yeah but it's still great tho. like not everything has to be peaceful and nice in an animation. animation is more than 'just for kids'... it's a respected medium. (also i know you didn't say this art is bad, i just wanted to clarify for anyone reading the comments lmao)
Personal interpretation. I try to keep it short to not be boring... So, this little elf meets a creature that identifies Knowledge. This is signified by all these eyes giving the ability to see more things than others. This power is shared through the cup with the elf who then becomes aware of both a smaller and a larger world around her (from vision of a blood system to her, floating in an empty space, without a head, as if to emphasize her insignificance in the whole universe). Back to her tribe to share this new knowledge, she's now also perceived as a creature, whose multiple eyes offers a frightening new vision of the world. Misundertood, she's killed. Not the first in History... But Knowledge being greater than one being, it now spreads on the ground and invades everything. From there we continue to see a lot of morbid imagery, time jumps, nature at agony, factories... and a lot of owls, sometimes even hidden. This animal symbolizing both Knowledge and Death, my hypothesis is that this is a way of showing how the first can be misused to lead to the second. This idea of possessing a great power without knowing how to properly deal with it, could also find a metaphor in these kings wearing monkey masks under their crowns... So this is it. What I see there is a statement on our ability to progress, but to the detriment of the world, which could lead to our downfall. A curse. I'm kind of conforted in this idea by the tree at 3:17. That could be a reference to the Tree of Knowledge, which apple transmitted its gift to Adam and Eve but, at the same time, damned them by making them mortal... Or, maybe I'm just way off and up too late.
It make sense, And who is the man at the end? God giving up his creation and starting over? crows symbolize that humanity has no hope and that the only end is destruction?
@@napalpalbakala I totally forgot about this one and totally missed the spear at 2.27 ! Good eye ! And I agree with your interpretation, this character definitely symbolize a " higher entity" starting the show and, maybe, stoping it all ;) For the end of the video, what I find intersting is that it ends up with birds sounds, just like it began. Even if the crows sounds more sinister than the chirping birds, it kind of loop the video, suggering a perpetual circle of destruction and rebirth.
I really like your interpretation of this! I literally just posted a long comment with my interpretation of this video, and without even reading yours first at the end we came to very similar conclusions. Fascinating! You caught some stuff that I missed. We saw different genders in the main "elf" even tho they are genderless. It's all so interesting. I'll save you the trouble of looking for my interpretation int the comments and I'll just post mine here of you ever feel like reading it!
This is why you only take a sip of the strange levitating bowl that the stranger covered in eyes handed to you before vanishing. Micro-dose, little guy; micro-dose.
@@Yipper64 The Clockwork elves, also known as the Machine elves, also known as Cabiri medium.com/@mustaphahitani/the-cabiri-machine-elves-and-other-dimensions-998a2df937b4 non-aliencreatures.fandom.com/wiki/Machine_Elf Have various interpretations of what they are, who they are, and what they do. In this one it appears the bowl is some sort of transformative mixture and drug that transforms, and turns to the person drinking it into a being capable of opening a dimensional hole that allows beings that feed on the people of that world to cross over into their dimension. My guess from the changing seasons and repetition of the same events, they appear to be trapped in a cycle, or are being recycled.
This has the potential to be a really good dark animated series. Something like Over the Garden Wall or Infinity Train but darker cuz of the graphic images.
Holy shit, Nick. We've missed you! My life has been far too urban these last years and those landscapes at the start were so beautiful they hurt. This will be one of those videos I will come back to again and again for years
Hahaha...isnt it obvious? We werent ready. None of us were ready. We were primal animals, concerned with nothing but finding food and mates, when we were tossed into knowledge, and we abused it horribly. Im convinced that any creature that ascended like we did would turn out just as awful too, every living thing on this rotten ball. And I'm steadily coming to the realization that anything out there in the stars is probably just as cursed as we are.
You should read Galapagos by Kurt Vonnegut. The narrator is a future species that evolved from human, and has become an aquatic creature again, with lowered intelligence and ego, seeking only to eat fish.
Holy shit that was breathtaking. I think I needed that: Ive been super bummed out and bored by youtube last couple of months. Everything was starting to feel so monotonous and bland I had started to believe all the life and artistry was slowly draining out of the platform. With flash being EoL'd this month I'd been going over some web cartoons I used to watch, remembering why I started animating and feeling kinda nostalgic about the old ways but I wasn't really picking up any sort of optimism for the medium until this showed up in my feed. Thankyou for shaking me out of it.
Here's how I interpreted it. A native being who only knows the way of nature and primitive living comes across an advanced being who possesses the knowledge of everything, including the prophecy of where the earth could be heading, an industrial wasteland. As shown in the boys hallucination or "trip" it shows his head (or his mind) being blown by what he has just discovered. With his new found knowledge and advanced learnings, he returns to his village where he tries to explain to his people everything he has just learned. But trying to explain something instead of experiencing it like he has just did, especially something so advanced to primitive people, this is next to impossible for their minds to comprehend. His new found knowledge is so advanced that when he speaks to them, he seems like a completely different being. Unable to recognize him or the things he speaks of, they kill him. Of course now unleashing a doomed reality and sealing their fate. Without being able to understand, they could not heed his warnings. So, time goes on, people divided into Kings and Slaves. Religion is introduced. As you can see with the man in a monkey mask and sparks flying out his mouth, it is like he speaks of magic and wondrous imagination, yet another thing that has taken over humanity, as religion can be seen in every part of the world. Time yet again moves on, this time in the industrial era, just as the advanced being in the beginning has prophesied. The world falling into a polluted wasteland. Wars are driven. The earth crumbles until there is only ruble, death and destruction to be found. Conclusion; We lose sight of nature and taking care of the earth and only staying fixated on our own political agendas. Spending billions of money on weapons of war and mass destruction instead of trying to help the earth and its inhabitants. Eventually, it will all cave in, It can't last forever. Life is short and we spend most of it fighting each other instead of loving. If we do not change, or if we cannot change, the prophecy of a doomed world will be met.
If Over the Garden Wall was supposed to be purgatory, then this must be what hell looks like. What I wouldn't give for another show to be in the style of OTGW or this short I love this art style. This whole short looks like the darker side of the OTGW universe, though I know they aren't connected I just know Nick Cross worked on both.
I instantly recidnized this as Over the garden wall holy cow? How unique is your artstyle! I really hope you happend to make another cartoon with your art style more colorful!
I absolutely love the backgrounds, very reminiscent of your work on Over the Garden Wall. I'm glad I got to see more of that style, its what inspired me to try to draw backgrounds and drawing in general. Beautiful short also!
Might be a reference to “stoned ape theory” basically it says that our ape ancestors got high on mushrooms and it changed their thinking in a way that would give rise to modern humans
HE'S BACK, AND BETTER THAN EVER!!! I'm just in awe of the plentiful amount of original imagery, imagination, and masterful pacing of this piece! And having it synced perfectly to a stellar soundtrack? * chef kiss * I'm glad to see you still being as innovative as ever! Can't wait to see what comes next! ♡♡♡
@@moldypizza I think people just can't help but connect stuff like this to already preexisting works they enjoy just to add an extra layer to both; it adds to something they might've thought was missing in each. I'd rather acknowledge this as a standalone animation, but I can't blame people for doing otherwise; it just adds to their fun.
I think this short reminds me of over the garden wall because of how the dark colors frame nature. Darker tones contain the scenery into smaller spot to make you really focus on what's on screen. Much like how a storybooks photos will have small contained images of peaceful scenes. This short also uses that feeling of storybook drawings only to trick you into absolutely tripping balls with this elf dude. Also the simplistic design of this character is similar to that of OTGW while still being able to morph into gory images. 100/10 really cool short
I can’t help but think of the story of Prometheus. You basically communicated just as much if not more than 2001 in just under four minutes. It’s like koyaanisqatsi via adventure time. This has had a profound effect on me. Thanks.
![Noob To Max With DRAGON REWORK In Blox Fruits [FULL MOVIE]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/LnBMOinoOvA/mqdefault.jpg)
1 minute in: This seems like a peaceful and whimsical animation.
37 seconds later: N O P E.
This dude spent years and years putting his heart and soul into this just for you to say this.
IKR. It threw me completely off-guard. I loved it!
yeah but it's still great tho. like not everything has to be peaceful and nice in an animation. animation is more than 'just for kids'... it's a respected medium.
(also i know you didn't say this art is bad, i just wanted to clarify for anyone reading the comments lmao)
I watched this while stoned, unsuspecting, and did *not* enjoy it :p
I saw the dead rabbit in the first few seconds and was like "Uh oh"
I unintentionally said “you have beautiful eyes” when I saw the Wolf-Dog with glowing blue eyes.
aw man I love over the garden wall
That's the comment I was searching for. The design at the beginning is very similar to Over the garden wall
timestamp?
Thanks
You Too
In the over the garden wall art book there is an illustration of wort with the same large eyes as the elf
Personal interpretation. I try to keep it short to not be boring...
So, this little elf meets a creature that identifies Knowledge. This is signified by all these eyes giving the ability to see more things than others. This power is shared through the cup with the elf who then becomes aware of both a smaller and a larger world around her (from vision of a blood system to her, floating in an empty space, without a head, as if to emphasize her insignificance in the whole universe).
Back to her tribe to share this new knowledge, she's now also perceived as a creature, whose multiple eyes offers a frightening new vision of the world. Misundertood, she's killed. Not the first in History... But Knowledge being greater than one being, it now spreads on the ground and invades everything.
From there we continue to see a lot of morbid imagery, time jumps, nature at agony, factories... and a lot of owls, sometimes even hidden. This animal symbolizing both Knowledge and Death, my hypothesis is that this is a way of showing how the first can be misused to lead to the second. This idea of possessing a great power without knowing how to properly deal with it, could also find a metaphor in these kings wearing monkey masks under their crowns...
So this is it. What I see there is a statement on our ability to progress, but to the detriment of the world, which could lead to our downfall. A curse.
I'm kind of conforted in this idea by the tree at 3:17. That could be a reference to the Tree of Knowledge, which apple transmitted its gift to Adam and Eve but, at the same time, damned them by making them mortal...
Or, maybe I'm just way off and up too late.
It make sense, And who is the man at the end? God giving up his creation and starting over? crows symbolize that humanity has no hope and that the only end is destruction?
cause at 2.27 you can see the same spear starting the creation of life
@@napalpalbakala I totally forgot about this one and totally missed the spear at 2.27 ! Good eye !
And I agree with your interpretation, this character definitely symbolize a " higher entity" starting the show and, maybe, stoping it all ;)
For the end of the video, what I find intersting is that it ends up with birds sounds, just like it began. Even if the crows sounds more sinister than the chirping birds, it kind of loop the video, suggering a perpetual circle of destruction and rebirth.
@@drangal you are good jajaja ;)
I really like your interpretation of this! I literally just posted a long comment with my interpretation of this video, and without even reading yours first at the end we came to very similar conclusions. Fascinating! You caught some stuff that I missed. We saw different genders in the main "elf" even tho they are genderless. It's all so interesting. I'll save you the trouble of looking for my interpretation int the comments and I'll just post mine here of you ever feel like reading it!
This is why you only take a sip of the strange levitating bowl that the stranger covered in eyes handed to you before vanishing. Micro-dose, little guy; micro-dose.
Fantastic stuff.
Hello
yoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
ayy
hello! good to see you here!!
you didn't look for this short film. this short film looked for you
As soon as I saw that bowl I knew exactly where this was gonna go. Welcome back, buddy
“But didn’t I mention, the on going WOW”
Hmm might i ask why? Is the bowl a reference to some kind of drug or smthn?
@@Yipper64
The Clockwork elves, also known as the Machine elves, also known as Cabiri
medium.com/@mustaphahitani/the-cabiri-machine-elves-and-other-dimensions-998a2df937b4
non-aliencreatures.fandom.com/wiki/Machine_Elf
Have various interpretations of what they are, who they are, and what they do. In this one it appears the bowl is some sort of transformative mixture and drug that transforms, and turns to the person drinking it into a being capable of opening a dimensional hole that allows beings that feed on the people of that world to cross over into their dimension. My guess from the changing seasons and repetition of the same events, they appear to be trapped in a cycle, or are being recycled.
Digging the Waking Life avatar, man.
@@Yipper64 ayahuasca
This has the potential to be a really good dark animated series. Something like Over the Garden Wall or Infinity Train but darker cuz of the graphic images.
This short is something you couldn't turn into a series without desecrating its current original meanings. It's too vast, ironically.
Well, it took him 7 years to make this so the animated series may be a bit far away
if this were a trailer for an animated series I would watch the heck outta that
@@Pichi312 7 years to make isn't 7 years of work...
@Thomas Jones Pat McHale?
Whoa, the datura just as he’s waking up. That’s some detail.
Holy shit, Nick. We've missed you! My life has been far too urban these last years and those landscapes at the start were so beautiful they hurt. This will be one of those videos I will come back to again and again for years
Same. It's like a whole series worth of mystery and ideas loaded into one crazy 3 minute fever dream.
LMAO SAME. I have like Nick Cross checkpoints in my life :'>>>
What a trip!
Holy fuck. That just completely took me by surprise and now I'm both scared and having an existential crisis.
HOOOOO LEEEEE SHIIIIIIT. That's like ... Double King levels of good. And as far as cartoons go, that's as high a compliment as I can give.
I thought this was gonna be a wholesome animation about elves in the forest....
You've never done DMT
"this edible ain't shit!"
5 mins later,
This is how it feels to chew 5gum
This was an extremely rivetting 3 minute video that felt like an hour... in a good way. This was great!
Hahaha...isnt it obvious? We werent ready. None of us were ready. We were primal animals, concerned with nothing but finding food and mates, when we were tossed into knowledge, and we abused it horribly. Im convinced that any creature that ascended like we did would turn out just as awful too, every living thing on this rotten ball. And I'm steadily coming to the realization that anything out there in the stars is probably just as cursed as we are.
You should read Galapagos by Kurt Vonnegut. The narrator is a future species that evolved from human, and has become an aquatic creature again, with lowered intelligence and ego, seeking only to eat fish.
The little gremlin drank a bowl of ayahuasca then tripped really hard.
watching it on 25% speed to try and see all the frames. I RECOMMEND IT
The 7 years were worth it
Simply unbelievable.
every frame is mind blowing.
what a powerful animation once again with you
Moral of the story, don’t go around drinking suspicious alien juice
Holy shit that was breathtaking. I think I needed that: Ive been super bummed out and bored by youtube last couple of months. Everything was starting to feel so monotonous and bland I had started to believe all the life and artistry was slowly draining out of the platform. With flash being EoL'd this month I'd been going over some web cartoons I used to watch, remembering why I started animating and feeling kinda nostalgic about the old ways but I wasn't really picking up any sort of optimism for the medium until this showed up in my feed. Thankyou for shaking me out of it.
Love the backgrounds.
Can really tell that you worked on Over the Garden Wall.
Great stuff.
Here's how I interpreted it. A native being who only knows the way of nature and primitive living comes across an advanced being who possesses the knowledge of everything, including the prophecy of where the earth could be heading, an industrial wasteland. As shown in the boys hallucination or "trip" it shows his head (or his mind) being blown by what he has just discovered. With his new found knowledge and advanced learnings, he returns to his village where he tries to explain to his people everything he has just learned. But trying to explain something instead of experiencing it like he has just did, especially something so advanced to primitive people, this is next to impossible for their minds to comprehend. His new found knowledge is so advanced that when he speaks to them, he seems like a completely different being. Unable to recognize him or the things he speaks of, they kill him. Of course now unleashing a doomed reality and sealing their fate. Without being able to understand, they could not heed his warnings. So, time goes on, people divided into Kings and Slaves. Religion is introduced. As you can see with the man in a monkey mask and sparks flying out his mouth, it is like he speaks of magic and wondrous imagination, yet another thing that has taken over humanity, as religion can be seen in every part of the world. Time yet again moves on, this time in the industrial era, just as the advanced being in the beginning has prophesied. The world falling into a polluted wasteland. Wars are driven. The earth crumbles until there is only ruble, death and destruction to be found.
Conclusion; We lose sight of nature and taking care of the earth and only staying fixated on our own political agendas. Spending billions of money on weapons of war and mass destruction instead of trying to help the earth and its inhabitants. Eventually, it will all cave in, It can't last forever. Life is short and we spend most of it fighting each other instead of loving. If we do not change, or if we cannot change, the prophecy of a doomed world will be met.
Yes. Trunks is real. He calls back to us from a doomed timeline so that we course-correct in time.
God dam dude, that's some impressive interpreting
Question: what was coming from the sky around 2.50? Was it birds or craft?
Ah, so thats where the Black Sunrise animation went. Looks great. I "like" a lot of stuff but this I really *liked*
And over the garden wall too
but what does it meeeeaaaaannnn?!?!?!! I love it.
It's really cool to see animation that has crisp 3D movement while retaining a cartoony style. Love this.
dude i love the over the garden wall art style so this is extra special. so cool man
Normally you need ghost shrooms to meet the clockwork elves
He’s right, this IS a cartoon!
I love that this can be played on a loop and totally works.
Fucking sick man that music slaps and the visuals had me transfixed. Beautiful art as always.
so many things have come together in this animation! I'm so glad to see your work again. Uncut, straight up Nick Cross lol
If Over the Garden Wall was supposed to be purgatory, then this must be what hell looks like. What I wouldn't give for another show to be in the style of OTGW or this short I love this art style. This whole short looks like the darker side of the OTGW universe, though I know they aren't connected I just know Nick Cross worked on both.
No words need to be spoken
I don't know what life is anymore after watching this. I do know that it was beautifully animated.
Moral of the story: Never do random bowls
Damn so this is what Joe Rogan's Tuesdays feels like.
Jesus are the colors and landscapes amazing
Edit: THAT WAS THE LAST TURN I EXPECTED THIS TO TAKE
I instantly recidnized this as Over the garden wall holy cow? How unique is your artstyle! I really hope you happend to make another cartoon with your art style more colorful!
When you're a regular Elder Scrolls player and start discovering the deep lore
Mom: So how was the festival? Did you have a nice time?
Woah. I was not expecting this to go the direction it did, but it is very well executed! Thank you for posting.
*reads description*
SEVEN YEARS?! MADE BY ONE PERSON!?!? WHOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
Can we talk about the background painting we need to talk about the background painting because holy SHIT it's incredible
This is just incredible. Genuinely one of my new favorite pieces of animation, period.
salvia, great stuff. for real though, this feels like it's playing with a mix of gifted knowledge and stoned ape, and i'm here for it
This is about Ayahuasca or DMT, not salvia.
@abraxasjinx5207 do you know how many psychedelic tea ceremonies exist? salvia just happens to the one i have experience with
"could be a tale of a little goofball hopped up on goofballs" Stunning description lol
this was a breathtaking animation!!
i love the art style, its very over the garden wall meets the longing
Wow it’s offensive how underrated this is
amazing. Timing, fluidity, tone, colors... this is fantastic
As creation myths go it's as plausible as any I know. Wonderful work. Excellent choice of sound.
Love the backgrounds and how the animals and characters interact/fit in them. Also, of course, the imaginery and story.
This is one of the greatest animations I've ever seen, should make it into a full movie, though I know that's easier said than done. Excellent work
I absolutely love the backgrounds, very reminiscent of your work on Over the Garden Wall. I'm glad I got to see more of that style, its what inspired me to try to draw backgrounds and drawing in general. Beautiful short also!
Tell you this is freaking amazing but damn was not expecting any of that!
7years!!! Amazing piece of trippy art!
Not only are the backgrounds fucking stunning, but the animation is fluid and natural. Gorgeous!
Wow I was not expecting that shift! Beautiful work
Oh the veiny transformation at 2:20 is from a clip on this channel from 6 years ago. Long time coming!
That should be a movie looks so interesting like the "Stone-Ape" theory and the funny Angel "Be Not Afraid" looking like Diarrhea eyeball monsters lol
Uhh, holy SHIT, this is incredible
The opening sunrise is gorgeous.
This is a masterpiece, a phenomenal piece of art …
& you did this by yourself - incredible.
It is very psychedelic ❤
I sorta interpreted this as being about original sin?? Like, the consumption of the “forbidden knowledge” leading to exile and destruction???
Might be a reference to “stoned ape theory” basically it says that our ape ancestors got high on mushrooms and it changed their thinking in a way that would give rise to modern humans
The character design reminds me of the cartoon Over The Garden Wall. Great stuff! Thanks
It was made by the same guy
after 3 years its stil pleasant to watch it. and actuality. thank you
Plot twist: the milk was laced with DMT
The art in this is so good, I wish it wasn't so fast so I could appreciate it more!
Commenter above suggests watching the video at a slower speed.
I feel like Malcom McDowell in Clockwork Orange with the eye clamps after watching that
holy shit that was the fastest 3 minutes of my entire life, my ADD brain was so pleased wtf
Amazing: great animation/rendering, intriguing story, trippy, NEED MORR PLEASE!
Whoa, Over the Garden Wall anyone?! This animation is FREAKING MIND BLOWING!!!! Some of the best I've ever seen!
Oh boy, a nick cross animation! Love your work!
i love art where the artist obviously had a BLAST making it
we can't forget this crazy animation
Saw this during the stream the other day, but still excellent to see this seperately. Excellent cartoon :D
Hot DANG, that was...an experience. awesome animation. had to rewatch it at 0.50 speed to catch all the deets and sceneries
Arguably the greatest short ever made
Well.....That escalated quickly.
HE'S BACK, AND BETTER THAN EVER!!! I'm just in awe of the plentiful amount of original imagery, imagination, and masterful pacing of this piece! And having it synced perfectly to a stellar soundtrack? * chef kiss *
I'm glad to see you still being as innovative as ever! Can't wait to see what comes next! ♡♡♡
Sound design is fuckin badass and so are the visuals
Magnificent piece of art, dude... It's amazing!
Love this. And the subtle caapi vine at 3:28
My headcanon as that this takes place in the same universe as OtGW. Awesome as always Nick.
Why do people always have to say that? Not everything has to be a “cinematic universe”. It’s just a similar style is all.
@@moldypizza I think people just can't help but connect stuff like this to already preexisting works they enjoy just to add an extra layer to both; it adds to something they might've thought was missing in each. I'd rather acknowledge this as a standalone animation, but I can't blame people for doing otherwise; it just adds to their fun.
Au contraire, my friend! This is cannon in... Our world
The flora is incredible.
slime beneath me, slime up above
Tv series please.
The Over the Garden Wall/Midnight Gospel crossover looks amazing!
You never fail with that symbolism.
can’t believe I didn’t see this until now! Incredible work, fantastic job!!
I felt my teeth start vibrating when the multi-eyed one showed up
I gotta say man, that mountainscape at the beginning was just beautiful! I’m sure I’m not being lured into a false sense of security
This is so beautiful! I missed your short films.
This gives me Heavy Over the Garden wall with the absolute absurdiness of the visual of adventure time and I fucking love it
I think this short reminds me of over the garden wall because of how the dark colors frame nature. Darker tones contain the scenery into smaller spot to make you really focus on what's on screen. Much like how a storybooks photos will have small contained images of peaceful scenes. This short also uses that feeling of storybook drawings only to trick you into absolutely tripping balls with this elf dude. Also the simplistic design of this character is similar to that of OTGW while still being able to morph into gory images. 100/10 really cool short
I don't know what exactly I was vibing to, but I sure was vibing. Awesome work!
The backgrounds, animation, composting...all so freaking fantastic. Inspiring work 🔥
I literally screamed when I saw your name on my subscription feed, I thought you'd never come back
Those backgrounds are BREATHTAKING.
I can’t help but think of the story of Prometheus.
You basically communicated just as much if not more than 2001 in just under four minutes. It’s like koyaanisqatsi via adventure time.
This has had a profound effect on me. Thanks.