Song of the Whale

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  Song of the Whale

Inspiration

The story of "Song of the Whale" is inspired by an ancient fairy tale about a kingdom that existed because of whales but fell due to its own greed. We adapted this old fable into a modern context, setting the story on a distant planet in the far reaches of the universe, exploring a theme of a high-tech civilization conducting a "dimensional strike" against an agrarian one.

What it does

On the edge of a galactic cluster floats a forgotten planet. Life here follows an ancient, fairy-tale-like cycle: at the beginning of each month, "sky whales" ascend from the deep sea, bringing life-sustaining dew to the land. For a young girl who constantly yearns for the sky, this firmament where the whales roam is her entire dream. However, when a metallic shadow not of this world eclipses the sun, and the miracle of life-giving is turned into a tragedy of cold "harvesting," the idyllic tranquility is shattered. The sky is no longer a destination for dreams, but a source of despair. When all prayers fall silent, the girl, who only knew how to look up at the sky, makes a decision that would make even the gods turn their heads. She raises her sharpened spear against the invincible steel beast. This should have been a futile, quixotic charge. But she doesn't know that this very act of defiance will shake the orbits of the stars and set her on an unexpected path to the cosmic truth...

How we built it

We built this project using the powerful AI model capabilities of Jimeng 4.0 (即梦4.0) and nanobanana. We cleverly adopted an artistic style that combines flat oil painting and comics (manga). This not only defined the work's unique aesthetic but also allowed us to compress the entire project timeline to under one month.

Challenges we ran into

Our main challenges came from our team composition and technical limitations. First, our team members are not full-time, nor are they all professional film workers. Second, due to the current limitations of AI technology, many of our creative ideas could not be fully realized. For example, we were not completely satisfied with the flight trajectory of the protagonist riding the whale in the final battle scene.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

Our greatest achievement is completing this work within a compressed timeline of one month, especially with a non-full-time team whose members do not all come from a professional film background. We successfully told a complete story about an indigenous girl and her friends who resolutely fight back against and overcome a seemingly "impossible" enemy.

What we learned

Through this project, we learned firsthand about both the immense potential and the current limitations of AI in creative production. We learned how to maximize our creative expression within technical constraints while also clearly understanding where the boundaries of AI currently lie.

What's next for Song of the Whale

We look forward to the next update in AI technology. We hope to use more powerful tools to create even better works in the future, whether it's a continuation of "Song of the Whale" or an entirely new story.

Built With

• waytoagi