Broken Saints
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Broken Saints | |
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Created by | Brooke Burgess |
Written by | Brooke Burgess |
Directed by | Brooke Burgess |
Voices of |
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Music by | Tobias Tinker |
Country of origin | Canada |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 1 |
No. of episodes | 24 |
Production | |
Running time | 9–83 minutes |
Original release | |
Release | January 17, 2001 July 13, 2003 | –
Broken Saints is a partially
It tells the story of four strangers in different regions of the world – Shandala from Fiji; Raimi from the United States; Oran from Iraq; and Kamimura from Japan – all of whom suddenly experience an apocalyptic vision or series of apocalyptic visions. All four set out to uncover the origin and/or meaning behind their experiences.
After its online release was concluded in 2003, the series was released as a limited-edition DVD in 2005, featuring voice narration, upgraded artwork for the first 12 episodes, some alternate technical effects for those episodes and subsequent ones, and numerous special features. A subsequent mass-market DVD release was distributed in 2006 by
While Broken Saints was met with unanimous critical acclaim, it has remained relatively obscure since its initial release. Its word-of-mouth reverence from fans and subsequent popularity on Newgrounds has led the series to develop a cult following.
Characters
Shandala Nisinu: Commonly Shandala, she is an 18-year-old
Raimi Matthews: Raimi is a 24-year-old Canadian non-practicing
Oran Bajir: Oran is a 29-year-old devout
Kamimura: Also known as "Kami", he is an elderly
Production
Each of the chapters was written and directed by Burgess, with Kirby doing the technical direction and West providing the artwork. The series was co-produced in the first year (first six episodes) by Vancouver-based Switch Interactive with Budget Monk Productions. Illustrator Andrew West and Flash designer/programmer Ian Kirby were employees of Switch Interactive, and brought the concept to the studio's attention in 1999.[citation needed]
Format and publication
Broken Saints is broken into 24 Flash-animated episodes that were released from 2001 to 2003.[1] It totals about 12 hours of running time.[citation needed]
The chapters vary in length and become progressively longer, many with two or three acts. The shortest is nine minutes long, while the longest, the 24th episode "Truth", is five acts long with a prologue and epilogue, totaling 1 hour and 23 minutes.[citation needed]
It is one of the earliest examples of a
Dani Atkinson of Sequential Tart found the work difficult to categorize, saying, "I'm honestly not sure what Broken Saints is. There's a lot of ongoing debate regarding how much animation a webcomic can contain before it stops being a comic, but I'd have to say Broken Saints has crossed that line, however blurry the line may be. But it uses elements of comics storytelling, particularly in the early chapters, and throughout the story it uses word balloons and captions instead of spoken dialogue. So it's a comic that moves, if there is such a thing, or it's a movie you read."[1]
Two DVD versions have been released. The first was released in 2005, and featured improved or wholly redrawn art for the first 12 chapters, numerous featurettes, commentary on select chapters, and voice narration for all dialogue. The voice actors included
The creators of Broken Saints received a grant from the Canadian government to assist in publishing the work to DVD.[1]
Future
On November 30, 2008, Brooke Burgess announced on the official Broken Saints blog that a TV series was on the way. In the blog post was also embedded a trailer.[2][3] The trailer was later revealed to be a pitch for a series.
In 2015, on the series Facebook group, Burgess said he had a specific idea for a possible second season that would pick up 30 years after the events of the first.
Awards and reviews
Broken Saints is the winner of various awards including:
- 2001 Pixie Award Winner: Best Website that Incorporates Motion
- Flash in the Can 2002: People's Choice Award
- Flash Forward 2002: People's Choice Award & Best Cartoon
- Netfestival Brazil 2003: People's Choice Award
- 2003 Audience Award at the Sundance Online Film Festival
- 2004 Horizon Interactive Awards: Best in Show
- Telefilm Canada Grant Award 2004
- 2005 Annual Rue-Morgue Awards: Most Innovative Concept
- 2005 Canadian New Media Awards: Producer of the Year (Brooke Burgess)
Reviewing for Sequential Tart in 2004, Dani Atkinson gave the work an 8 out of 10. They advised patience in the slower parts, such as the beginning, which "develops very slowly... taking several chapters to build momentum and develop the characters.... But as the comic nears the end, the plot kicks into high gear, and everything starts clicking into place. I spent the final chapter glued to the screen and teetering on the edge of my seat." They called the soundtrack "atmospheric." But for online viewing, they complained about the Flash format which offered no pause or rewind function. Atkinson described the art as "strongly manga influenced, but done in full colour with rough, sketchy line work" and noted that in later chapters, the animation becomes more elaborate and is "less like a comic and more like a movie." They called the story "emotionally intense, and very consciously spiritual," and said, "It's a work with high ideals and high hopes for itself. I respect that." The review noted a lot of cursing and "a few really disturbing images."[1]
References
- ^ a b c d Atkinson, Dani (2004-04-01). "Broken Saints". www.sequentialtart.com. Archived from the original on 2004-05-14. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
- ^ "Broken Saints Live Action Trailer". brokensaints.com. 2008-11-29. Retrieved 30 November 2008.
- ^ "Broken Saints Live Action Trailer". Vimeo.com. 2008-10-23. Retrieved 23 October 2008.
External links
- Raimi Matthews' website Archived 2006-05-09 at the Wayback Machine
- Fan Forum Archived 2006-05-13 at the Wayback Machine
- Gnosis Games
- Brooke Burgess Interview at www.sci-fi-online.com
- The Newgrounds collection of Broken Saints
- Exclusive Interview with Brooke Burgess
- Broken Saints at IMDb
- Broken Saints at AllMovie