Three of my colleagues from Columbus College of Art & Design and myself wanted to show what four artists can do with a budget of $170. All the VFX was created from scratch by myself and Philip McCloskey.
I was responsible for the animation, compositing, visual effects, the creation of the orbiting ship, and editing.
Story: After the discovery of the Worson effect in 2158, which allowed humans to fold space, we spread out to the stars like a cancer. Settling on newly-discovered planets and moons, we advanced our terraforming technologies so quickly that no one nation could keep track of the rapid colonization. This created systems which were completely controlled by newly formed nations, criminal organizations, and corporations who did not agree with the common law - but, instead, lived by their own. The United Galactic Federation (UGF) was formed to enforce laws on the planets they controlled and to monitor the ones they couldn’t. Fast forward 300 years: Squad R-T45 is working for the UGF and is tasked with checking on one of these distant planets. They detect the bio signature of the 'Jackal', an arms dealer with a price on his head. And that is when things begin to fall apart.