
2) Voice acting was pretty good, although for a few lines, our two main speakers sounded a bit too similar.
3) A few words of modern slang did seem to slip in. Nothing major, and just added to the overall effect.
Good work, and hope to see another one!