Short Film: Thieves

I'm one of the few that has been privy to seeing Zenisphere's new short film, Thieves. Without giving away too much, Thieves is a stylish cyberpunk thriller set in the not too far future. It is only fourteen minutes long and accomplishes quite a bit in that short span of time. We, the viewers, are given a claustrophobic look inside a story that is quite obviously meant as a backdrop to a larger scheme. We're also given just enough character development to allow us a brief glimpse at the bigger picture. This is a dense piece that may take a couple views, but ultimately you'll get it. It's smart film making that will make you think, especially with the short run time.

The main point that really hit home for me was the fact that I could walk away from Thieves with an understanding of the influences that drove this piece and the ambition that went in to the project. It reminded me of the setting from Hardware, had hints of The Matrix, and had the stylish leanings of some of my other favorite sci fi films. The movie looks great, the set design is awesome, and the effects are astounding considering the budget that went in to this film.

Thieves IS thinking man's sci fi and hopefully will garner some interest for Zenisphere. A great story is reliant on one main thing: strong characters. That is the best part of Thieves. I could tell that there is a character driven back story that we've not seen yet. With the right amount of attention, I think we could possibly see that.