Yves DALBIEZ

This shortfilm was made especially for ‪@ProjectOdyssey_AI‬ Season 2. We worked average of 15 hours/day for 25 days in a row without rest. The challenge was to make an original shortfilm with high a production value in a short amount of time with all the tools we have access to (Real life shooting, Viggle, Runway ML, 3D for some elements) while experimenting with non-realistic style transfer rendering. ANPU is an alternative name for Anubis, the ancient Egyptian god associated with mummification, the afterlife, and guiding souls to the underworld. Anpu was believed to escort the deceased to the Hall of Judgment, where their heart would be weighed against the feather of Ma’at, symbolizing truth and justice. I have always been fascinated by Egyptian gods, Particularly their striking depictions with animal heads. As a child, their mystique captivated my imagination, and Anubis stood out as one of the most awe-inspiring figures, embodying power and respect. The recent advancements in Viggle v.3 allowed me to seamlessly replace the face of an actor, a task that would have required extensive CGI just a few years ago. Combining this with stylization tools like Mago Studio, successor of warp diffusion, enabled the creation of a unique visual style for this film. To achieve the final result, I employed a mix of techniques and tools. Each shot was storyboarded and approached like a painting, crafted with care, from art direction to final composite and color grading. We shot some scenes in real life at Shibuya Crossing in Tokyo where a friend and I were acting, while others shots were generated using Kling AI and Hailuo Minimax. The plate-cleaning process and tracking were primarily handled with ‪@RunwayML‬ . Each shot was then stylized using Mago Studio, following a precise workflow that worked only for that shot. A 10min Making-of about this film to communicate around the tools, and the creative process is currently in production.