Giant Squid!

We all like a good bit of giant squid action. Artist Maxwell Perry (pictured below) is intent on providing some in a short animated film called Giant Squid. The film, produced through Dimly Lit Films (“Fine Purveyor of Short Animated Culture”), is a follow-up (not a sequel) to his previous animation — a zombie cartoon titled Frantic Undead, which we’ll be featuring shortly.

“I’m an artist who has always loved monster movies and genre cinema,” Perry told Undead Backbrain’s newshound, Kaiju Search-Robot Avery. “Over the past several years, I found myself gradually moving past traditional drawing and painting towards using video and animation in my work. I realized that what I really liked was narrative storytelling and that unique combination of image and story that only comes with animation.”

Giant Squid draws inspiration from Moby Dick and Godzilla movies in pretty much equal parts, he explained — which sounds right up our alley. He explained:

The plot centers around a teenage girl, Elise, whose boyfriend is abducted by a monster squid. Elise then tracks the squid down with the help of a marine biologist and an Ahab-like squid poacher named Cappy. Mayhem ensues.

Conceptually, one of the underlying aims of my animations is to draw attention to the amount of creativity that goes into making a low- to no-budget independent work by creating them on a minuscule scale. I try to poke fun at and embrace common horror movie tropes simultaneously.

Giant Squid is not meant for young kids, but my hope is that if you’re the type of person that enjoys a good laugh during an especially gory horror film, you’ll find the humor in my work.

Giant Squid is currently in production and is set for completion in August.

Teaser Trailer:

Some clips from Giant Squid:

Storyboards:

The Dimly Lit Films YouTube Channel offers some Making-Of Videos as well. Go there to check them out!

And stay tuned for info on Maxwell Perry’s Frantic Undead!

• Sources: Maxwell Perry; Dimly Lit Films website
• Writing: Robert Hood  |  Research: Avery Guerra