Fan creates adorable animated tribute to 'Doctor Who'
Animator pays homage to the Doctor and his companions in this fan-made trailer for "The Animated Adventures Of Doctor Who." Even the Daleks are cute!
While fans wait patiently for the "="" season="" premiere"="" shortcode="link" asset-type="article" uuid="2c75cfee-03f8-45f7-98bb-dea8a7622787" slug="doctor-who-full-trailer-shows-a-darker-side-of-the-doctor" link-text="" section="news" title="New 'Doctor Who' trailer shows a darker side of the Doctor" edition="us" data-key="link_bulk_key" api="{"id":"4bc69e8e-a8e2-47c9-a54f-8483c884df95","slug":"doctor-who-takes-a-deep-breath-in-season-8-premiere","contentType":null,"edition":"us","topic":{"slug":"culture"},"metaData":{"typeTitle":null,"hubTopicPathString":"Culture","reviewType":null},"section":"news"}"> of ""="" shortcode="link" asset-type="article" uuid="4bc69e8e-a8e2-47c9-a54f-8483c884df95" slug="doctor-who-takes-a-deep-breath-in-season-8-premiere" link-text="" section="news" title="'Doctor Who' takes a 'Deep Breath' in season 8 premiere" edition="us" data-key="link_bulk_key" api="{"id":"4bc69e8e-a8e2-47c9-a54f-8483c884df95","slug":"doctor-who-takes-a-deep-breath-in-season-8-premiere","contentType":null,"edition":"us","topic":{"slug":"culture"},"metaData":{"typeTitle":null,"hubTopicPathString":"Culture","reviewType":null},"section":"news"}"> on August 23 on BBC America in the US and BBC One in the UK, they should take a gander at this delightful animated tribute to the Doctor.
Dublin-born, Seattle-based animator Stephen Byrne created this whimsical homage to the new Doctor, played by Peter Capaldi, and his companion Clara, played by Jenna-Louise Coleman, in a fake trailer for "The Animated Adventures Of Doctor Who."
Byrne told Crave, "The inspiration was 'Doctor Who' and the Disney cartoon show 'Gravity Falls.' I'm surprised that given how big 'Doctor Who' is now that the BBC haven't produced an animated version of the show aimed more precisely at the younger viewers, but still accessible to the older audience. 'Gravity Falls' is the best example out there of a kid's cartoon that crosses the generational gap. I could see a 'Doctor Who' animated series working with that sort of treatment and humor. It's something I want to see get made, so I made my quick version of it."
The trailer not only stars the Doctor and Clara, but a wide array of other beloved characters like K-9, an Adipose, Daleks, Cybermen, Weeping Angels, the Silence, and a dinosaur, as well as portraits of all the previous Doctors -- and of course, the Tardis.
With such a vast array of creatures and characters from "Doctor Who" to choose from, Byrne decided who to feature based on how fast he could animate the quickest.
"Honestly, and this is terrible, but the decision making process went like this -- 'What can I do really quickly? What can I get a kick out of, without having to spend days on it?' Handles is a good example of that," Byrne told Crave.
"I thought of doing a Cyberman, which would have involved building a full character and doing a more complex walk cycle. Then I remembered Handles, and so I just drew the head and had it bounce along the ground. Much simpler, but still effective. Same with K-9 and the Adipose. I made the whole thing in two weekends and a few evenings really, so it was about seeing what degree of quality I could get by working fast."
Of all the characters in the trailer, the Doctor was Byrne's favorite to animate. "He does the slightly more elaborate stuff and so was more rewarding when I figured it out. When I remembered how to do a run cycle."