The Shaman

This is really spectacular work. I've been busy all day with the stupidest doctors so I'm glad I finally had time for this short. Visuals are insane! There's actually a great plot with enough material for a feature film. The year is 2204 and humans have been in war for years. They rely on huge intelligent battle machines to fight. Shamanism has returned and they have special senses of the "unseen" and "beyond." This is a story of a Shaman battling a battle machine. He and his group are sent onto the battlefield and into the machine where he psychically links to it. Their psychological battle is one for the ages and the end is so damn satisfying.

As a long-time reader of Science Fiction, I have long been interested in the mythological "hero". The Shaman presents a hero that is deeply disturbed, but must perform for the good of the people.

The movie is intriguing, cinematic, and very moving. I was fascinated by the use of the mystical combined with technology, and wish to know more about the background of this situation - what happened to cause the war? Who are the Shamans (there are obviously more of them)? What is the connection between music and magic, particularly regarding Lene and the Shaman? How did machines get souls? What do the facial markings mean? Who was the man in white?

This movie prompts all sorts of imaginative contemplation, which I certainly enjoyed.

The acting is true to the roles. Lene most definitely demonstrated care, concern, love, and support to the Shaman. The Shaman was portrayed as a stunted personality due to his history and training. However, the human was still there - in the actor's eyes. The supporting actors exhibited the awe and responsibility to protect the Shaman and their dedication to the war.

Marco Kalantari's dark, chaotic setting and the overall tone of the movie were amazing. I truly hope to see more of this world in the future, but if there are no further explanations, my mind will provide wondrous ones.

I watch a lot of short films; partly because I do like the way that the short form has less pressure which means people can experiment more than they could be a bigger feature film, but also the short time means I can see contained work despite a busy schedule. As a result of this I see a lot of sci-fi shorts that are looking to be the next big blockbuster by getting picked up by a studio. Some of these proof-of-concepts are pretty good, and deliver on their own terms as a short film too; however many of them are little more than special effects showreels that deliver nothing to the viewer of the short. I tend not to like them for this very reason.

With The Shaman, there is an element of that. We are thrown into a world that I really didn't understand, and into a battle of effects and noise. So far so dull I was thinking, however the main body of the short is a dialogue scene which is actually quite a good idea and had potential to make the film more than just telling me the producers had access to some very powerful computers. It doesn't quite manage to deliver on this potential though, and the film ended up being one that I liked for trying to be more than just the usual 'sci-fi pitch' short film, but yet it never really sparkled as the design and smart central scene device suggested it would.

I remember seeing a teaser about this film on io9 and getting excited for it. Sure enough, when I finally watched this short, it didn't disappoint. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and would love to see the concept turned into a feature-length film. I was a bit confused when things seemed to change so much -- it reminded me a bit of Inception -- but after watching it again, I saw how it all tied together.

The quality of the music and costume/prop design should be commended -- I really enjoyed the shorts they made about that process as well.

I disagree with another commentator who criticized the acting, I thought it was poignant and well-done. Definitely commend the team for their hard work and hope to see more of this!

This short production is an outstanding piece of artwork for who is able to follow up the movie plot and understand its deep meanings.

It is indeed a mind-blowing short movie, bringing together in a more insightful way a little bit of previous ideas from other Sci-Fi productions, like some concepts previously presented in The Sixth Sense, The Matrix, The Zero Theorem, Iron Sky, Jupiter Ascending, Edge of Tomorrow, Interstellar, etc. The special effects are really nice for a small production, and the actors' performance is captivating for such a complex and short story.

I have watched it several times and will watch it many other times to come! I my view, this film enters in the category blockbuster with brains and soul.