Cut 12 begins the gruesome sequence of Doom. While we’ve already submitted board edits for c016 (the headscraping) and 017 (the splattery squeeze-n-drop), 12-14 covers the bonebreaking.

Cut 12 is a medium shot similar to the one seen in the animatic. A long 3/4 angle lets us emphasize the depth cues between the near and far limbs as they spin in opposite directions, pulverizing each bone into splinters. We can also use this beat to provide the Soldier with a bit of expression before the pain begins.

C13 is a match cut to 10, and here we break the legs in a fashion similar to c12, by torquing each part of the limb in a counterwise direction along the joints and the axis.

C14 allows us to see the fully ruined limbs of the Soldier as he is crushed ever more tightly in the grip of the Patient’s psychic abilities.  Blood begins to pour from his clothing, and we also see the utterly nonchalant non-reaction of the Scientists in the background.

The remaining cuts in Scene 006 are near enough to the animatic that we can proceed to the layout phase, wherein the roughs represent the final drawings more closely and lead up to the construction of the actual animation frames.

In cut 08 the soldier walks towards camera (tracking with), readies his weapon and fires. We’ve added a 3-point tactical sling to the weapon design, and included a chambering action prior to the trigger pull. While he still fires into the extreme foreground, we’ve moved him a few degrees off the perpendicular to avoid covering the action with the muzzle blast.

C09 is an insert cut to show the first reaction of the Patient as the bullets slam into the air before his face. It’s a very fast cut (starting as it does with the weapon already firing) and pushes the camera back very fast to help sell the impact and allow room for his arms to swing up into the air before him

C10 is one of the only cuts where we maintain a camera perpendicular to the action, for a couple reasons. As the primary intention of the cut is to illustrate sustained fire with a closing gap, a straight angle that clearly shows the space between the characters is most effective. In addition there’s a few tricks we’ll be able to use to save resources that won’t work as effectively at a sharper angle.

We also suggest an interruption to the fire that allows the Soldier to reload. A fully-loaded automatic weapon can empty a clip in just 4-6 seconds. A rapid reload action not only grounds the weapon in a realistic manner but also helps to display the professional, cold skills of the Soldier (who never slows down his stride nor pauses more than necessary in his steady rate of fire).

c11 is where it all goes wrong for cold, professional skills. The Patient goes from deflecting the bullets to a sweeping motion that simultaneously pushes wide the limbs of the soldier, forcing him into a pose similar to that of the Patient. His weapon drops to his chest and his arms are stretched back to the breaking point. This cut is similar to the version in the animatic, but delays the most gruesome action until the following beat.

Scene 006 is (along with 004) the most animation-intensive series of cuts within the short, and as such we’ll break the board edits into a couple of entries. As before, please click any board to open the full sequence. We have only recomposed boards for which significant changes are suggested.

In C02 , we’ve adjusted the camera angle down and to the left slightly, mostly to get us off the perpendicular angle. This angle is also most suitable for the action in C05, which is a match cut for 02.

In C05 a Lab Tech walks in from Left, injects the contents of a wicked-long syringe into the IUD port and then activates a few buttons on the back of the chair before leaving Left. The chair rises to the standing position, and the neck restraints disengage (the injector in the back of the neck leaves a small line of goo from the neck to the port to emphasize the connection without seeing the actual mechanism).