Codehunters

Codehunters is an award-winning 2006 short film directed and written by Ben Hibon, animated by Axis Animation, and music by Joris de Man. It was commissioned by MTV Asia and shown at the MTV Music Awards, it has been viewed over 400 million times.

Codehunters
Directed byBen Hibon
Written byBen Hibon
Music byJoris de Man
Release date
2006
Running time
9 minutes
Budget£200,000 (estimated)

Plot

Codehunters tells the story of four heroes: Shen, Lawan, Zom and Nhi as they join forces to battle corrupt gangs, dirty paycops, rampaging monsters and the tyrannical Khann in the crumbling port city of Lhek. Codehunters is set in the not too distant future and uses a stunning mix of eastern anime & western animation techniques.

Style

A variety of techniques were used to achieve the appearance of Hibon's 2D drawings. The use of cel shading, 2D textures to create a drawing appearance, and character outlines to keep true the pencils of the artwork.

Borderlands

Gearbox Software's Borderlands (series) is claimed to be inspired by the film. Kotaku reported on the subject, debating how much inspiration was actually taken. Ben Hibon said he was in talks to work on the project, but contact ceased:[1]

I was contacted by Gearbox prior to the re-design of the game – in 2008. They asked me if I would be interested to direct/design some cut-scenes for them. We exchanged a few emails but the project didn't materialize in the end. I didn't think much of it at the time – until I saw the final game in 2009.

To be absolutely clear – I have never created or designed anything for Gearbox or Borderlands. Gearbox saw my work and decided to reproduce it – make it their own – without my help or my consent. The hardest part for me when this happened was understanding why they wouldn't ask me directly. We were already talking about doing some work together – it made no sense.

When Kotaku inquired into the similarities between Borderlands and Codehunters, Randy Pitchford responded, "artists and designers at Gearbox were inspired and influenced by it."[2] Earlier versions of Borderlands used a more generic science fiction style[1] before being revamped to the cel-shaded style it was published with.[2]

Reception

The film has received positive reception with praise going towards the artstyle, animation, and music.

References
  1. Kain, Erik (March 15, 2013). "From 'CodeHunters' To 'Aliens: Colonial Marines': Gearbox Is One Of The Most Controversial Studios In The Business". Forbes. Retrieved November 8, 2018.
  2. Fahey, Mike (January 8, 2010). "Separated At Birth: Borderlands And CodeHunters". Kotaku. Retrieved November 8, 2018.
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