"They are the recipe to my mother's tomato soup."

When I logged onto BiM today, I was pleasantly surprised by this new thread. I don't think His Master Plan could be a more perfect film to start off the Brickfilms of the Week. Everything about this brickfilm classic is terrific and watching it so close to the arrival of THAC gets me even more in the spirit.

Right from the start of the film, the incorporation of the letter mod on the street was brilliant. The digging animation, from both above ground and underground looking at the main character, adds a unique touch to the movie. As mentioned in the introductory post, the LEGO flower petal and tip-toe animation were top-notch. Another aspect in this short that really emphasized the animation was the shadow on the wall at 0:40. All the animation in this film reminded me how charming the art of stop motion is.

Another element to this short film that made it very enjoyable was the narration. It fit the mood of the film so well and I was laughing the whole way through, especially at the dialogue at the end. 

Overall, I think His Master Plan could definitely compare to THAC films today. Sure, it might not be able to compete with the picture quality or visual effects of today, but the ingenious animation more than makes up for that.

Thank you Nathan for starting this!

There are so many things that are wonderful about this film.
First off, the mod element is very cleverly placed throughout. Right from the get-go, the mod element does not distract and blends into the surroundings quite well. The use of 'clay' to create the illusion of digging is quite clever. This effect greatly reminds me of the Bugs Bunny cartoon shorts of yesteryear. The zany 'BONK' effect works perfectly. The tunnel digging effect is what stands out the most for me. Digging is something that is quite difficult to pull off to make it look natural…the 'tunnel vision cut out' is more than effective here. I also love the 'dog effect' in this film. The dog may seem like just a pile of bricks, but it's so simple and wonderfully executed here.

All these things crammed into one short film…AND in 24 hours?
This film is an event itself that is not to be missed.

My hope is to feature a mixture of older and more recent films, but to lean towards brickfilms that may have been forgotten or overlooked. People generally don't need to be reminded of brickfilms released within the last few years. Of course, exceptions will probably be made. There aren't many set rules, just some mental guidelines I have established for myself. Ultimately the goals is just to bring more exposure to a wider variety of brickfilms and to generate new discussion.

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Thanks for sharing, Nathan. I've always wondered about trying to find some entries into THAC 1, other than Mindgame's, which is already fairly well-known.

This is a charming little film - definitely a forerunner of other creative and quirky brickfilms that have become a norm for others.

The animation, though not perfect, doesn't have any major flaws, and, really helps to keep a director's mind, like mine, distracted from the little things. The story really is the main focus, and, seems to be the one thing that stood out the most on first viewing. I can't pinpoint why this is, but, a lot of pre-2010 brickfilms (Nathan Well's Beast, Vandy's Pirates, and Smeagol's Unrenewable, just to name a few) had this element going for them - the story was really the only thing that you notice at first glance, and, that's what filmmaking, and storytelling, is all about! - sharing stories.

On the technical aspects, specifically the "digging" effect done by clay; it's ambitious. Though I knew exactly how the effect was done, and how I could recreate it, the fact that I have never tried it shows the creative mind of Stefan van Zwam. He, obviously, thought differently then other brickfilmers, and did an effect that is really effective, and gives the film just the right amount of charm, without being too campy. It really astonished me, since, it truly would be so simple a thing to do, yet, has rarely been repeated, if ever done again!

Overall, I really liked "His Master's Plan." I'd like to think that, if this had been done for THAC XII, it would have placed highly, regardless of it's lighting flicker and slightly clunky animation. This film's got heart, a soul - something a lot of other brickfilms, specifically contest-specific ones, lack.

I'd even go as far to say that "His Master's Plan" is in the top 100 greatest brickfilms ever made.