Given the fact that zombies evidently can’t be stopped as the subject of live-action films, I’m fairly surprised that we haven’t yet seen much in the way of animated walking dead. That might change if the film A.D. is given a chance to get off the ground. Here we have a teaser trailer that also seems to be acting as a fundraising effort. The folks behind this project definitely have the visuals down, and they’re hoping to spin this concept and world into a feature.
Quiet Earth and Twitch both got this out there, but the real meaty details come from ZombieInfo, which scored interviews with the director, writer and producer of the film. Director Ben Hibon made the short Codehunters and worked on the games Heavenly Sword and Killer7. (You can definitely see some game influence in the animation, but that’s not a bad thing.) Producer Bernie Goldmann, meanwhile, had his hands in 300 and Land of the Dead.
All of the parties involved are eager to push A.D. as a new, original spin on the zombie idea, and writer Haylar Garcia describes his approach to the subgenre as hoping to capture “the feel of a huge action flick coupled the macabre charm and metaphoric content of the great zombie film too. The Independence Day of Zombie films, if you will.”
Director Hibon says, “We set out to create a visual universe that distinguished itself from the classic zombie formula…It’s very important to define a strong and bold look for this movie, create our own visual benchmark. A.D. has definitely its very own identity that serves the purpose of the movie; it’s stylised and graphical, but very gritty and textured just like the reality and the world the story is set in.”
I love the look of the teaser. If the story can stand up to the aesthetic, this could be great fun. [/film]
