Private Project

Belonging: TRUST

Belonging is a series of journeys into the emotional lives of MetaHumans.

In this episode, a hardened tech magnate reveals a dark truth to his former business partner’s starry-eyed son.

Directed, animated and edited by motion capture director and independent film cinematographer, Webb Pickersgill. Starring Eric Bear. Produced under the SAG•AFTRA micro-budget project agreement.

BACKGROUND: Isolated during quarantine, tech entrepreneur and actor, Eric Bear, craved connection and creative collaboration. He assembled a team of animators and filmmakers from around the world to explore what might be possible using performance capture and Epic Games’ MetaHumans for Unreal Engine. They embarked on a fully-remote experiment aimed at answering the following questions: Can virtual people effectively express authentic emotions? Can audiences be touched, moved and inspired by performances captured using free software and off-the-shelf hardware? Can multiple artists direct, shoot and produce high-quality episodes from their home studios during a global pandemic?

10 episodes. 10 directors. 25 MetaHumans. 3 live actors. 3 voice actors. 1 engine. Lots of love.

  • Webb Pickersgill
    Director
    Life is Strange
  • Eric Bear
    Writer
    The HyperWatt Conspiracy
  • Eric Bear
    Producer
    The HyperWatt Conspiracy
  • Nikki Levy
    Producer
    OMG!, Don't Tell My Mother
  • Rebecca Miller
    Producer
  • Eric Bear
    Key Cast
    "Jack / Greg"
    Annie Hall, Yellowstone:1883
  • Project Type:
    Animation, Experimental, Short, Television, Web / New Media
  • Genres:
    Drama
  • Runtime:
    5 minutes 20 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    June 1, 2022
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Motion Capture via Unreal Engine
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2.35:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Flickers' Rhode Island International Film Festival 2022
    Providence, Rhode Island
    United States
    Semi-Finalist
  • Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival 2022
    Fort Lauderdale
    United States
    Official Selection
  • Montreal International Animation Film Festival - ANIMAZE 2022
    Montreal
    Canada
    Official Selection
Director Biography - Webb Pickersgill

Webb Pickersgill is the Motion Capture Director at Deck Nine Games. Webb was the performance director for Deck Nine's most recent release Life is Strange: True Colors, which earned 4 BAFTA nominations including the performances for Actor in a Lead Role for Erika Mori and Actor in a Supporting Role for Han Soto. Prior to that Webb worked as the co-game director for Life is Strange: Before the Storm, which was nominated for a BAFTA for Games Beyond Entertainment. Previous experience includes 10 years as an independent film cinematographer, editor and director, 10 years as a systems engineer and software engineer, and a few years as a professional bassist.

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Director Statement

Eric Bear [EXECUTIVE PRODUCER & SERIES LEAD] is a classically-trained film actor known for a meme-generating role in “Annie Hall” and recurring on the Yellowstone prequel “1883” on Paramount+.

As a kinesthetic artist, Bear specializes in primate motion capture and authentic, grounded expression. Prior to returning to filmmaking, Bear was a tech entrepreneur known for creating award-winning interactive media (e.g., Best Animation at SXSW Interactive 1999).

Bear’s invention of seamless video expansion in 1994 was popularized by "The Matrix” – enabling DVD viewers to “follow the white rabbit” to access behind the scenes footage. This technology has been licensed to all major motion picture studios in the USA and top consumer electronics companies in the world. Bear’s 100+ hardware and software patents also include body-based solutions to motion sickness in virtual reality. Products based on Bear’s inventions are in use every day by millions of people and thousands of companies.

Bear is a partner at Capital Factory Ventures and the founder of HyperWatt® Productions.

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Additional episode screeners and details are also available.

https://filmfreeway.com/belonging-night
https://filmfreeway.com/belonging-water
https://filmfreeway.com/belonging-here
https://filmfreeway.com/belonging-duck
https://filmfreeway.com/belonging-partners
https://filmfreeway.com/belonging-trust
https://filmfreeway.com/belonging-rosaline
https://filmfreeway.com/belonging-fiction
https://filmfreeway.com/belonging-fire
https://filmfreeway.com/belonging-farewell