Added: 5 years ago
From: richragsdale
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  • Rich, hi, it's John Hartman from reegroovyfilms. We use to communicate on Myspace, respecting German Expressionism. I am very happy to see the Sandman, once again!

  • This film is splendid in more than seven respects. Excellent.

  • interesting video and very informative

  • very interesting video thanks

  • Great stuff!!!! Thanx for sharing some good work:)

  • This is breathtaking. Wow,.

  • Gave me nightmares as a child.

    Awesome though.

  • Great work! The best your work in my opinion.

  • What an epic!

  • 4:46 Sandman: *fapfapfapfapfap*

    xD I love this story lol but so wrong ...

  • great job. I enjoyed it. The music and the visuals are amazing. The only thing that seemed slightly comical was the spiral at 3:54

  • that was great

  • i see his shadow every night

  • good job guys, liked it very much

  • This is brilliant! I'm an undergrad, English major and film major...just read this story for the first time and completely fell in love with everything about it. This short was awesome as well...

  • @MrBrettGerry thanks for watching

  • hi could you tell me which program this was featured in? I am basing my dissertation around these themes so I am keen to get hold of anything relevant. If you could help me in crediting this properly then I would really appreciate it.

    Thanks.

  • Comment removed

  • I like this homage to that type of silent films. It's better than the crap in today's media.

  • a nice little homage to 'silent expressionism'. this short is a total package of what experts mean by these two words.

    for a completely different feel, watch our shorts on channel ||| mypixelstory |||

  • Lovely. Shades of the Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, Nosferatu... look forward to seeing the final. The scene markers are perfect.

  • @KippSing Don't forget about Metropolis...

  • Well done!!! Very effective. Thanks so much for sharing this.

  • man this is awesome!

  • very good

    

  • THANKYOU SO MUCH, I love that peice gounud.  And funny to say is that I play cello, and the song towards the end that you haev written. I ahve written something very similar to it. I really like it haha

  • This is a beautiful film, and also recalls the fact that there are no perfect people.

    ideal woman who could not love anyone - it's sad

    she's beautiful, probably smart too.... but do not know what feeling are.

    in the last century was carried out research among mothers and small babies. mothers are divided into two groups. 1st proved feelings (hug, smiling, etc..) 2 were no feelings. Children with mothers of the 2. group often die :( that's why this type of research are banned

  • and that's why is so sad. we can't life without feelings. we are'nt machines

  • Loved it!!!

  • ahwants to find a man who will share a good time with me

  • can someone please tell me what this song is called

  • the first piece is funeral march for a marionette by gounod

    the second is sabbat mater - inflammatus et accensus by rossini

    the last is my own music - a piece called nathaniel's theme (plays from the third part through the epilogue)

    thanks for watching

  • Wow, this is wonderful!

  • She is the perfect woman! She doesn't bitch 24/7...

    Seriously, I enjoyed this. Elements of The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari and Metropolis.

  • why is this creepy? I just thought it was a good short film.....

  • very sad

  • Rich, I have two questions:

    1)How can I see the finished work -and-

    2)How can I find out more information on the actor who played the Sandman? Thank you and keep up the good work.

  • um the documenary that it is in is called "a perfect fake"

  • I've been trying to find out what music you have used in the film?

  • A very fine piece of work indeed, but you confuse Freud's theory of the uncanny with Jentsch's, which is the very one he rejects! Change those title cards!

  • Unfortunately you chose to focus on the obvious when interpreting Hoffmann's tale rather that the more interesting psychological thrill of the story. (Perhaps that was difficult to do in a silent movie.) Although the woman's part diagrams and the waggling tongue of the scientist seemed a bit juvenile.

  • this is very depressing

  • German Expressionism, E.T.A. Hoffmann, Freud's Uncanny, a gynoid and great music... all themes that force me to be hopelessly in love with this short. Just brilliant.

    And thank goodness it means to be related to sex dolls issues... I paid so much attention to Dr Coppelius perverted tongue. Sexual innuendo means Im not completely mad yet.

    Yes, mine is the ultimate weird comment.

  • the weirder the better - thats the way I like em

    thanks for watching!

  • dude this is creepy on 7 different levels

  • just 7?

  • Awesome,.. i love silent films, especially german horror/thrillers/sci-fi films.

    Even some Metropolis i see in this,.. very cool.

  • Man! This must have taken some work and imagination to get the feel for the film and it's presentation! It's a wonderful trip back in time. It makes me want to rewatch "The cabinet of Dr. Caligari"! Can't wait for a continuation of the work.

  • Does anyone know what song plays in this video?

  • the first piece is funeral march for a marionette by gounod

    the second is sabbat mater - inflammatus et accensus by rossini

    the last is my own music - a piece called nathaniel's theme (plays from the third part through the epilogue)

    thanks for watching

  • I don't know if you are really Rich Ragsdale or not. That was the piece I was asking for (Nathaniel's theme). Where can I buy this song??? It's one of the most intense melodies I've ever heard. It is very intense, very profound feeling I get. Where can I buy it?? Thanks.

  • I am rich ragsdale

    if you send me a message with your email address I will email it to you

    glad you dug it

  • Metropolis rip off.

  • I don't get it.

  • basically it is the story of when a man loves an android

  • COMMENT PART 1: Fascinating to watch. I also enjoyed reading others' comments and especially appreciate how you replied to some questions. What interested me was your remark on how you got it to look 'old' which makes it, of course, a very 'not-old' film because the 1920s movies may look 'old' to us now (because of preservation issues etc.) but to 1920s audiences they looked spanking new and did not have the 'jittery' and torn look that we now associate with those films now.

  • COMMENT PART2: I was also intrigued by the mix of 1920s re-creation of style and the elements of more recent cinematography (e.g. the zooms: there was no zoom lens in the 1920s! and also the jagged camera movements in the book close-ups). Also, the acting style was a take on 1920s acting, so altogether this film is a post-modern homage that I found really, really interesting and enjoyable to watch. I must now see He Who Laughs!

    Thank you for sharing this!

  • I liked it.

  • this is from tales of hoffman!

  • yes it might have been a little inspired by hans bellmer's doll series

    though it wasn't a conscious thing - but i love his stuff so much it creeps into a lot of the things i do

  • I LOVED THIS! so very impressive and inspiring! what software did you use to make this?

  • i used a combination of photoshop and final cut pro

    it was shot on a dvx and a nikon fm10 still camera (for the stop motion) using 3200 speed b&w film

  • Meraviglioso!!

  • HOW THE HECK HE COULD MOVE ONE EYE AND THE OTHER IS NOT MOVING!!! *a lil bit moving, but still...*

  • Comment removed

  • contact lense maybe?

  • as a big fan of german expressionism I think you've done a really good job

    it's clear the influences from Metropolis and The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari in your work

    the actors were also ver dramatic and expressive

    thank you for sharing your talent ^-^

  • I really enjoyed this, its an inspiration for other film makers out there. Some people will choose to pick over the bones of this work but ultimately it is a resounding success in my opinion.

    Good Luck for future projects.

  • I can tell you put alot of work into it, and it shows! I can't wait to see the finished result

  • Grotesque, I really didn't like it.

  • it looks really good, but its not "uncanny" or shall i say it doesnt create the effect of the uncanny, you will need to do a lot more than just by pasting it on your film to actually make the audience feel it.

  • I am glad you like it

    but it wasn't our intention to make the audience "feel" the uncanny - but rather demonstrate which elements of eta hoffmann's short story inspired freud's theory

    this was originally created to be part of a feature length doc on men who love sex dolls

    we actually tried to make it kind of fun and cheeky

    I love the german expressionist silent style of the 20s a lot so this project was a good excuse to make something in that vein

    thanks for watching

  • Hey, don't give the cretins the time of day. This little gem had the most perfect balance of humor, surrealism, darkness and pathos I have ever seen. It should win awards.  What it does do now is show us that there is a major talent in the wings, just about to make a big splash in the world of film. Awesome!

  • Wow awesome i love your style

  • Very nicely done!

  • awesome. best part was when she "ah!" 'd.

  • Wow really impressive

  • Can the finished version be seen somewhere?

  • this is really really beautiful. im doing a theatre piece right now on what it would have been like if olympias eyes were taken away but she went on living, all alone. this film has been very inspiring!

  • Echoes of Metropolis. Well done

  • Excellently Creepy!

  • me parece q the sandman era uno de los kiss

  • creepy, but well done

  • genius. can someone explain the significance of the hand counting

  • as the opening title says

    it is "a tragic tale in three parts"

    each finger delineates a section of the story

  • They way she still creaks and clanks is really good.

    and the hand

    thats cool 2

  • I love you.

  • Amazing, simply amazing. Olympia reminds me of Louise Brooks

  • that was intentional - somehow louise brooks as a victorian robot woman synched up nicely with the idea of freud basing a theory on an eta hoffman short story

  • impressive!

  • please check your inbox

  • nice metropolis reference. ;)  very well done, really captures the style of the time.

  • THANK YOU!

    I LOVE IT!

  • I looove the style and everything about this!

    Must read the story now, haven't heard of it before.

  • Sandman bring me a dream.

  • it reminds me the cabinet od dr caligari... nice work!

  • I love the shadows on the wall and the music... very well done...

  • Very impressive.

  • creative genius

  • amazing..incredible ..i like the fact that this video has too do with sort of {to me} the anatomy of a men and their woman/sex appeal ..

    how men use sex dolls as a satisfacting way ...of course when quite certainly its just a doll..not a real woman.. this vid. sort of shows what a man does..but doesnt know the reality of what he is doing/portraying !

  • Beautiful chiaroscuro.

  • "Der Sandmann" by E.T.A. Hoffmann is one of my most favorite pieces of literature. I study german literature and did several works on this text and I appreciate your work a lot. :) It's a bit sad that you had to shorten the story so much. I loved the eye-removal scene, great idea to represent Olimpias loss of livelyness!

  • This was cool and disturbing at the same time 0_o

  • Impressive, very much in the German gothic spirit - see the adaptation of Struwwelpeter by the Tiger Lilies

  • brilliant

  • This is so cool and must have been a ton of work!♥--Hugz and Bubblegum--♥Brittani aka Rhonda Anthony Tanner/R.A.T. Coaching aka B-RAT :)

  • Terrific, guys...! That's so great !!!

    I'm waiting for the second part!

    Congratulations from Brazil...!!!!

  • true, and no thats just the way i roll

  • twisted and somewhat gothic version of pygmalion?

  • Coppelius was truly scary!

  • cool

  • Funny how only one of his eyes moves when he reads.

  • Amazing filmmaking. Great classic style in modern times. I loved it.

  • Goovey!

  • i have no point off refrence off which to form an opinion on this so im just going to declar it ass randome but welcomed wast off 5 minits

  • You must be a college student... you could have just summed up all that verbose with "cool". :o/

  • That,s good!

  • ...huh does this have anything to do with neil giamans sandman?

  • No,nothing to do

  • ******

  • Awesome photography. I love the way you turned the Uncanny from Freud. A film inspired by german expressionism is truly the best way to drain substances about The meaning of an Hoffman novel. Best regards.

  • uh... ok I'm traumatized

  • success!

  • I thoroughly enjoyed this...

  • Absolutely fantastic style--and very faithful to the spirit of the story. However, I would cut out the epilogue; it would be a more "cohesive" work (it wouldn't jump out of its own narrative, unless that's what you want). Also, and you might know this, but the point of view that you ascribe to Freud is actually that of his interlocutor, Jentsch. For Freud the uncanny involves a confrontation with repressed primitive/childhood mental states--not the confusion between the real and the artifical.

  • isn't the story about a visitor to the boy's hosue whom everyone respects and is afraid of, somehow th echild relates the man to a nightmare he has and relates both characters.

    sort of a like a look upon child abuse or a poor family getting visited by a loan shark

  • Great work, Im really impressed! Im working on a treatment for an expressionist-esk short film and I think you answer some of my questions about how to keep it in genre while using some more modern techniques like sound and animation. What was your budget?

  • awesome

  • wasn't it spalanzani who created Olimpia?

  • Inquietante pero bella. Buen corto.

  • THIS IS REALLY BIZZARE! Why would you want a mechanical vagina?

  • Dude, anytime it was getting lose, just use a screwdriver to tighten it right up.

  • Very well done and slickly produced. How did you get it to look so convincingly antiquated?

  • thanks

    of course a lot of it is in the lighting costumes and design

    we tried to stick as close as we could to that expressionist style - even in directing the actors - most everyone

    involved was familiar with the style

    then I did tons of post work on it.

    the frame jitter was done by keyframing a frame at a time

    I did a lot of layering with textures and dropping frames and such - we just kept experimenting with different techniques - it was a very experimental process

  • cuz this ist scaryy ..

  • Does anyone know when this movie was produced?

  • we shot it in late 2006

  • XD I'm sorry, it's greatly done! It really looks like an old movie

  • This is utterly wonderful.

  • wow

  • How wonderful to have found this, I am in the final weeks of my English degree, my dissertation is on the uncanny, your short film is fabulous, really fabulous

  • The best silent movie since Call of Cthulhu. Brilliant, eerie, and very memorable.

  • This is an example of the Unheimlich Maneuver!

  • media studies ftw!

  • are you the Quay Bros.?

  • A mechanical doll....aren't they all.

    Very nice.

  • It's very good... good contrast and great vision... It's more than in progress be sure of that...

    ;o)

  • richragsdale you cool.

  • he looks like the joker !

  • oddly enough - the joker was based on

    the titular character from the 1928 silent film adaptation

    of victor hugo's "the man who laughs"

    directed by paul leni - (whose work very much inspired

    my version of the sandman)

  • Wow!

  • This is fucking sweet, favorited.

  • If this kind of film was put out across the world and done by and independant film maker it would kick Hollywood right up the ass!! Sin city has nothing of depth compared to this. Thankyou for posting!!

  • amazin film

  • Beautifully done - suitably strange and UNCANNY... Thanks

  • AMAZING

  • the sandman breaks 10k views

    thanks to everyone for watching!

  • wow! great job!

  • wow!!!!!I really loved it!

  • good

    lejla/angela z ammanu dla panstwa-tylko dzis(bo jutra nie bedzie-nie ma plagiatu lecz: "PEWNOSCI LECZ NIE MAM, NIE BEDZIE TEZ JUTRA"WXS MURU/SKOWRON.

  • amazing work!!

  • Wow nicely done haha

    I take it you were inspired by Metropolis?

  • Nice work. Not into older style movies but this kept me watching. Thanks. Interest is peaked on looking up "the uncanny". So off i go.

  • Great! 5 stars

  • Merci beaucoup pour cette très belle vidéo aux références multiples aux meilleurs cinéastes.

    Thanks a lot for this wonderfool movie with so many references in the cinema history

  • I'm not sure about my internet connection, so my apologies if this is posted twice:

    Interesting video. I've heard that Freud's thought has its pros and cons (as most things do). This seems to touch on a pro, noting that it touches on a motif found in history and transmitted via culture.

    e.g. Note the parallels between this and the Greek myth Pygmalion

  • thanks for watching!

    i really wasn't trying to make a statement pro or con

    the idea was to tell a very stylized yet truncated version

    of e.t.a. hoffman's original story,

    focusing in on the elements that inspired freud -

    not really explore the validity of the ideas

    (though the idea of the uncanny

    is often applied these days to the reaction people

    have to android/robot technology)

  • also i think my version is more closely related to

    pygmalion than hoffman's original tale - but you are the

    first person to comment on that connection

  • No problem, it was well done and touched on an interesting theme. It's a bit more of a stretch, but interestingly I think we may also apply the idea to our abstract ideas (philosophy, art etc).

    cheers

  • this was really cool.

  • I fucking loved this. Where have you trained to become a film-maker? Excuse my ignorance it is my dream to enter the film world and it seems you are living the dream.

  • that was g8!

  • I am a big fan of german expressionism, and this film was an excellent homage to the movement. Excellent research and attention to detail in lighting, makeup, editing, etc. great job!