I really appreciate behind the scenes look at how videos are made. I was super impressed by the Halo 3: ODST short and couldn’t imagine all the work that went behind it. This making of video, by way of G4, shows all of the work that went into this fantastic ad.
Many of the scenes that I thought were computer animated turned out to be real too, including the Brute related stuff. The behind the scenes look also has one extra scene that was cut from the final ad and you can check it out after the break.
Hamza Aziz, Destructoid's Community Director, has been here since day one. He was born when a tiger coughed up a hairball into a pool of ooze. He was one of the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles before budget cuts. Hamza works as a previews editor and manages a team in San Francisco. To date he has given away tens of thousands of dollars in prizes to readers. What a dick. Actually, Hamza is as kind as he is hairy.
Likes
Super Mario RPG, Halo, iPhone, Videogame cover bands, Super Nintendo
Meet the rest of the team
That was really cool. I too assumed that the Brute had been CG, so seeing the work put into that suit was great. I love it when people take the time to use practical effects.
@ ydarkage
They canceled the Halo movie. They used the leftover money to make District 9. The Halo movie's budget was past $200million and they knew that no video game movie would ever make that money back. Neill Blomkamp (director) and Peter Jackson (producer) decided to go with District 9, an adaptation of Blomkamp's earlier short film.
@ Steel Brotha
Got it! And from what I heard, District 9 is an amazing movie!! But yeah, if they made a crappy movie, like.. i don´t know.. almost all movies base on games, then i prefer it to never be made! Anyway, if they contract Legacy to make a series of short movies, like the animes made from Matrix, Batman and now Halo Universe, would be smashing!!
Y'know as great as it all looks, i can't help but ask, "was it worth it"... i mean it wouldn't be cheap to make a commercial like that, and you could make one for less money (minimum says all you need is a bunch of game footage)... how many more copies of the game did this commercial sell, than what would have been obtained through a normal commercial... I mean, Halo is so damn popular that all you really need to do is tell the fanboys "there's a new halo game" and it's instant success.
Five months of trying to find a way to make Master Chief engaging as a character and they couldn't do it. Not that I'm saying he is, but ODST made me give a crap about who I'm playing as.
This commercial shows just how good it could be, and hell...they say that a Video Game Movie wouldnt make that back?
I seem to remember a Cartoon with Giant Robots that was in essence a 20 Minute Toy Commercial had 2 Big Budget Blockbusters made...and this ad was just as good as them, if not better...and they raked in the dough.
Seriously, the Halo Universe is full of stories that would make great movies...like ODST, Reach, SPARTAN-II Program etc. As if they wouldnt make any money...
Eh...I just wish ODST had gotten a proper dev cycle. Game had so much potential.
@CloneTrooper
Don't get to far ahead of yourself... one thing you got to remember is that there is a difference between a movie that LOOKS good and a movie that actually IS good... We don't really know if the writing will be as solid as the visuals and the writing is ultimately decides how great the film was...
Though granted, on the otherhand there is also a difference between a movie that's GOOD and a movie that's PROFITABLE... the transformers films are a prime example of how pure and utter crap can still turn a massive profit... Put in enough explosions, action and tits, and most anything will sell; no one ever said that the masses had a sense of good taste... and ultimately, profits all that the industry really cares about it, so as long as the movie can turn a profit then it doesn't matter how crappy of a film it turns out... if it turns out good, then that's great... if it turns out crap; well as long as it made a profit, then no real loss
@Monte
That isn't quite true. There are plenty of movies that are considered good and are certainly successful that didn't have the greatest writing. Remember, the primary story teller in film-making is the director, and not the writer. Writers are really restrained artistically when it comes to writing for the bigscreen, since screenwriting itself is a different breed of writing.
My point here is that even if a Hollywood studio were to take on a film adaptation of Halo, it could be very successful without good writing. Other films have done so in the past. However, I'd reckon that the chances of the story and writing being poor aren't great anyway because the story and writing in the Halo trilogy as a whole (excluding Halo 2) were great, in my opinion.
Destructoid is an open discussion community. You don't need to "audition" to post a comment - just speak your mind. We respect differing opinions on the site, so have at it. Be smart, funny, insightful, clueless, or cute -- but back it up with substance. Keep your cool, keep it fun. We only ask that you act respectfully and above all: don't be a troll and ruin it for everyone else. Don't bring down gamers or we'll, you know, gently shoot you in the face and stuff you into a flaming mailbox. Each comment is your opportuntity to make this community awesomer. Is that even a word?
Avoiding the banhammer only requires common sense: spamming, trolling, racism, NSFW stuff, and other forms of sucking will not be tolerated. If anyone is griefing please report abuse. Be good. Don't suck!
Said that, one question pops in my head.. when they gonna make a movie about the Halo Universe? ;)
They canceled the Halo movie. They used the leftover money to make District 9. The Halo movie's budget was past $200million and they knew that no video game movie would ever make that money back. Neill Blomkamp (director) and Peter Jackson (producer) decided to go with District 9, an adaptation of Blomkamp's earlier short film.
Got it! And from what I heard, District 9 is an amazing movie!! But yeah, if they made a crappy movie, like.. i don´t know.. almost all movies base on games, then i prefer it to never be made! Anyway, if they contract Legacy to make a series of short movies, like the animes made from Matrix, Batman and now Halo Universe, would be smashing!!
haha
but that it´s just my 2 centx. ;)
I think it's Bungie trying to subliminally tell Hollywood that a damn Halo movie is very possible.
Five months of trying to find a way to make Master Chief engaging as a character and they couldn't do it. Not that I'm saying he is, but ODST made me give a crap about who I'm playing as.
I seem to remember a Cartoon with Giant Robots that was in essence a 20 Minute Toy Commercial had 2 Big Budget Blockbusters made...and this ad was just as good as them, if not better...and they raked in the dough.
Seriously, the Halo Universe is full of stories that would make great movies...like ODST, Reach, SPARTAN-II Program etc. As if they wouldnt make any money...
Eh...I just wish ODST had gotten a proper dev cycle. Game had so much potential.
On topic - All show and no go, clearly spent more on marketing than Quality assurance, the true American corporation way.
Don't get to far ahead of yourself... one thing you got to remember is that there is a difference between a movie that LOOKS good and a movie that actually IS good... We don't really know if the writing will be as solid as the visuals and the writing is ultimately decides how great the film was...
Though granted, on the otherhand there is also a difference between a movie that's GOOD and a movie that's PROFITABLE... the transformers films are a prime example of how pure and utter crap can still turn a massive profit... Put in enough explosions, action and tits, and most anything will sell; no one ever said that the masses had a sense of good taste... and ultimately, profits all that the industry really cares about it, so as long as the movie can turn a profit then it doesn't matter how crappy of a film it turns out... if it turns out good, then that's great... if it turns out crap; well as long as it made a profit, then no real loss
That isn't quite true. There are plenty of movies that are considered good and are certainly successful that didn't have the greatest writing. Remember, the primary story teller in film-making is the director, and not the writer. Writers are really restrained artistically when it comes to writing for the bigscreen, since screenwriting itself is a different breed of writing.
My point here is that even if a Hollywood studio were to take on a film adaptation of Halo, it could be very successful without good writing. Other films have done so in the past. However, I'd reckon that the chances of the story and writing being poor aren't great anyway because the story and writing in the Halo trilogy as a whole (excluding Halo 2) were great, in my opinion.