io9
You can never have enough giant robot movies and TV shows, and that's why we can't wait to see Steam Wars and MORAV, two giant robot projects that are about to get of the ground. The best part is that both projects are spearheaded by designers, so there is a lot of amazing concept art for both. Steam Wars is an alternate history of nineteenth century warfare in which soldiers fight from inside giant, humanoid tanks.
Steam Wars has been in development for a while but last year creator Larry Blamire announced he was ready to make the movie. He's done a lot of film work, and is the creator of beloved indie Lost Skeleton of Cadavra.
On the Steam Wars site, Blamire already has an elaborate history of US giant robots vs. Prussian ones, along with a list of slang used by the steam rig operators (steam rig is the word for the giant robots). The best part is that Blamire came up with his flick without having seen any steampunk or anime stuff — his original idea was spawned in the 1970s, so it has a very distinctive look that feels fresh compared to all the stuff that's already out there. OK, Blamire, hurry up already and get Steam Wars underway!
MORAV (which stands for Multi-Operational Robotic Armored Vehicle) is a fully-fleshed out concept created by artist and model designer Fon Davis, who has worked on everything from The Matrix to the forthcoming Coraline. The thing I love about the MORAV concept is that Davis has put a lot of thought into the geopolitics of the MORAV world.
In his description of the story, he emphasizes realism:
The story begins with the robot pilots and their peers testing and training then follows them through their struggles with the hardships of war. The audience witnesses the start of a global arms race to build the greatest giant robot army in the world. MORAV covers many decades chronicling the characters through a coup d'etat followed by a civil war that eventually leads to World War Three. The viewer will actually get to see the entire historic saga of robot warfare through the eyes of the men and women immersed in this reality . . . The show is heavily focused on keeping stories character based and making the environment tangible. There is an effort to bring the audience into a world where robots really walk the streets. The robots in this series do not jump, fly, and shoot lasers out of their eyes. They are designed the way giant robots would be if they were real.The politics, though fanciful, are recognizably our own. Let's get this made into a miniseries pronto, people.The Nation of Kumala. Divided into two separate states, they have endured an uneasy peace for hundreds of years, but now they find themselves embroiled in a bloody conflict that pits East and West at each other's throats for control of the entire country.
Across the Jilta Straits lies her sister country of Tangri Island. A peaceful nation with a rich blend of traditional Asian heritage and Western-influenced modernisms and, not unlike any other paradise on Earth, there are those who wish to exploit her and take what she has to offer, no matter what the cost.
As tensions evolve into all-out war, heroes from both Tangri and Kumala unite with a corporate peacekeeping detachment of the Joint Nations Defense force in an attempt to prevent the onslaught of genocide. If they fail, the conflict could destroy Kumala and threaten not only the stability of Tangri Island, but engulf the remainder of South-East Asia into a global war.
Steam Wars [concept site]
MORAV [concept site]
(Thanks Averyguerra!)
Comments
Yes. Please. Right now.
Both sound wunderbah, but how is Blamire going to do this? Certainly not on a CADAVRA budget. (which I like, btw)
My money is down on Patalabor winning a fight against the concept art police robo for the 2nd idea.
Patlabor!
If Steam Wars buckles some swash, I'm fully onboard. Just out of curiosity, has anybody seen the live action Tetsujin 28 that came out last year? Thoughts?
WOW!
The modern reality of a roadside bomb would easily topple these robots :(
Whoah.. no chance of you all having a little bit larger, perhaps say desktop size, version of that Police Station image eh?
"The modern reality of a roadside bomb would easily topple these robots..."
Are we REALLY going to sully this wonder with REALITY????
C'mon, didn't they brief you on the way in here?
too dumb to be interesting. sorry
You had me at giant robot.
KP
MORAV looks like it could be pretty BA in general. The steampunk thing could be cool, but less likely.
@strider_mt2k: This just in: Modern Reality Updated
@DearEditor: I'm all about that, but what I'm all about is the giant robots! :D
Please. Please. Yes. I love this. I love it. It. I love. Now.
@SaintDogbert: It's more like Patlabor + (Gasarki - mysticism).
>_> lets hope the story plot is much better than what Gasaraki had to offer. -shudders at the suffering he endured watching it-
Mechagasm... COMPLETE
Whoa, whoa. Can I call bull here? The Iron Giant designers ripped it off first, but that robot concept from Steam Wars is a pretty close (but lamer looking) copy of the robot from the french animation Le Roi et L'Oiseau.
If these concepts were indeed from the 70s that would mesh too, since this animation was begun in the 40s, shelved and completed in the 70s. It really is an incredible film that doesn't get the recognition it deserves.
It's hard to tell from that picture, but the helmet plume/surveillance deck is identical in both designs. And there was a skirmish on top of it.
Blatant plagiarism aside, this doesn't look all that interesting.
two words FREAKING AWESOME
As long as "The Beef" isn't in either one, I can see some potential for both to be decent.
If you can't wait, I recommend the films Casshern and Appleseed. Both are Japanese animation excellence.
Robot Jocks anybody?
wow...
so steam wars is finally going forward or at this point huh?
the site for it has been up for years now.
Nothing'll beat Giant Robo!
Tiwa - perhaps you could help me solve a twenty year old mystery.
I remember, as a child, watching some animated feature, of which the only thing I remember is that at one point a king operates a steampunkish giant robot. I think I remember the robot was camouflaged as a part of a building or a cliff before it was turned on - the head might have been a room or a small house, and that the king used something like a ship's wheel to steer it.
Could this be the movie you mentioned?
@Plague: I'm also wondering how Larry Blamire can get the cash to do a giant robot period piece, even though after Lost Skeleton of Cadavra, I'm convinced he can do no wrong.
(Maybe he can be all Sky Captain-y and do it all digitally...)
@lars
Good to see someone mentioning Casshern. That movie had such beautiful visuals. Eyegasm in a box.
I really love the MORAV models they released at Comic-Con last year as well! Not only would this make a great movie, the action figures alone would be worth it.
[flickr.com]
Yes clearly ED-209 and their bigger brethren would be ideal for routine police work! "Stop, you are now under arrest! Surrender peacefully or this neighborhood will be flattened!"
MORAV sure looks like PatLabor
@Michael_GR: That happens in this movie, though not in the way you describe. The King (Le Roi et L'Oiseau=The King and the Mockingbird) brings the robot up out of an underground cave in one scene, and the actual operation of the robot is done by a servant, while he stands on the top. The robot crashes through some buildings and houses afterwards. I can't think of any animated movies off the top of my head where those things happen.
here is the robot in action:
+ Watch video
I'm in the "roadside bomb" camp. If this can't be explained away in some logical way, both of these are bunk and made for children... special effects aside :^)
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