Fresh Take: Do I talk first

"Do I talk first or you talk first? I talk first?" by Plaatjesmakert

Fresh Take: FallOut Couple

"Fallout themed piece for my boyfriend" by laurathea

"To celebrate our anniversary I drew this fallout themed piece for my boyfriend."

Fan Art: Captain Phasma / Samus Crossover

Captain Phasma / Samus Crossovers by Brisbane, Australia-based Plint's Toons

Tumblr user Plint's Toons has been purging herself of a crossover fantasy that she's had every since she saw The Force Awakens.

"So uh, I watched Star Wars and I really like Captain Phasma. I’ve also been drowning in this crossover since it popped into my head"

Humor: Fallout is Love

"Fallout is love." by Jane of The Pigeon Gazette

"Fallout is love. Fallout is life. See y’all when summer rolls around."

Short Film: Lost Property

"Lost Property" Written & Directed by Åsa Lucander

"Lost Property" is a melancholy animated short film. It centers around an old man who works in a Lost property Office. Every day an old lady comes into the Office presenting an item she’s lost and everyday he tries to help her find it. With each day that passes, expectations falter, hopes fade and the feeling of loss grows stronger. After searching a series of seemingly magical rooms, together they eventually finds what she had been hoping to find all along.

Short Film: 97%

"97%" Directed by Ben Brand

Sceenplay by Thomas Van Der Ree

Ben Brand’s "97%" is a short romance about finding love in a digital age.  In it, Bert gets an alert on his mobile phone notifying him that he's within meters of someone his dating app has determine is a 97% match to him romantically.  He's immediately determined to meet the girl, and the results are predictably comedic, if a little heartbreaking.

It’s a really interesting take on the genre that nearly passes into the realms of science fiction.  It's also an incredibly effective piece of storytelling, given that it includes no dialogue at all.

Short Film: DEAR LUCAS

"DEAR LUCAS" directed by Winnie Cheung

Written by Zack Marotta

"Dear Lucas" is a short film that combines fantastical futuristic elements and simple human emotion in the tradition of Another Earth, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and Gattaca.  In it, a man meets the love of his life, a fan of the television series he co-hosted with his scientist father as a child.  Just as the two are getting to know each other, though, one of the professor’s failed experiments roars to life, carrying a message from the future.

It’s dreamy, but jam packed with twists and turns.  We jump back and forth between space and time, watching Lucas’ life play out differently.  Ultimately, it forces the audience to confront their own insecurities with the future’s uncertainty.

"Dear Lucas is a science-fiction romantic drama, combining fantastical futuristic elements and simple human emotion. A directionless young man finds the love of his life, and suddenly his whole world seems to make sense, but a message from his future self warns him to stay away to avoid a lifetime of pain and misery-- will the love he's found be worth it?"

Short Film: Josephine and the Roach

"Josephine and the Roach" Directed by Jonathan Langager

"Josephine and the Roach" is a sweet, if creepy, animated romance film in the vein of Ratatouille. In it, a solitary Roach lives in the walls of Joesphine's kitchen, accompanying her accordion practice on his violin. Then one night, he has an idea for how to woo her face to face.

"A woman. A cockroach. The course of true love never did crawl smooth."

Short Film: Artoo In Love

"Artoo In Love" by Evan Atherton

"Artoo In Love" is an adorable short film in which R2-D2 falls head over gears in love with a blue mailbox.  It's very reminiscent of the first half of Wall-E.

"Follow our intrepid, droid-hero R2-D2 as he tries to find love in our galaxy."

Humor: TV Tropes Relationship Status

The range of options available under "Relationship Status" when you sign up for an account on TV Tropes is giggle inducing.  Thought I'd share it before some corporate bureaucrat paves over them.

Short Film: The End of the World

"The End of the World" by Extremely Decent

"The End of the World" is a romantic comedy from the comedy troupe Extremely Decent.  It's about a man racing to reach his true love before the world is destroyed by a giant asteroid. All he wants to do is spend his last moments alive with the woman he loves. Predictably, things don’t go the way he hopes.

"What must one man do to reach his true love before the whole world comes to an end?"

Short Film: HEAD OVER HEELS

"HEAD OVER HEELS" from Timothy Reckart

Timothy Reckart released his short film "Head over Heels" online this week.  This stop-motion animated short film was created by a team of eleven students who made the film over the course of fifteen months as their graduation thesis for the National Film and Television School, U.K.  It premiered three years ago at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival and went on to receive an Annie Award for Best Student Film, the 2013 Cartoon d’Or for Best European Short, and an Oscar-nomination for Best Short Animation.

After many years of marriage, Walter and Madge have grown apart.  He lives on the floor.  She lives on the ceiling.  When Walter tries to reignite their old romance, their equilibrium comes crashing down, and the couple that can't agree which way is up must find a way put their marriage back together.

Tim Reckart's festival favorite shines with inventiveness.  His way of telling a metaphorical story of alienation only makes physical and painstakingly visual what the characters themselves can't  express in words.

Going the extra mile to accompany the film’s staff-picked Vimeo debut, Reckart has put together a website that collects together special features including director’s commentary, an audio documentary on the making of the soundtrack, and Heels Over Head, an alternate version of the film flipped upside-down!
 

Short Film: The Gift

"The Gift" by Miniestudio

"The Gift" is a short animated romance film. Without using words, the film explores the experience of falling in and out of love.  It's a simple but sincere piece.

Short Film: Mail Order

"Mail Order" by Samuel E. Mac

I'm not entirely certain how to classify "Mail Order."  You could call it science fiction or romance, but the truth is it's mostly just creepy as hell.  This silent film is the story of a man who receives a living doll in the mail.  He poses her, he grooms her, and then, he falls in love with her... maybe.  The emotional landscape of a man who orders a woman through the mail is a bit unclear, but it helps if you tell yourself that the whole film is a game played by a loving, consenting couple one Sunday afternoon.

"A lonely man purchases a love-doll online, coming in the form of a dedicated actress. Things get weird quick."

Short Film: Wildlife Crossing

"WILDLIFE CROSSING!" from ANOMALIA

"Wildlife Crossing" is an animated short film that tells the story of two snails in love tragically separated by a very busy highway—and a daredevil frog that risks his life jumping from one speeding car to another.  It boasts many of the same virtues as a Pixar's many movies, including a solid story, lovely animation, and plenty of laughs.

Watch behind the scenes videos dedicated to this short film at the WILDLIFE CROSSING website.

"A WITTY STORY ABOUT A SMALL BUT DETERMINED SNAIL BOY WHO MUST CROSS A HECTIC HIGHWAY TO REUNITE WITH HIS PRECIOUS GIRLFRIEND. CAN THE BOY OVERCOME HARSH REALITY OF HIS HANDICAP AND PROVE THAT TRUE LOVE CONQUERS ANY OBSTACLES?"

Short Film: Cloudrise

"Cloudrise" directed and animated by Denver Jackson

"Cloudrise" is a heart-breaking animated film with with many of the trappings of the steampunk genre.  In it, Miko and Tenku have achieved their dream of a cloud ship of their own.  However, their dream becomes a nightmare when they are faced with the greatest challenge of their lives – surviving to fight another day.  The eight-minute short film tells the story of two lovers fighting to stay together as their burning airship plummets out of the sky.

The gorgeous film was created over the course of four months, and fans of of Final Fantasy and Legend of Korra will find it to be a satisfying feast for the eyes with painted backgrounds and graceful martial arts.

"Set in a fantasy world above the clouds, Cloudrise follows a pivotal moment in the lives of two lovers as they face a great challenge. Watch as Miko and Tenku fight to survive an attack on their new airship and take the necessary measures to help each other. Hold on to your seat as you witness how far someone is willing to go to rescue the one they love. This is an action-packed short film that ties together various fantasy/science fiction influences."

Short Film: A Lady & A Robot

"A Lady & A Robot" Written and Directed by Toby Morris

"A Lady & A Robot" is a slightly kookie love story about a girl and a clumsy cardboard robot.  Watch an interview with director Toby Morris from Indie Film World.

"A young lady falls in love and elopes with her family's butler, who just happens to be a robot from the future..."

Fresh Take: Adventure Time Couples

"Adventure Time Proposal" by Amy Liu

Illustrator Amy Liu specializes in drawing couples in a dead-on Adventure Time style. She takes commissions, and one of these would make for an amazing gift.

"A good friend of mine got engaged yesterday! Her now fiancé commissioned me to create a few pieces for the proposal (he commissioned 18 artists total for the occasion). They’re both huge fans of Adventure Time (as am I) and it was a lot of fun celebrating their relationship with a series they’ve bonded over."

Video: How To Meet Girls

"How To Meet Girls: 6 Pick-Up Tips from a 2,000 Year-Old Poet" by Wisecrack

Good advice is good advice, regardless of how old it might be.

"Published in 2 A.D., Ars Amatoria (or the Art of Love) is Ovid's guide to courting that special someone. Heed this masterful poet's advice to have yourself a very Happy Valentine's Day."

Humor: Love is Like an Unfamiliar Shower

"Love is Like an Unfamiliar Shower" by Grant Snider of INCIDENTAL COMICS

This is the most perfect metaphor for love I've ever seen.  Snider hits it out the park once again.

"Billie Holiday sang, “Love is just like a faucet, it turns off and on.”  I think she was almost right."