San Diego Comic-Con has begun in earnest and for the next few days we can expect to be buried under a mountain of cool stuff coming out the pop-culture-palooza. Already the bar has been set pretty high by “Invader Zim” creator Jhonen Vasquez’s “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” animated short film. 

The short, titled simply “TMNT: Don Vs Raph” showcases the two titular turtles in a contest to determine which of them is the best warrior. Raph represents the side of physical prowess and training, while Donnie puts his trust in his intellect and technological innovations, laying down the framework for the ultimate contest of brain vs brawn. 

As should be expected from a creator such as Vasquez, the battle quickly devolves into increasing levels of wackiness as both turtles refuse to concede, concocting increasingly elaborate contests to determine an ultimate winner. While the whole thing runs at only six minutes, it’s jam-packed with fun and funny, combining the best elements of both the TMNT and Vasquez’s unique perspective. Check it out.

A few months back, I happened to meet an awesome gentleman by the name of Eli Sasich at a dinner at a family friends’ home. Upon our meeting, I was thrilled to have someone to geek-out with over dinner, chatting about everything from Star Wars to super heroes. The subject was brought up that Eli was the director of a short I was given last year called “HENRi“, and he had another short film out there called “ATROPA”.

Over the last month-and-a-half or so, “ATROPA” has been making the rounds across the internet, garnering praise and acclaim wherever it’s posted. Having finally had an opportunity to sit down and watch the 9-minute short, it’s not hard to see why.

Keep in mind that this is a proof-of-concept short, but it manages to hit some great sci-fi beats in it’s brief runtime. A detective is on the tail of the research ship ATROPA, which has gone missing. Upon boarding the ship and bringing the crew out of stasis, some inconsistencies are revealed about their timelines, and the film ends with a bizarre twist that left me wanting more.

The influences of great sci-fi films from the past are clear, and I’m really loving the interiors and exteriors of the ships they designed. Couple this with some fine acting from the small cast, an ominous score, and some impressive visual effects, and you have a short film that I would love to see at feature length. To say I’m intrigued about where this story goes would be an understatement.

As I noted, in the interest of full-disclosure, I met Eli a few month ago. So, if there is any concern that my praise for this short film may be a bit biased, I encourage you to watch it for yourself – I assure you it will be 9-minutes of your day well-spent.

Stop what you’re doing. Shut your office door, put the phone on “do not disturb,” and turn your cell volume off. You can spare two minutes and 35 seconds to watch this, and you will be glad you did.

You guys. YOU GUYS. My jaw dropped lower and lower through the footage, and I shit you not I even teared up a little bit at the end. 

So no, it’s not Monica Bellucci (Bellucci for Wonder Woman 2015!), but Rainfall has made this independent short for the world to celebrate with a beautiful, mature Wonder Woman, a diverse cast of Amazonians, and straight up old fashioned fist punches thrown LIKE A BOSS. Rileah Vanderbilt makes a stunning Diana, who I always interpret as fairly stoic and sass-free. With a simple cock of the brow she sends the bad guys a-runnin’.

Rainfall is a company that provides full production, effects, clean up, and motion graphics for all forms of media. It’s hard to make a statement so bold based on two and a half minutes of footage, but Powers That Be? I’m gonna go ahead and ask that  you involve this team when making any type of decision about a feature length Wonder Woman film.