The Wizard of Speed and Time

I became aware of this inventive short film courtesy of the boys at Corridor Crew, who discussed it in a recent “VFX Artists React” video. Created back in 1979 by Mike Jittlov, who basically did everything — directing, editing, etc. — The Wizard of Speed and Time is one of those films that feels distinctly ahead of its time. Sure, it’s all grainy and whatnot, but the visual effects, which were all done sans any computer, are still pretty mind-blowing, especially the stop motion animation in the second half.

Several years later, in 1988, Jittlov created a feature-length film (also available on YouTube) inspired by his earlier short in which he plays a special effects guy trying to make a film, only to end up butting heads with the Hollywood studio system. In keeping with the quirkiness of the original, Jittlov inserted subliminal messages into the feature film to promote positive thinking.