Stunning Short Film About WWII Spying Reinvents Low-Tech Animation

The Thomas Beale Cipher: Official Trailer from Andrew S Allen on Vimeo.

'The Thomas Beale Cipher' tells the 'true legend' of a fictional World War II codebreaker who gets roped into intrigues surrounding the eponymous cipher -- 'a century-old riddle hiding the location of a fortune in gold that has tormented its pursuers since inception.' The Beale ciphers are real, but may have been an elaborate hoax. No matter: the film's ingenious rotoscoped animation -- created by a cadre of graphic designers-turned-animators -- creates an immersive 'tweed noir' world out of what looks like old newspaper clippings, scratched filmstrips, and scraps of vintage clothing.

Co.Design Via John Gushue