There and Back Again: The Fantasy Medium in 2013
I am very excited for what appears to be an uplifting Renaissance of the fantasy genre. Oh, I suppose that it has never really gone out of vogue. We just have so many styles today to choose from.
If you would like campy humor, look no further than Dreamworks Animation. If you are after something heartwarming, you have Disney Feature Animation. Then, there is Disney's biggest competitor, Universal, creating such gems as the Despicable Me series.
For those of us whom enjoy more blood and gore in our lives, we have
The Game of Thrones.
And, for epic fantasy, thank goodness for Peter Jackson, and his series of films based on the works of J.R.R. Tolkien.
Yes, I am very glad that fantasy is being taken for, what appears to be, more seriously now, then ever before.
If one goes to the main books page of Amazon, there is a distinct fantasy focus.
Why, fantasy has even invaded the circus!
You can go to a hotel in Las Vegas that is themed around a pirate ship, and watch a mysterious circus that showcases a baby's journey through life. The amazing thing is that Mystre was scheduled for only ten years. It's still there.
Fantasy often has really wonderful morals that are both hidden, and made more bold simultaneously by default.
In the Hobbit, one definitely needs to get out of one's €shell€, and do something uncomfortable with their lives. How else can one grow? It's totally right on when these messages are coupled with dwarves, wizards, and a fierce dragon!
There is also much innovation in art direction. While I am not sure if Dreamworks' €The Croods€ counts, J.J. Abrams never fails to entertain with his unique perspective on story, and production design.
Officially, it was released in 2012, but, nonetheless, Tim Burton's successful release of Frankenweenie in black and white goes to show that color isn't always the answer to everything. Indeed, he is a big name director, and that is certainly part of the draw. However, everything he has made hasn't always been a tremendous hit. I believe that Tim Burton cared a great deal about the subject matter. He was also working on it longer than most anything else he has done, if we are to count the live action short as a starting off point.
Innovation can, and often does come in many forms.
Within the wide, wonderful, and amazing world of video games, Disney's Infinity just came out. To this, I say, so what, and who cares?
I am very much not turned on by a world where someone thought it was cool to smash some of Disney's most popular properties into one video game. You lose focus, art direction, design, and story, which are all places that Disney excels in, in other arenas.
Technologically, I am impressed with the fact that you can interact with the game from one of three ways: A console, online, or on your iPad.
Final Fantasy XV, I have to say, looks totally amazing.
I am afraid that I don't understand why in the world there are video games based on Legos. A Lego world and character are already abstractions of the real world. For a child at play, it makes sense to put together plastic bricks, as a form of pretend.
However, in the video game world, where it is often respected, and striven for to create worlds that are as realistic as possible, it doesn't seem to work.
From a marketing perspective, Infinity, and Lego make a ton of sense. It just isn't
very innovative.
From a marketing, originality, graphic, and immersion perspective, there is still much to be done. Pazzaria Productions is starting to provide some of those answers, with The Legend of the Lost Rose.
Indeed, fantasy today is, arguably, more exciting than through prior decades.
Let's hope that this very prolific genre continues to grow, and lend a renewed credence to the future.
If you would like campy humor, look no further than Dreamworks Animation. If you are after something heartwarming, you have Disney Feature Animation. Then, there is Disney's biggest competitor, Universal, creating such gems as the Despicable Me series.
For those of us whom enjoy more blood and gore in our lives, we have
The Game of Thrones.
And, for epic fantasy, thank goodness for Peter Jackson, and his series of films based on the works of J.R.R. Tolkien.
Yes, I am very glad that fantasy is being taken for, what appears to be, more seriously now, then ever before.
If one goes to the main books page of Amazon, there is a distinct fantasy focus.
Why, fantasy has even invaded the circus!
You can go to a hotel in Las Vegas that is themed around a pirate ship, and watch a mysterious circus that showcases a baby's journey through life. The amazing thing is that Mystre was scheduled for only ten years. It's still there.
Fantasy often has really wonderful morals that are both hidden, and made more bold simultaneously by default.
In the Hobbit, one definitely needs to get out of one's €shell€, and do something uncomfortable with their lives. How else can one grow? It's totally right on when these messages are coupled with dwarves, wizards, and a fierce dragon!
There is also much innovation in art direction. While I am not sure if Dreamworks' €The Croods€ counts, J.J. Abrams never fails to entertain with his unique perspective on story, and production design.
Officially, it was released in 2012, but, nonetheless, Tim Burton's successful release of Frankenweenie in black and white goes to show that color isn't always the answer to everything. Indeed, he is a big name director, and that is certainly part of the draw. However, everything he has made hasn't always been a tremendous hit. I believe that Tim Burton cared a great deal about the subject matter. He was also working on it longer than most anything else he has done, if we are to count the live action short as a starting off point.
Innovation can, and often does come in many forms.
Within the wide, wonderful, and amazing world of video games, Disney's Infinity just came out. To this, I say, so what, and who cares?
I am very much not turned on by a world where someone thought it was cool to smash some of Disney's most popular properties into one video game. You lose focus, art direction, design, and story, which are all places that Disney excels in, in other arenas.
Technologically, I am impressed with the fact that you can interact with the game from one of three ways: A console, online, or on your iPad.
Final Fantasy XV, I have to say, looks totally amazing.
I am afraid that I don't understand why in the world there are video games based on Legos. A Lego world and character are already abstractions of the real world. For a child at play, it makes sense to put together plastic bricks, as a form of pretend.
However, in the video game world, where it is often respected, and striven for to create worlds that are as realistic as possible, it doesn't seem to work.
From a marketing perspective, Infinity, and Lego make a ton of sense. It just isn't
very innovative.
From a marketing, originality, graphic, and immersion perspective, there is still much to be done. Pazzaria Productions is starting to provide some of those answers, with The Legend of the Lost Rose.
Indeed, fantasy today is, arguably, more exciting than through prior decades.
Let's hope that this very prolific genre continues to grow, and lend a renewed credence to the future.
