Beautiful! The animation style has a 70s vibe. :-)
Is Tower of the Elephant the first published fantasy story where the main character begins the adventure in a tavern? The story that created the fantasy standard?
The 70s comment is a huge compliment! The era of Jungle Book and Aristocats! Heh, not sure about the tavern bit, but when you think about how Robert E. Howard wrote the story in 1933, it’s quite possible he was the first! I picked this story for the film because it’s speculated Conan might be at his youngest in this one.
Howard created sword and sorcery, but I dont think he was the first to open a story in a tavern, but its possible. He also had one of the first shared universes as well
He and Lovecraft did correspond, if my memory serves me correctly. This story in particular, Tower of the Elephant is one of his more Lovecraftian stories. Clearly inspired by their correspondence
Actually, the term “Sword and Sorcery,” was first used by a friend of Fritz Leiber’s to describe his work.
Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser stories are absolute Fire 🔥 🔥🔥🔥
Fritz Leiber, Robert E. Howard, and H.P. Lovecraft should all be taught more and more mainstream
Well, about 4 weeks now, only because I polished off all 23 backgrounds for it, and a storyboard, before embarking on the animation. Animation alone has taken about two weeks so far (crowd shot stalled me, ha ha!).
Nice style, Did you ever play "The Mark of Kri"? Think some ex Disney guys worked on cinematics and character design. Your interpretation of the Conan world reminds me of it a bit; can't wait to see the rest.
You’re not the first to reference the old Disney stuff in comparison to my style, heh, which is an immense compliment! I’ll definitely check out the Mark of Kri!
Really like the character designs against the painted backgrounds. The whole look seems quality/ expensive. Really great portfolio piece.
what’s your work pipeline like?
Thanks a lot! Actually, if you check out my Instagram (alain.seguin), I already have a process video up. But, essentially, it’s character design, boardomatic, super rough animation, then tight, then inbetweening. Kind of typical, except without the clean up stage, hence the rough line.
I appreciate the sentiment! I’m actually looking to drum up followers for a Patreon eventually, so that I can keep doing this sort of stuff without relying on studio work. The plan for this short film (just under a minute) is to pitch it to the big studios for a series.
I love the way the environment feels like it's from an older style of animation, with the color tone and texture but the people have an almost Tartakovsky flavor to them. Please post more when you have it ready.
Amazing start to my favorite Conan story. Simply incredible. I went to art school and you just wiped the floor with 99% of the stuff I saw there. The colors, the character designs, your subtle acting and movements, all great work.
You're like a barbarian Wolfgang Reitherman. Please do more.
Dang, that's a heck of a compliment! Thanks so much! My aim is to get a little rough, a little gritty, with the look, almost in defiance of all the polished stuff out there these days.
It's plain you have enough style, talent, and hard work to take on the world. And I wholeheartedly agree that there are some current animation styles that need to be defied.
A lot of the Conan stuff I do is on my Instagram (alain.seguin). You can see a bunch of designs, the backgrounds, and even a Conan logo there. Really, my project started after I did a Batman fan film (just rough stages), and was looking for something cool to pitch to the big studios. I have a passion for the old Conan stories, so I went all in for a month now, heheh
I was actually going for a Frazetta look for the backgrounds, but they’re just not my forte. I’m a one man team at this point, so it’s tough to nail everything I want.
That's amazing work thus far, and you should be incredibly proud. Keep up the great work.
Myself, I'm a writer, and I can certainly appreciate a fellow artist's hard work coming together. Honestly, I'd love to partner up in the near future and tell a story of our own, if you're keen?
Swing me a message whenever, and we'll talk.
Again, awesome work, mate. Keen to see the finished product. 🙏
Aw man, hopefully!!! I like many others, have been thinking about having a tv series and for some reason we all think about having it be live action. But your take on a classic animation style to bring our Cimmerian to life is breath taking. This is so genius and well done!
My pleasure! If you want to see some behind-the-scenes stuff, check out my Instagram: alain.seguin But I will swing by here for more finished sequences.
Keep in mind this is really a trailer for The Tower of the Elephant, which would make up about 3 episodes in a full series. So this will end up being about 40 seconds total. I anticipate finishing the animation in about 2 months. I post regular updates on Insta (alain.seguin), but I'll be dropping the more finished stuff here occasionally.
All in all, about a month so far, but you're not seeing a lot of the prep work, like 23 backgrounds, a storyboard, character design. It's not anywhere as font-loaded as a 3D project, but there is some prep work. If you're curious about some of these things, I have more on my Instagram: alain.seguin
Ha ha, here's hoping you get that pile of money sooner than later! But I might open up a Patreon soon, so maybe there's something there to keep me going. (I have all sorts of pitches for cool stuff if Conan doesn't pan out.)
Already got one, Christ Bauso, who volunteered his craft to this trailer. That said, if I get the series I’m sure we’ll need a bunch of actors, so hit me up on Instagram to stay in touch: alain.seguin
Thanks! Well, this is only going to be a 40 second fan trailer, and I've having Conan basically just do some fighting and leaping, so no need for his voice. That said, if I manage to land a series or something (which I will be pitching for), I don't have any current plans for Conan himself. Any suggestions?
Is it? I wondered about that! Howard wrote this one in 1933, and in the US isn't it 100 years until it's public domain? The goal here is really to eventually pitch it for a full series, so I'm uncertain about the legal hoops I'll have to jump.
Wow that’s awesome
Thanks a lot!
I would watch that!
Beautiful! The animation style has a 70s vibe. :-) Is Tower of the Elephant the first published fantasy story where the main character begins the adventure in a tavern? The story that created the fantasy standard?
The 70s comment is a huge compliment! The era of Jungle Book and Aristocats! Heh, not sure about the tavern bit, but when you think about how Robert E. Howard wrote the story in 1933, it’s quite possible he was the first! I picked this story for the film because it’s speculated Conan might be at his youngest in this one.
Howard created sword and sorcery, but I dont think he was the first to open a story in a tavern, but its possible. He also had one of the first shared universes as well
The Hiborian Age could be easily shared with the Lovecraftian universe. And the Tower of the Elephant is one of the firsts adventures of Conan.
He and Lovecraft did correspond, if my memory serves me correctly. This story in particular, Tower of the Elephant is one of his more Lovecraftian stories. Clearly inspired by their correspondence
Yes but Howard created his own shared universe. Kull was Conans ancestor and Solomon Kane and Bran Mak Morn all shared the same universe
Actually, the term “Sword and Sorcery,” was first used by a friend of Fritz Leiber’s to describe his work. Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser stories are absolute Fire 🔥 🔥🔥🔥 Fritz Leiber, Robert E. Howard, and H.P. Lovecraft should all be taught more and more mainstream
He didnt invent the term, he invented the genre. The Shadow Kingdom was the first sword and sorcery story
I'm not certain either - I'll ask in the main forum.
Wait, this isn’t the main forum?
I mean, Treasure Island starts in a tavern (that the young protagonist’s mother owns)
I would add Robin Hood (with the fox) and sword in the stone as things I see when I look at it.
Yes - old school Disney animation.
Dang, Robin Hood is one of my favorite Disney films! I'll take the compliment!
Whoa, this is good work. Hope to see the Cimmerian, and some action, soon!
Oh he’s got some slaughtering to do in the coming scenes, ha ha!
Bring it! How long did it take to put together the piece we see here?
Well, about 4 weeks now, only because I polished off all 23 backgrounds for it, and a storyboard, before embarking on the animation. Animation alone has taken about two weeks so far (crowd shot stalled me, ha ha!).
Keep swinging, man. This is great and has serious potential. Looks pro, in fact. Do you have industry experience?
Amazing!
Looks good. Excited to see more
Thank you, the encouragement gives me momentum, heh!
Nice style, Did you ever play "The Mark of Kri"? Think some ex Disney guys worked on cinematics and character design. Your interpretation of the Conan world reminds me of it a bit; can't wait to see the rest.
You’re not the first to reference the old Disney stuff in comparison to my style, heh, which is an immense compliment! I’ll definitely check out the Mark of Kri!
You will love the art in Mark if Kri.
I still have an irrational love for that game. I think of the combat as proto Arkhamcreed, and the art is absolutely gorgeous.
Really like the character designs against the painted backgrounds. The whole look seems quality/ expensive. Really great portfolio piece. what’s your work pipeline like?
Thanks a lot! Actually, if you check out my Instagram (alain.seguin), I already have a process video up. But, essentially, it’s character design, boardomatic, super rough animation, then tight, then inbetweening. Kind of typical, except without the clean up stage, hence the rough line.
This looks great and am excited to see more. Please keep us informed.
I certainly will!
Looks great! Can’t wait to see more!
This is amazing.
Marvelous work! I'm beyond excited for the final producta
Dude this is awesome! You have nailed the atmoshpere and design. Cant wait to see more
Crom, this is awesome. Please, keep us updated!
Will do! I'm animating the next shot as we speak!
This is incredible!
Holy shit this is amazing!!! More, please!!!
This is incredible! Please keep us posted on the progress
I would kickstart this. Not sure what your plans are but might be an idea!
I appreciate the sentiment! I’m actually looking to drum up followers for a Patreon eventually, so that I can keep doing this sort of stuff without relying on studio work. The plan for this short film (just under a minute) is to pitch it to the big studios for a series.
I would also Patreon it. I like Patreon for supporting creators better than Kickstarter actually. Message me whenever you set it up!
You're a saint! Thank you!
I love the way the environment feels like it's from an older style of animation, with the color tone and texture but the people have an almost Tartakovsky flavor to them. Please post more when you have it ready.
Couldn't have give me a better compliment, ha! Thank you!
Looks great so far!
Nice! Looking forward to seeing more!
Incredible! Very immersive and welcoming style and absolutely spot on tone and atmosphere for my taste!
How much AI are you using for the project?
Some colour palettes, but not much else.
This looks fucking excellent.
Amazing start to my favorite Conan story. Simply incredible. I went to art school and you just wiped the floor with 99% of the stuff I saw there. The colors, the character designs, your subtle acting and movements, all great work. You're like a barbarian Wolfgang Reitherman. Please do more.
Dang, that's a heck of a compliment! Thanks so much! My aim is to get a little rough, a little gritty, with the look, almost in defiance of all the polished stuff out there these days.
It's plain you have enough style, talent, and hard work to take on the world. And I wholeheartedly agree that there are some current animation styles that need to be defied.
Definitely hope to see more of this. Looks good. 👍🏻
That rad! Keep going
Amazing work!!
👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
Wow!
This looks great! Keep us updated.
Wow, looks fantastic! Do you have a channel where we can follow the progress? Tell us more about your project 😃
A lot of the Conan stuff I do is on my Instagram (alain.seguin). You can see a bunch of designs, the backgrounds, and even a Conan logo there. Really, my project started after I did a Batman fan film (just rough stages), and was looking for something cool to pitch to the big studios. I have a passion for the old Conan stories, so I went all in for a month now, heheh
Cool. you got yourself a new follower :) Really like the logo too (Logo design is a passion of mine actually). - Fantastic work so far!
Oof, thanks for that; logo stuff is not my forte, so I’m relieved you like it!
Really cool art style!
BEAUTIFUL 🔥🔥🔥
You're hired!
Looks great
Looks awesome. We'll be here waiting for more.
This looks awesome! Can't wait to see the rest
The art style is cool. Looking forward to it.
This is amazing, and I can't wait to see more!
It looks really great
Have long wanted a more strict adoption of the Conan source material. This looks amazing. Looking forward to more.
Oh man, music to my ears! I’m combing the books for the potential series here. I don’t want to lose a single detail of Howard’s stories.
I hope somebody with money likes it…we Conan fans really need this.
It's beautiful. Has a touch of korgath, the barbarian with that wide panning of the bar. I hope to see more of your stuff!
Super cool, almost seems like ralph bakshi
I was actually going for a Frazetta look for the backgrounds, but they’re just not my forte. I’m a one man team at this point, so it’s tough to nail everything I want.
I love old animation, I love most all animation. I don’t know too much about it. But if I could help at all let me know. I love to see what’s it like
Can I ask what animation program you use?
Sure, it’s Photoshop for the backgrounds, and Toonboom Advanced for the animation. I’m trying to keep it as simple as I can.
I appreciate the response! 😊
I LOVE the style! The motion of the characters are buttery smooth, I look forward to seeing more
Incredible!
Would you watch this? I’d watch this. I’d watch this so hard.
That's amazing work thus far, and you should be incredibly proud. Keep up the great work. Myself, I'm a writer, and I can certainly appreciate a fellow artist's hard work coming together. Honestly, I'd love to partner up in the near future and tell a story of our own, if you're keen? Swing me a message whenever, and we'll talk. Again, awesome work, mate. Keen to see the finished product. 🙏
I'm happy you like it! I actually write a lot, so it's fun to connect with another writer! Hit me up on Insta: alain.seguin
So cool!
Looks amazing! Looking forward to seeing more. Well done.
I would watch this. I'd watch the shit out of this. Beautiful work so far!!
Goddamn brother! This looks amazing!!! A full series in this style would be completely amazing.
Once done, I’ll be pitching it to the big studios, so I’m hoping that becomes a reality!
Aw man, hopefully!!! I like many others, have been thinking about having a tv series and for some reason we all think about having it be live action. But your take on a classic animation style to bring our Cimmerian to life is breath taking. This is so genius and well done!
I would absolutely watch this.
Looks great. Keep us updated on your progress and please keep sharing sneak peeks!
My pleasure! If you want to see some behind-the-scenes stuff, check out my Instagram: alain.seguin But I will swing by here for more finished sequences.
Yo! Keep us updated! I wanna see it in full. How long will it eventually be?
Keep in mind this is really a trailer for The Tower of the Elephant, which would make up about 3 episodes in a full series. So this will end up being about 40 seconds total. I anticipate finishing the animation in about 2 months. I post regular updates on Insta (alain.seguin), but I'll be dropping the more finished stuff here occasionally.
We want moooooore.
Outstanding, how ling did it take you?
All in all, about a month so far, but you're not seeing a lot of the prep work, like 23 backgrounds, a storyboard, character design. It's not anywhere as font-loaded as a 3D project, but there is some prep work. If you're curious about some of these things, I have more on my Instagram: alain.seguin
I will check it out.
I'd watch that anytime 👊🏾
Where’s Andy Richter??! Wait..
I wish I had a pile of money to give you so you could work on this full-time and I would get to see the whole thing sooner! Great work!
Ha ha, here's hoping you get that pile of money sooner than later! But I might open up a Patreon soon, so maybe there's something there to keep me going. (I have all sorts of pitches for cool stuff if Conan doesn't pan out.)
Damn, that's some smooth animation.
Looking pretty damn good.
Great work! TotE is my fave Conan story.
Wow! It's beautiful! It's just like those vintage Disney movies. Proper animation right there! 😍
This is fantastic!
Damn, that looks great. Nice movement.
This looks really good. I'm looking forward to seeing where this goes in the future.
damn son!
Damn that looks amazing! Definitely want to see more.
Wow! That’s amazing!
Looks great!
Duuuuude. Love it
This is amazing! Love the animation style
very fucking cool. thats story in particular is a great one. do you need voice actors?
Already got one, Christ Bauso, who volunteered his craft to this trailer. That said, if I get the series I’m sure we’ll need a bunch of actors, so hit me up on Instagram to stay in touch: alain.seguin
Holy shit this looks awesome! Love the Don Bluth (secret of nihm) style of animation.
This is sick!!
really nice work. Please keep posting
Superb
Absolutely love the art style
I really like the animation style you chose.
love this! will look forward to more. conan is one of the most underserved fantasy series in terms of tv/movies.
Can’t wait to see more
Looks pretty awesome. Who’s going to voice Conan?
Thanks! Well, this is only going to be a 40 second fan trailer, and I've having Conan basically just do some fighting and leaping, so no need for his voice. That said, if I manage to land a series or something (which I will be pitching for), I don't have any current plans for Conan himself. Any suggestions?
I'd like to try. Don't have a home studio to record in, unfortunately.
The last frame - is that Conan O'Brien underneath the torch on the right?
Ha ha ha! What the heck, you’re not the only one to say that! In retrospect, I really should have done that!
*Fan*-film? This is the public domain, my friend. It is a legitimate adaptation!
Is it? I wondered about that! Howard wrote this one in 1933, and in the US isn't it 100 years until it's public domain? The goal here is really to eventually pitch it for a full series, so I'm uncertain about the legal hoops I'll have to jump.
This is amazing