This full length movie looks just like a PS1 game and was made with an iPhone

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A French filmmaker recently debuted a movie at Cannes that intentionally mimics the look of a classic PlayStation 1 game, and surprisingly, everyone on the team was new to animation.

Quentin Dupieux, known for directing quirky films like one featuring a murderous tire, created his latest animated movie in an unusual way: he simply recorded his actors’ voices and let them work from home.

He gave the remainder of the project to five new art school graduates, who used only iPhones, a simple app, and the free 3D software Blender. They didn’t have access to a motion capture studio or a dedicated animation team. The final result intentionally resembles the look and feel of the video game GTA: Vice City, which was exactly what he wanted.

French director made a PS1-looking animated film at Cannes using an iPhone and five graduates

According to an interview with Trois Couleurs, director Quentin Dupieux said that actors Chabat, Cohen, and Demoustier recorded their lines but never came back to finish the project.

The team of five, all recent graduates of Les Gobelins, a top French art school, created every single frame of the project using Blender. They set up the virtual cameras just like director Quentin Dupieux would on a real film set. They used an iPhone and a simple app for motion capture, which gives the characters their unique, jerky movements – you’ll notice quick, glitchy motions and even see fingers pass through objects like doorbells.

Dupieux admitted the film is rough around the edges and has flaws, but that was intentional. He wanted it to feel delicate and emotionally resonant.

I was blown away by this new film! The filmmakers deliberately made it look like an old video game – think Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, with all its slightly rough edges. It’s a really cool choice because the story is about characters figuring out they’re living in a simulation, and the visuals totally reflect that. It’s 67 minutes long, and it had the honor of closing out the Directors’ Fortnight at Cannes. If you’re in France, it hits theaters on June 10th!

So, Dupieux is already talking about making a sequel, and he wants to polish up the visuals a bit. It’s totally how game developers work – always aiming for that next-gen look, you know?

Looking ahead to the rest of the year’s movie releases? Our 2026 movie calendar has all the important dates covered. And if you’re interested in the recent trend of films using a retro video game look, some filmmakers have been creatively using things like special effects makeup and set design to achieve a PlayStation 2-style aesthetic.

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2026-05-28 23:19