2020 FORESIGHT — Danny Stern

// 2020 Foresight //

2020 has been unprecedented, one of the most monumental years in living history. They say that hindsight is 2020, and this is the year we never saw coming - an endless stream of horrors; natural disasters, plague, pandemic, corruption and tragedy. How much of what’s happened this year could have been avoided? Or damage mitigated? What power do we have to use our voices to influence positive change? Have we learnt anything, or are we destined to repeat the same pattern of incompetence, apathy and self-interest? I wanted to make this short film to acknowledge some of what our planet has been through this year. For me, 2020 looks like a warning shot. We still have an opportunity to set things right, to put the people in power who will do what’s right for society, so when the next year like 2020 comes around, we are better equipped to deal with it. While the horrors of 2020 may not reset when the clock ticks over on January 1st, maybe 2021 can serve as a collective refresh for hope, change and evolution. ——————— Huge shout out to my very talented brother, Adam Stern who composed the original music for this piece.

2020 was unprecedented, the most monumental year in living history. They say that hindsight is 2020, but it was the year we never saw coming - an endless stream of horrors; natural disasters, plague, pandemic, corruption and tragedy.

How much of what happened could have been avoided? Or damage mitigated? Did we learn anything, or are we destined to repeat the same pattern of incompetence, apathy and self-interest?

I wanted to make this short film to acknowledge some of what our planet had been through - and look forward to a more hopeful future.

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Process

Here’s a little glimpse behind the scenes. I especially enjoyed mixing 2D and 3D across the project. 3D - Most assets were created in Blender then imported into Element 3D for After Effects. 2D - I developed a procedural shading system where base shapes (mostly shape layers) could be fed through a series of precomps for layers of shading and masked intersections. Then, topped off with the secret ingredient for that extra chrome look - CC Plastic. All shots were then composited with depth of field, grain, glow, lens distortion and a healthy dose of atmospheric effects like smoke and dust.

A little glimpse behind the scenes.

Huge shout out to my very talented brother, Adam Stern who composed the original music for this piece.