Forgot password
Enter the email address you used when you joined and we'll send you instructions to reset your password.
If you used Apple or Google to create your account, this process will create a password for your existing account.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Reset password instructions sent. If you have an account with us, you will receive an email within a few minutes.
Something went wrong. Try again or contact support if the problem persists.
Escapist logo header image

Gamma: A Post-Apocalyptic Short Film Shot in Chernobyl

This article is over 12 years old and may contain outdated information

Gamma is a sad, dark and utterly fanastic post-apocalyptic short film that was actually filmed in part in the ruins of Chernobyl.

In the irradiated nightmare of the future, one company promises to restore a clean Earth to humanity: Gamma. Its patented “Nuke-Root” biotechnology, part fungus and part mollusc, absorbs radiation, restoring blighted cities to their former glory, after which they’re “switched off” and safely disposed of underground.

But something went wrong. Deployed over the Ukrainian city of Pripyat, rendered uninhabitable by the disaster at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, the organisms instead left the city more radioactive than ever and choked by an out-of-control infestation. And now nobody knows what will happen next.

Created by U.K.-based film and animation studio Factory Fifteen, Gamma is a faux-documentary following researchers as they enter the abandoned city of Pripyat in an effort to discover what happened to Gamma’s recovery project. It’s eerie, dark and incredibly tense, sensations heightened by the real-life backdrops of Baikonur, Kazakhstan and Pripyat, Ukraine, where filming took place.

It’s a brilliant piece of work, and is more than a little reminiscent of the original District 9 short that ultimately led to the feature film of the same name. Could it happen again? Anything’s possible, I suppose; in the meantime, don’t miss out on a very cool glimpse behind the curtain, in the form of a “making of” video and a big pile of concept art and stills, at factoryfifteen.com.

via: IO9

Recommended Videos

The Escapist is supported by our audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn a small affiliate commission.Ā Learn more about our Affiliate Policy