John Likens, a die-hard TMNT fan, has spent years developing short test animations for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, with each one moving him closer to his vision of the team as grungier and more realistic. He’s gone all out with his new test, a 2-minute action-packed frolic about the character Raphael that is the longest and most intricate test he’s ever created, easily outshining the ones he prepared for Donatello and Leonardo.
The first thing you notice is the grimy train station backdrop where Raphael fights a group of heavily armed Foot Clan soldiers. He enters the scene without any buildup or introduction. Bullets zip past his shell, a subtle allusion to their genetic superiority that doesn’t feel ridiculous or out of control.
- 4 BENDY TURTLE BROTHERS: The Donatello, Leonardo, Michelangelo, and Raphael Ninja Turtle figures have flexible, wiggly arms and legs for sensory play
- 4 ACTION-PACKED PLAY-DOH TOOLS: Cut, slice, smash, and create with 4 Play-Doh accessories designed to look like some of the turtles' favorite tools
- HIDDEN TURTLE SHELL MOLDS: Each TMNT toy figure has Play-Doh molds inside their shells to make gear for even more imaginative play
Raphael is in his element, using his sai to block swords with his arms and shell before launching some very powerful kicks and throws. One of the throws is clearly referencing the 90’s film, and then he just loses it, in the best way possible. The Foot soldiers are a well-trained unit, firing in spurts and swinging their swords in close formation, but Raphael simply destroys them with his rage.
In terms of visuals, the camera just glides down to the ground to emphasize Raphael’s speed, while also capturing some nice close-ups of his face to showcase his expressions. What about the animation itself? John used a combination of Cinema 4D, Maya, as well as Blender to create models that are crisp and detailed in all the right ways.
John knows his TMNT quite well, and he’s also done VFX for Deadpool and Wolverine, so this small moment with Raphael is really his calling card for the world to see. If Paramount ever decides to reboot the Turtles franchise, they’d be crazy to pass up this scene.
