Revisit a classic, inspirational, 3D animated short film.
An animated short film which has long been an inspiration to me is The Passenger.
Best described as a comedy, horror, The Passenger was created entirely solo by director Chris Jones over the course of eight years. Not only did Chris create all of the visual aspects of the film but he also took care of the sound design and music.
Originally released in 2006, the film was only available on DVD, or in very low resolution, until recently being re-released on YouTube, in high quality, to mark it’s 20th anniversary.
Whilst the film is undoubtably entertaining to watch, the reason that this film has always been so inspiring is because it showed just what was possible for a single person to achieve, with a crazy amount of dedication.
What’s important to remember is that this film was started in the very early days of 3D computer animation. Pixar released their second film, A Bug’s Life, in 1998, the same year that work began on The Passenger. Pixar went on to release an additional five feature films before The Passenger was finally complete, and Chris points out that, during the time that he was making the film, a Star Wars trilogy, a Lord of the Rings trilogy, and a Harry Potter trilogy were all completed!
What all of these films had, which The Passenger didn’t, were huge budgets and vast teams of artists. The Passenger was entirely self funded, self produced, and made with commercially available hardware and software, rather than the proprietary tools used by the major studios.
By today’s standards, the hardware and software used on The Passenger are ancient relics. The most basic computer available today is significantly more powerful, whilst free software makes the creation of animated films more accessible than ever.
What made The Passenger entertaining however, had nothing to do with the technology available. In the end, it all came down to a good story and the time, skill, and dedication, to craft it into something enjoyable to watch.
If you’d like to learn more about the making of The Passenger, Chris documented the eight year journey in a series of blog posts entitled How to Make a Seven Minute Film in Just Eight Years.
Additionally, you can watch this behind the scenes video showing some of the process:
In case you’re unaware, I’m also on a journey to make my own animated short film and I’m sharing a behind-the-scenes look at the process over on my Patreon account.
Whilst I certainly hope that my own film doesn’t turn into an eight year epic journey, I’m very much dedicated to creating the best film possible and sharing what I learn along the way.
If you’d like to follow along, you can choose either a free or paid membership, with varying degrees of behind-the-scenes material and tutorials available.
I hope that films like The Passenger, or the film that I’m making, show just what is possible for a dedicated solo artist to create, and that this inspires you to start telling original stories of your own.
