Outside Aperture - Portal Short Film

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[@De_Helen]

#1 Reason to buy a Portal Gun: You can scratch your own back

[@MrMKFreak]

Nope, better: Stand up from bed doing a roll from its edge! :D

[@Xanmanbro]

Yep

[@De_Helen]

Nope Stand up from bed by doing a roll from its edge WHILE scratching your own back

[@MrMKFreak]

Danny Shehaan YOU, Sir, are GENIUS! :D

[@De_Helen]

Ich weiß

[@tisajokt7676]

I don't care if it doesn't match up with the actual storyline or if this video is from three years ago and nobody will ever see this comment, all I care about is that fact that this is the best Portal short film I've seen.

They're always watching

[@thyagoalves25]

Yes, this video is amazing!

[@EisenFeuer]

Hey, I saw this comment.

[@EisenFeuer]

James Tisajokt Hey, I saw your comment.

[@sashaisweird]

James Tisajokt im looking at this comment that was made 3 years ago

[@VannaValentine]

So Chell developed PTSD and now uses the portal gun for simply tasks. Interesting idea.

[@lolster239]

what is PTSD

[@VannaValentine]

LOLSTER239 meh www.google.com/

[@jasonjenkins7523]

+LOLSTER239 meh Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

[@TaccRaccoon]

DeNile Reid I'd probably do that too just cuz I'm lazy

[@jeugene807]

Portal Traumatic Stress Disorder

[@Wrennbird]

Purposes of the Portal Gun: solve complex puzzles previously impossible to solve, cover vast distances in an instant, use an objects or your own continuous momentum to fly across hazardous ravines and materials. Scratch your own back

[@jadetheslime3140]

*LOL

[@InductionFrog]

Dont forget destroing the universe with the whacky physics behind it

[@Jus7aguy]

Cheap Lunar Travel.

[@atrius97]

"I get to have some cake today, The Cube is watching me, I hope it's proud to see me now, outside, alone, but FREE!!!" These aren't tears, they're... MAN DROPS.

[@garwinnchewla1912]

Nicely written apart from the "man" drops. I don't mean to be picky although I know I am. Chell is a woman after all.

[@fruitcake7789]

Garwinn Chewla He was talking about himself.

[@innocuousnobody9099]

He was referencing the writing on the wall.

[@randomnostalgic1112]

Sounds tasty

[@user.9999matrix]

The cake is a lie

[@TheHomerowKeys]

Beyond being a Portal Short Film masterpiece, this is a fairly good representation of PTSD.

[@XBlueBeam]

What is PTSD Edit: can anyone explain?

[@XBlueBeam]

@Flyin' Steve what do u mean

[@claudialuquepazos2934]

@@XBlueBeam Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is psychatric disorder that happens after you experience a traumatic event of some sorts. Some of the symptons of PTSD are that you can see, listen, imagine or have fear of things that remind you of that experience

[@XBlueBeam]

@@claudialuquepazos2934 yeah yeah i know that from before. Some guy replied to me like a year ago

[@ToxicAtom]

I cannot put into words how much I enjoyed this. It perfectly captures the mentally scarred Chell as she lives after leaving the facility. No real notable skills, no work, she does what she can to make it by. She knows so little about the "Outside World". She's so naive to what's really out there, and it really shows the bliss of ignorance, yet fleshes out the corruption of unethical scientific practices. In a short 7 minutes or so, excluding credits, you simply sucked me into the character. I just want to step into that world and lend her a hand. It's simply beautiful.

[@Animecub3r]

i feel exactly the same, she does what she can to go on, but is still basically a child, and she just tries to find comfort in things that she remembers fondly. Its really sad in a way, but i also think its pretty awesome that she is still living :'D

[@sammydeleon6225]

Caleb Paul whats PTSD ?

[@sammydeleon6225]

Oh ok thanks lol

[@halwaffles]

This is a really well written comment, and I agree with you completely.

[@Gr3nadgr3gory]

unfortunately she also lives in the world of half life. so there's that.

[@beans1177]

The cake from Portal is black forest cake. I just had a slice of black forest cake. It was a li- erhm, I mean delicious

[@Alex_IHateHandles]

+Kingxander123 I see what you did there

[@avanelletheclockfriend2515]

You know, the cake is actually really good. At least without the injector needles, fish shaped solid waste, volatile malted milk compounds, etc.

[@gonzadolape]

I really like it with the sediment shaped sediments, you know.

[@rhombicosidodecahedron1653]

Avanelle The Clock Friend Don't forget the passage " How to kill someone with your bare hands"!

[@sethost2548]

nice save, almost had to put you into a fire pit there

[@adora_was_taken]

*sees "enable Siri" setting while turning on her new phone for the first time NO

[@cloverlovania]

@@astracobalt351 "Alright, calling GLaDOS." *"WAIT NONONONO-"*

[@itscero5765]

@@astracobalt351 .*

[@itscero5765]

@@cloverlovania Sorry, I dont understand you* .*

[@tdr1750]

When you think about it, the series is really depressing, but also heartwarming. GLaDOS was Caroline, Cave Johnson and the lab boys forced her to become GLaDOS, to take away her freedom and move her into a computer. She flooded the Enrichment Center with neurotoxin to kill the people who did it to her. Later, she felt bad about it but what was done was done. So she developed a mindset that, like the people who basically killed Caroline but everyone was horrible. She eventually distanced herself from the nice, cheerful woman who Caroline was. She wasn't the same though. She was pretty much a murderer. She awoke Chell, and very quickly begins to show distaste for humans. Throughout Portal 2, she insults you on weight, lack of parents, and personality, just because she doesn't have that. And she killed hundreds of people, and took it out on you. At the end when she says "You were my best friend." She means that as in, you're her only friend. You're the only person who ever, 1, wasn't using her for some higher goal or 2, forced her around like some maid, although you killed her, disobeyed her, and tried to leave her. In reality, you're one of the nicest people GLaDOS ever met. But she wasn't programmed for socializing. She was programmed for testing. She can't keep you around. You are a distraction to her and she gave you the best thing she could before she sent you off. A memento. Like when a best friend moves away in school, they give you a card, a bracelet, a gift, you know. She gave you that pretty much. GLaDOS is one of the loneliest creatures on Earth but she found it in her heart to give you a gift, her one, true friend.

[@inksans2391]

So true and heart breaking

[@sebastianmorataboada9795]

Write a f***ing essay, this doesn't deserve dissapearing as just a youtube comment

[@exodust3114]

She released the neurotoxin on the bring your daughter to work day so all of those innocent people died it’s really sad and has really deep lore...

[@AgentWolnyTyl3k]

This is why we need Portal.

[@collinbogunovich7312]

80% of that is fake

[@qub1998]

"You will be baked... And there will be cake." -Chell to all the ingredients

[@wilcoxStudios18]

This is the most well done short film I've seen in a long time. The effects, sound design, direction, little Easter eggs, and just overall quality were all excellent. Chell's little mannerisms are so adorable, and her PTSD is heartbreaking. Props to you guys for creating a great silent protagonist in live action

[@tkmaida]

If you like this, watch Escape from City 17. It's an amazing short film (2 parts) about the Half Life universe.

[@overlordcringe2715]

Look at likes

[@IDoNotLikeHandlesOnYT]

Even the credits! Better than a lot of unconventional credits in feature films (though it wouldn't work as well without lots of the people doing lots of jobs each)

[@davidstorrs]

What were the easter eggs?

[@sparkynicole3941]

Honestly short films like this are usually tone deaf to the original content, but this was spot on. Chell wasn’t emotionless or anything, but she was still a “violent mute lunatic.” The dark humor and insanity/absurdity was still present like when chell used the portal gun to scratch her back. The dark lore was always there, always being subtle, and of course, there was some weirdly wholesome moments. Just like a Portal game.

[@EisenFeuer]

[@vityanikiforova]

I want to meet someone who looks at me like Chell looks at cakes.

[@EisenFeuer]

Be careful what you wish for!

[@vityanikiforova]

no

[@fishum6483]

i'd never want to see someone look at me like they're gonna eat me alive at any time o_o

[@vityanikiforova]

your game is too weak

[@LiveNiceness14]

sassydragon wouldn't that be creepy. you would not want someone to look at you as something to eat. Canibalism is illegal lol

[@Damsel_In_Distress_528]

PTSD can be torture.. Thanks to anyone who was a part of making this short film. I absolutely loved it and watching this made me feel relief from personal issues in my life. Thanks ♡

[@NielZGM]

This is so Heartbreaking for me... since everything she has is almost nothing.. i feel bad for chell living like this... like.. she's having halluscinations of being in Aperture Science again, and she can't even trust any electronic if its playing GLaDOs' Voice.. and at the end the only entertainment or joy she had was eating the cake that she was promised with on signing up on Aperture Science.. ;( yet :)

[@renren4236]

I think Chell is having a illusion. She almost think every electronic devices controlled by GlaDOS except the portal gun.

[@Wolffman109]

Yeah, it also is kind of bittersweet in a different way that the video doesn't really touch on: Portal 1 takes place around the same time as Half-Life 2, meaning Chell is currently living in a world inhabited by the Combine, so I can't imagine she'd be in a safe environment, and not just because of her paranoia about Aperture. Speaking of which, I wonder how Doug Rattmann is faring on the surface, since he doesn't need to go back into the facility to save Chell.

[@Shya__]

the thing Chell did with the portal gun, when she was scracing her back? yeah, I WANNA DO DAT XD

[@ericatrent89]

I DO ALSO

[@mhesus]

I already can :D

[@RikaShinePY]

SAME

[@suzukablade]

Awww, Chell finally got her cake! :)

[@solidarity9336]

The cake is a Lie

[@suzukablade]

Silas North Than what did Chell eat at the end of the video?

[@suzukablade]

***** So what that was an illusion she ate at the end of the video?

[@thesalmonserver5871]

I saw what you guys did there... Chell's last name in that paper was Johnson...

[@halfjack1031]

I saw it too!! So cool!

[@thesalmonserver5871]

Sierra Gainer MYERRRR CHELL JOHNSON LEL

[@clementbaran7866]

+Javier Del Toro Caroline+Cave = Chell. GLaDOS = Caroline. GLaDOS & Chell : Complicated relationship. OMFG GLaDOS IS THE MOTHER OF CHELL !!!

[@danielabraz7720]

+Clément Baran YYYYYYYYYYEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSS

[@legathar8558]

Javier Del Toro Caroline is more like a part in of GLaDoS, she doesn't control all of GLaDoS, GLaDoS is mostly AI

[@penguinmaster7]

the reaction to glados and bring your doughter to work day funnily enough makes sense when you take portal 2 into account

[@charajones2253]

Remember the girl is traumatized. It makes perfect sense

[@scientistdoggo]

GLaDOS on the TV: "Tomorrow is bring your daughter to work day." Chell: **Vietnam war flashbacks**

[@flamevix]

I was honestly scared this might end badly like the other Portal short films I've seen, but no. It was just a cute video and she finally got to have her cake. This made me very happy. Thank you. :)

[@benwasserman8223]

5:31- best use for a Portal Gun EVER

[@skrear9295]

what? I easily reach my back

[@liam4538]

While making this, she was just scratching a wall the entire time

[@overlordcringe2715]

Or skipping hell

[@aether8344]

:') I loved it, the effects, the detail. Even when she threw away the trash, it snowed the view of the blue portal before she moved it to the floor. And I like how she loved the companion cube. I think everyone feels sad to kill it

[@1TW1-m5i]

The use of a portal to throw away the trash was my favourite bit. I would do that if I had a portal gun.

[@AlexRedacted]

I love this film dearly after all this years. It is just perfect for me. For starters, it manages to perfectly translate the game’s feel into another medium. This film is full with sense of trauma that becomes experience, of isolation that leads to solitude and serenity. Chell is outside of Aperture, but Aperture will forever be a part of her now. This hits hard. I’m not an active part of the fandom anymore, but Portal will forever define me. I will always find myself content while covered in paint or cooking a microwave cake. And then there’s Chell’s personality in this film. She is determined, she is resilient, and it’s shown beautifully here. She never gives up! She trives and tries with the cake. She tries and tries to live a normal live, to move on, to utilize what aperture left her with instead of fighting or resenting it. I love this film. I hope it will never be forgotten or lost to time.

[@EisenFeuer]

I was on the phone with Nicole when you wrote this; I passed this along and she was grateful!

[@sentientdovah3661]

This is the sweetest, most accurate Chell, accurate Chell action video! I can imagine this actually happening!

[@MysticPony232]

this is really funny but heart-breaking at the same time!

[@darklinggolem]

True 😂😂😂😂😂

[@pokkenwolf5985]

that is so true I smiled when she finished the cake and felt sad when she saw the recipie

[@chrisheyburn1546]

Wait, what was the recipe

[@pedrourbano501]

well funny and heart-breaking is the definition for the portal series.

[@einflys4984]

I feel sad for chell she sleeps on newspaper and..the way she looked at the recipe..so sad:(

[@jeshdeboi5947]

and the food she eats everyday

[@penninna]

How does she even get food?

[@IzukuMidorya859]

Why does she have to sleep on newspaper??

[@courtadbobtail600]

@@IzukuMidorya859 After Chell escaped from Aperture the combine would have completely taken over earth, everyone basically lives like they're in a communist state with food rations and no luxuries, even for Chell to survive with no citizenship and with a piece of advanced technology she must be somewhere remote with little or no combine presence

[@ChristophBurschka]

1:04 : "What is your favorite food: CAKE!" (with the heart in the exclamation point) :D The bit above that is also neat: "Please circle if you have any innate, pathological fears to any... Heights Depths Bullets Weights Fire Death" 1:56: That's an awesome way to get out of bed. 3:31: Aaargh creepy. 4:50: She left out the fish-shaped candies, though.

[@zergscaper4714]

"Fish shaped volotile and sediment shaped sediment." - Cake Core

[@victorgabrielpetre]

Well, the cake wasn't a lie... Amazing! The cake looked identical too!

[@TruuMoo]

Chell's reaction to seeing the cake is super cute and I love this video so much It's so well made and I love it and ahhhhh

[@cyberpet9385]

this outstanding short film is a core early 2010s memory of mine. i’m surprised it still hasn’t gotten more views over all these years, it’s so well done

[@IAmUnderscore]

sammmeeeee, theres so many random portal related videos I watched when I was younger that I still remember! the game theory episode about the companion cube might be the goofiest...

[@hannahcbrown1009]

Aw, all she wanted the whole time was cake. I love this! It's exactly how I imagine Chell would be after the games.

[@alaskagyal]

So, Chell has PTSD? Aw... This is actually sad in a way.

[@veinyhand9177]

You know who els has ptsd... Gordon

[@EisenFeuer]

Thanks everyone, we finally crawled over the two million mark. You all get equal shares from the veritable boatload of non-existent invisible internet money I made.

[@DEATHBYFLYINGCDS]

Can we buy cake with it?

[@Dingdingcannotsing]

Great video

[@LeuNoeleeste]

Thank you for this vid, that's it ! =)

[@AJP-1]

Thank you so much for making this. Great work 😄😄😄🎂🎂🍰🍰

[@maimoomashik4886]

LeuNoeleeste ekreu Ejeu

[@austingarrett1719]

am i the only person who thinks this is adorable?

[@likeabunnie]

I LOVE THIS IN SO MANY WAYS FOR SO MANY REASONS! As a survivor of childhood abuse, I feel that, in a clearly abstract way, this "tells my story", and shows the human side of a hero. While I recognize that the purpose of this video was not intended to have anything to do with me or my experiences, I wanted to share with the creators how great of a positive, inspirational impact your work had on me. I do not share my perspective to detract at all with the realistic depiction of Chell "after Aperture", as it is within that context that this video holds it's power, and it clearly requires no further purpose beyond that context to be appriciated and moved by. I simply felt that there was a great deal of symbolism throughout this masterpiece, which seem to speak to more universal human emotions, just as we can reflect on literature from generations ago and still find meanings relevant to our own lives in the present. There is so much said in this piece, and even if I'm the only person who views with both the fictional and personal contexts in mind, then so be it, but I adore using extended metaphors in my own life and writing, so despite Chell's story not inherently seeming to have any parallel to my story, I relate stongly to her silent and strong character, and to how this short video shows both the lingering shadows of the extensive past trauma Chell survived, but also her determination to seek out, and create for herself, the small joys she was promised, deserved, and never given. Not only does she get the cake she was promised, but she, after several failed attempts, manages to bake it for herself, and goes to bed looking content and peaceful. It's wonderful depiction of, as well as an amazing tool to help me mentally visualize, the power in my recent mindful approach at reclaiming the many childhood delights I was once denied. Showing myself compassion, comfort, and love is a struggle, but this fictional work of art reminds me that I was never not deserving of figurative "cake", just as Chell had nothing to do with her fate as a test subject, or who she was born to, she only controlled her choices, and she chose to find a way to survive and escape. Not only did she chose to survive, she also chose to LIVE! Sure, the cake was a lie, but she made her own truth, and she didn't wait for someone to present her the cake she deserved; She baked it HERSELF!

[@artifexvigen551]

The realistic depiction of someone with PTSD is astounding, a simple sound or any sort of stimuli that brings back memories of a traumatic experience can cause an anxiety attack, which can cause feeling suffocated, clasutrophobic, and in some extreme circumstances can cause halucinations. many people with anxiety (myself included) have a person, activity, object, or food that brings them down from mental extremes, clearly the Black Forest Cake is Chell's comfort food. comfort objects can also sometimes be the subject of hyperfixations or hyperfocusing, which are also common experiences from people with ADHD, ADD, Depression, Anxiety, or PTSD. honestly the fact that this depiction of Chell is portrayed very realistically is amazing, and is something i can relate to a lot.

[@FinalFirebrand]

Never has PTSD been so adorable or enjoyable..

[@sunxhine17]

I know I'm 12 years late and just seeing this but this was amazing! It's like I could feel Chell's stress, that's how good it was!

[@Just_go_gg]

Хей! Не только ты ,опоздал с временем...

[@geraldvincentt]

Well the film should've called "a day with Chell" haha. But seriously this is a nice fan-film, pretty cool, cute and beautifully executed, one of my favorite video on the KZbin. Thank you for making this beautiful short film.

[@HORSESNDOGS9]

For this one time.... The cake isn't a lie :')

[@InductionFrog]

Unles its a simulation or meaby, just meaby a testing chamber where you are suppose to bake a cake. Or meaby not

[@GeffenAvraham]

This is one of the few videos that honestly made me cry.

[@playersadventures3789]

Watched this so many times because it's that good! I'm guessing this is Chell's first full day at her new home, as she clearly didn't explore the contents of the drawers. She probably escaped Aperture, explored outside for the rest of the day, arrived at the house by night, had a quick look around at beans/tv, then fell asleep due to being so tired after fighting GLaDOS. Love this!

[@InForTheLonghaul]

Now that's how I want to get out of bed! :D

[@sketchymoof]

me too! also, your comment was on my birthday.

[@InForTheLonghaul]

minecraft sandwich Ha! My cousin's birthday is on July the 4th. :)

[@RoyCappuccino]

+AIM_SideWinder if he isnt the most badass MURICA person ever.. then he doesnt deserve to have a birthday

[@sketchymoof]

+AIM_SideWinder :)

[@apocalyptic3837]

+AIM_SIdeWInder i very much would agree with you, but i get out of bed through an elevator

[@lewlewlaser037]

Fast forward to 2023 and this is still one of my favourite portal fan films of all time, even outside portal its an amazing video game fan film full stop, I honestly cant believe its been a long time since this was first made, thank you so much for doing such captivating work.

[@terrycook5878]

This was a brilliantly conceived and executed film. The scene of her scratching her own back was simply epic. Fantastic job.

[@baileydr3480]

5:31-5:35 now that is how i will scratch my back if i have a Portal Gun.

[@legendofthecommentsection6513]

With ya m8

[@furrball]

dont forget moonstone-lined walls though, which is why the title doesn't feel quite right: if she's outside aperture, the gun wouldn't work.

[@RikaShinePY]

Same

[@s-wo8781]

The scratching your own back thing was pretty cool.

[@moogamooga2100]

Eisen, I've been watching and rewatching this perfect video for the last twelve years and I have 7 things I want to tell you: 1) I come back to this video every couple of years, often after replaying Portal or Portal 2 or both. 2) Of all the Portal-related content out there, "Outside Aperture" is still my top favorite. If/when the topic of the Portal games comes up in conversation, I'm quick to remember this video and say "Once you finish Portal and Portal 2, you HAVE to watch Outside Aperture. It's the true happy ending." 3) The camerawork, special effects, props, and acting are all on point. Not a single flaw to list. 4) "Special thanks to God (for): Finances, Salvation, Physics." Amen to that! 😂 Seeing that never fails to make me smile and look up and say "Yeah! You know what, God? THANK YOU for physics! Thank you for a universe that DOES work!". 5) My wife was curious once and asked me: "There's infinite content on KZbin. If you wanted to, you could watch only brand-new things and never run out of things to watch. So why do you go back and watch the same videos over and over again sometimes?" I had to think about that. But I came to realize: it's because some content is simply better than others. Some videos (like this one) still evoke the FEELING that you were trying to evoke, even years later. 6) Every couple of years, I watch this again after replaying Portal and Portal 2, just to see Chell finally enjoy that cake. And yes, it makes me tear up with a little bit of joy every time. 7) The music when she's drawing on the wall and finally finishing the cake... I want you to know, Eisen, that I OFTEN HUM THE MELODY whenever I'm feeling particularly contented. ☺It's to the point that I barely recognize when I'm doing it...It's simply part of my life now. Your passion project from 12 years ago has become a pleasant little part of my regular life. I hope this tome of a comment cheers your day, dude. Thank you for making your passion project which cheers MY day, time after time!

[@EisenFeuer]

No, *YOU'RE* breathtaking!

[@EisenFeuer]

My knee-jerk pithy reply aside, your excellent comment deserves some attention. Let's make this thread an AMA, you and me and whoever wants to chime in. While I wait for questions, here's some fun stuff: The idea that this film started with was literally the gimmick of using VFX to make portals real in real life. Motion tracking and camera solving for FVX using footage was just becoming a thing for the semi-normal person with apps like Boujou, and my co-director Jesse pitched the idea as a gimmick video like Corridor's "Portal Trick Shots" video. Now it's said that a film is told three times, once in the script, once in production, and one last time in the edit bay. Knowing a whole lot more about Valve's universe, I wrote the script and made it about Chell, but kept a lot of VFX gimmicks. Resource limitations however, told the story in production. We lost access to the empty house we were going to film in literally a week before the actress flew out. We scrambled and found an empty apartment that wasn't yet listed through some friends (high praise in the credits). This of course changed the scope of the shoot, you should have seen our filming equipment was shoved off behind the camera and every shot required us to move basically everything from room to room, and that's with one of the two bedrooms filled to the gills with equipment. The portal gun prop of mine breaking is an epic unto itself, but that that space constraint alone turned into a time constraint, and we had to pare away at our shot list in order to get some semblance of a cohesive story before our actress had to fly out after just two days of shooting (next to half of our film's budget was flying her out, lol). One scene was literally where she was supposed to be on a back deck looking at the full moon and casually shoots at it, causing the portal open on the wall to switch to space. Yes, this was written before Portal 2's launch and any knowledge whatsoever about Aperture using moon dust, and of course Portal 2's moonshot ending. This was out for many reasons, but we obviously weren't going to fire up leaf blowers and stuff at 3AM in an apartment complex. (knocking over pots and pans already disturbed enough). The only other scene I remember being cut because it would have fit and I regret it, was Chell rifling though the abandoned closet and having a quick montage of trying different clothes on (using the portals as a 'mirror'), leaning into her humanity as the rest of the film did. As you can see, pretty much only 2 ambitious VFX shots made the cut, and the camera wasn't even moving for either of them. (only the graffiti and the security cam had moving cameras, and those were simple technically) Others went on to make more ambitious "Portals in real life" VFX, but I gladly hand over that trophy considering what Outside Aperture ultimately became. Rather than epic it was intimate, the juxtaposition of Chell, used to flying though vast testing complexes with constant attention, now in a claustrophobic setting, her only observer being herself. In writing this I have a little more understanding behind the many comments that have been posted over time saying the film made them cry, especially that poem I wrote: "I got to have some cake today, the cube is watching me, I hope it's proud to see me now, outside, alone, but FREE!". A mix of sadness for her sorry state, living off canned food in dystopia, having been plucked from life at a young age for testing, but happiness that her robot prison warden's words were finally leaving her head. A little gem of a film, and I can hardly take credit for it considering how much it was a product of the circumstances that humbled it into its final cut.

[@moogamooga2100]

HOLY CRAP. This is wonderful. I have so much to say. 1) "Now it's said that a film is told three times, once in the script, once in production, and one last time in the edit bay." While I haven't really picked up a camera since high school, I'm still a filmmaker at heart, always leaning over and whispering to whoever's watching something with me: "Look at that shot!" "Ooh, that was edited really nicely." "Mm...that was good. Did you see HOW they did that?" I can't believe I've never heard that before but when I read that just now, it was almost like ENLIGHTENMENT, it made so much sense. Flip... now I wanna make a movie again. :D 2) Do you have any pictures of what the empty house's interior WOULD have been? I'm terribly curious to see what sort of shots you were planning. Maybe a Zillow link or some pics on Imgur or something! 3) You were planning on a casual portal to the moon?? That's beautiful! You mentioned leafblowers... was the plan to have her open the portal, start to get sucked towards it, realize her mistake, and quickly open it elsewhere in panic? 4) This actress... how'd you find her? Friend of yours? I mean, she's a dead-ringer for LOOKING like Chell, so well done on that front. 5) “This has been a production by an unincorporated group of assorted people with no money and lots of passion.” I simply marvel at the passion needed for a personal project like this to budget FLYING OUT AN ACTRESS. Such props, Eisen. I give you such props. What WAS the ending budget for the whole thing when all was said and done? And since time is money, how many hours do you suppose you ultimately sunk into this film, personally? 6) Dress up with Chell! Using portals as a mirror! That is an ADORABLE idea. 😊What sort outfits would she have tried on? 7) “TWO cakes were eaten in the making of this film. The salt is a lie. BOTH were super tasty :D” First off... this credit here is PERFECTION.👌 Second, I wonder whether I might've purposely used salt so that the cake DID taste bad and Nicole didn't HAVE to act, lol. But I suppose your mom couldn't help herself, eh? 😁 8) 2:28 Ok... what was this? A sitcom with a "pizza enthusiast" and then Jesus shows up. A) Was this filmed in that same empty apartment; B) Was there any plans/story behind this gag or was it simply a quick throwaway joke? 9) 3:25 is so seamless. Making that CGI chair/computer drop so realistically is quite a feat...especially for 12 years ago! You know what they say with SFX: The best compliment is for people NOT to notice...and I didn't notice for 12 years! I thought it was a real chair and TV that you dangled and dropped from the ceiling, and I only noticed because I was pausing to get a timestamp just now! 10) 3:33 I noticed the sharp switch in depth-of-field from Chell to the wall which makes the vanishing *hallucination* even more jarring. Excellently done. *shivers* 11) 5:31 HOW. How did you do this shot? Green screens, camera angles, SFX programs... HOW? Spill the deets. 12) From Chell's wiki page: "Psychological testing showed that Chell scored well in the 99th percentile on the trait of tenacity." We're used to Chell being such a hard-edged steely protagonist that seeing her in such a vulnerable state was... really quite sweet and touching. I think that's why I keep getting drawn back to this film every few years. We don't SEE many heroes in stories or movies showcasing their trauma or vulnerabilities, especially in video games. So this entire film seems like the natural next-step for a character like Chell. There's dozens of little moments in your film where Chell is so... so... HUMAN. As you so eloquently said: "In writing this I have a little more understanding behind the many comments that have been posted over time saying the film made them cry, especially that poem I wrote: 'I got to have some cake today, the cube is watching me, I hope it's proud to see me now, outside, alone, but FREE!'. A mix of sadness for her sorry state, living off canned food in dystopia, having been plucked from life at a young age for testing, but happiness that her robot prison warden's words were finally leaving her head." 13) "Rather than epic it was intimate, the juxtaposition of Chell, used to flying though vast testing complexes with constant attention, now in a claustrophobic setting, her only observer being herself." -- Yes. THIS. This exactly. No real comment here. Sometimes, someone says something SO well, so poetically, so perfectly -- that you just have to say it back to them. 🥲 14) "A little gem of a film, and I can hardly take credit for it considering how much it was a product of the circumstances that humbled it into its final cut." I like watching behind-the-scenes stuff, and over the years, I've noticed a common theme between what so many of those filmmakers say about their stories and it's this: *Isn't it curious how so many stories end up telling THEMSELVES*? Almost like... we, the storytellers, are the ones bringing it into existence, sorta like a mother birthing a child -- and the mother can raise the child and shape it and even direct it (pun fully intended)... but ultimately the child, like so many of our stories, ends up deciding for ITSELF how it turns out in the end. So many stories seem to be the same way. Well... if that's the case, then I am GLAD... GLAD, I say... that "Outside Aperture" ending up the way that it did. Are you content & glad too, or does a small part of you still wish for what it might've been? 15) I'll just say this: we've seen "epic" a million times over... but intimate? That's rare. Precious, special, and rare. ♥ 16) So to you, Eisen, and everyone who worked with you... I say -- ***GOOD JOB***.

[@EisenFeuer]

@@moogamooga2100 1) highly recommend "how Star Wars was saved in the edit" here on YT, a masterclass (I yanked that quote from them). I'd argue a fourth a story is also written by the material/budget constraints as well, for better or worse, in our case with hindsight I'd argue better... and a fifth: it's written by the times/places/culture its made in. That's why with infinite money/passion, you cannot create another "Star Wars" because you cannot recreate the conditions and the cultural moment of 1977. 2) eh, no memories other than it was a 2-story house and no Zillow link because I don't want to doxx my location, heh. I never even walked inside, its sole value to us was the fact that it wasn't furnished yet and had bare wall like a test chamber. 3) yeah she was going to catch the Portal gun as it started sliding towards the portal, all this was interrupting her hands being busy doing the dishes or something because in Portal 1, portals took some time to travel instead of being instant. 4) known her for a long time, no other details to offer the public 5) $1500-$2000 was the number I calculated at the time, time-wise everything started with the portal gun prop which took at least two school semesters minimum (I passed it off as an 'assignment' in a high-level sculpture class that I took several times in college) 6) I forget what we asked the actress to bring but I think the joke was going to be putting on something you'd wear on a date to appreciate herself in the full length portal 'mirror' and then settle with some frumpy sweats for bed, heh 7) I mean, it was part of the production catering :) 8) A) no B) it was from a series that Jesse was making called "Me and True". 9) mic-drop moment: that wasn't CGI. For the background monitor+beta player+chair we green-screened them falling from my roof and used a slow translation upwards with the camera from behind to get the foreground angle (frames mixed for motion blur). Reality is the best physics simulator :) I have never been a wireframe 3D graphics guy (outside of designing things in CAD) until I started using Blender for a project literally last year. The camera that she hallucinated was made by a friend (credited) and everything else was real world or game assets with a Garry's Mod freecam composited in (sans graffiti, credited). The shadow was jank rotoscoping stuff but passable for such a short event. Also a vocab lesson: SFX is things done on set or in camera (real events on green screen, pyrotechnics, blanks, bloody bullet impacts, wires, forced perspective). VFX is what happens after production (the compositing, CGI, coloring, retiming, other filters and effects). A subset of SFX is practical effects where no post work is needed kind of like a magic show, moving things with fishing line etc. 11) I didn't even have to look it up because that timecode is cited so often haha, the original plan was to have two cameras 90° to each other filming on greenscreen and the other two less obvious images we'd sync. I forget why the two-camera option died but we ended up syncing her actions to some on-set techno beat music and took several takes of her trying to do the same action at different angles (rotating her, not the cameras) there were some discrepancies in timing that we (barely) cleaned up with optical flow retiming. 14) The only thing I wish we could have done is fit a shot where the shakey-camera follows her through the portal. Films that came later scooped us on that, as all of our stuff was fixed camera. I had done so much testing to be able to motion-track/camera solve those elements, which was tech that was juuuust entering the hands of small-timers like me. Not sad at all that the moon shot got axed, considering that ended up in Portal 2 and people would have thought we stole the idea from P2 when we had wrapped filming in March before P2 ever came out. The dressing up scene would have messed with the perfect pacing at the end where we see the broken clock go dark and it all gets a bow tied neatly at the end, but maybe that's the film score dictating that pacing. Mostly I wish I had had a better "what's next?" plan. I ended up going to Hollywood to a Machinima party and rubbed shoulders with the Corridor Digital guys and others (a fun part 1 part 2 story) but I didn't seize the momentum beyond making sure that launch had some links on the big gamer sites at the time. KZbin monetization was still in its very infancy and mostly a way to make small fortunes smaller. Ultimately glad I didn't do anything Hollywood-specific though, that place is cursed in at least seven dimensions. One of my top 5 best decisions. Thank you for coming to my TED Talk

[@alucard3657]

that's nice, kinda gave me a personal satisfaction that she finally got the cake.

[@reesalvin6539]

Having the camera “appear” in her house and all the other flashbacks was an amazing touch! Especially having it seem like she chose the cake and chose to be a subject...

[@habitsrabbit]

Huh..I first saw this video around 2011-12 and I swear I thought it was named "Chell bakes a cake" but I guess I just misremembered. But I'm glad I found this awesome video after all these years, still one of my favorite portal videos. The effects still hold up too.

[@WCBROW01]

Chell gets the cake after what? 10 years!

[@insertnamehere5193]

No, after Portal 2 it would be like 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999. No joke. That's legit.

[@lynlyn.lynnnn]

this video is a core memory

[@ferrynoc]

right!? idk why but it's been ingrained in my memory for no reason ever since I saw it back then

[@evanp2578]

The feels man.

[@watchspotting]

I just watched 8 minutes of a fictional character baking a cake. Best 8 minutes of my life!

[@patrickblake123]

This is my favorite portal movie so far. It's kind of a breather from the danger, the effects are good, plus I like the cake making. Looks so fun! :)

[@usulsk]

OK, the back scratching was hilarious!

[@KirboYT]

I really like the idea of Chell finally having a cake after leaving

[@oil6115]

Whenever I think about Portal, my first thought is always: “Our minds have and will betray us, and GladOS is the example of human corruption, not just A.I” After watching this vid, my new thoughts were: “You know who deserves cake? Chell. Man my mind has some deep thoughts, and then the stupider ones

[@talkaboutnothing3316]

Coming back to this film all these years later and Im only now realising how amazing the music is in this. Good job guys.

[@djsneakyfish]

Glad you liked it! It was a lot of fun to make :)

[@Kingdisco5005]

chell that's dangerous don't put your portal gun next to water

[@diamondfailer11]

Hey i said no comments on KZbin, Atlas! No TV for you anymore!

[@Kingdisco5005]

Aperture Science Nooooo D:

[@Kingdisco5005]

***** :D :D :D :D :D THANX YOU SO MOOCH

[@fruitcake7789]

Atlas Also, DO NOT look into the operational end of the device.

[@Kingdisco5005]

FruitCake Well maybe i want to die...

[@Mariotravel209]

Wow it has indeed been a long time since I've watched this. I remember this film when it was new on KZbin. and Here we are, 4 years later and it is still (imo) the best Portal Fan-made movie out there! :D Keep up the good work guys! ^_^

[@SeptemberStranger28]

I still come here 10 years later :) Such a good short film!!

[@EisenFeuer]

Dang, coming up on 11 years D:

[@alexhooper27]

I don't get it, but the visual effects and everything else was awesome!!

[@luminaryPerfectionist]

Alex Hooper this is when Chell leaves Aperture and she has PTSD. Most of the video is her trying to bake the cake she was promised

[@emaayan]

5:31 BEST . IDEA . EVER!

[@thelostdiamond1697]

Wow, 8 years later and still one of the best portal videos out there. I'm glad I came across this again.

[@cesarquinones5188]

I end up watching this video at least once a year, and I still love it!!!

[@TylerZed]

I probably haven't watched this since 2011, but I remembered it. And it's even better than I remember.

[@vesselfragment]

Poor Chell... can't make a cake right. Nobody like having all the ingredients for a cake but not being able to make one. At least she kept trying. :) I'm glad the got it at the end... Or should i say... GLaD?

[@PrinceOfAltea]

5:31 Best use for a Portal gun. ^_^

[@kennystudebaker]

This short film is so good for when it came out! You guys must be extremely talented!

[@EisenFeuer]

Thanks!

[@dewfan14]

This was a pretty cool video. I also think during the whole portal 1 story GLaDOS makes a reference to how Chell shouldn't go outside. Many people like myself think that the Seven Hour War is occurring as there are things in Half Life that reference portal such as Black Mesa and Aperture Science being rivals.

[@gigaya777]

probable true after all in the ending glados say "maybe black mesa,,,, haha fat chance" (black mesa was already destroy) and portal 2 take place several years later maybe during gordon freeman time (half life 2), in portal 2 there an unuse script "A man with a briefcase was just here looking for you" wheatleys was supose to say that when you woke up

[@jason50146]

How do you know that gigya?

[@launched_]

Gianni Well, P1 takes place a few years after HL1. HL2 takes place 20 years after HL1. P2 takes place tons of years after P1. Some say just a year or two, but it may even range from 100 - 50 000 years.

[@codyharrison8447]

This goes to prove the cake was not a lie

[@indominaregina]

This is amazing! Perfect actress :)

[@andresbravo2003]

Sorry I was late, but happy 10 year anniversary of this fan-made short film!!

[@princessthyemis]

This is my personal favorite, the best one I've seen! :D

[@inxomnyaa]

Great match of costume and actor, really fits chell's in-game look. I like how several aspects of the game are nicely mirrored to (what the protagonist thinks is) the reality, and that it appears that she got PTSD, reasonable for such scenario. Also, cool CGI, audio/music and asthetics. Well done. 👍🏻

[@billdrew7229]

Welcome t Cooking with Chell Today we're gonna be baking a CHOCOLATE CAKE !!

[@vincikeeper1581]

Black Forest Cake

[@mafumafusnumberonefan]

its black forest cake

[@haunteddestiny312]

This sells what ptsd is like, the flashbacks, the nightmares…

[@Xanmanbro]

4:07 LOL Cake Magazine xD DA CAKE IS A LIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@Brandonv1103]

Still one of my favorite fan made shorts ever

[@net_has]

Beautifully made! I love all of the subtle references to the game.

[@missyvalo4435]

I love this so much! Chell is adorable.

[@steeldamiano]

That was great! I loved that game. I love the credits, I've never seen them done this way.

[@TomoDerp]

"Did somebody say Pizza?" - Guy from the TV Show Chell put on, 2011

[@jayraine9786]

WHY AM I CRYING IN THE CLUB RIGHT NOW

[@maartenkramers8314]

This might be one of the cutest Portal short films there are. Great work!

[@elijahpiscopo]

0:09 this might not of been know at the time, but chell didnt sign up for aperture, her father worked there, and she was put in stasis.

[@cristophermerida2572]

5:15 THE ANDROID HELL!!!!!

[@bananacream687]

3:33 When I was younger that was always scary, but now it's fine

[@lazarus30001]

This is one of the most touching short films I've ever seen. There is so much story behind Portal that is frequently back burnered. The PTSD aspects in Chell's behavior speak volumes.

[@ZoologyFan2023]

A friend that I might meet in real life one day: What would you do if you had a portal device? Me: 5:31 - 5:35 (Note: I thought I was smelling actual cake when Chell was looking at the cake recipes, but then I had to tell myself that it's just me. That's when I stopped smelling cake. 0-0" )

[@BrandonBlatter]

More movies should have sideways credits.

[@looeez.]

What a fantastic short film to stumble upon! Commendably done!

[@Jurisdikcia]

This is a Masterpiece. Best Chell role-play I ever seen. Thanks Eisen, Nicole.

[@dariunas]

Nicely made, well shot and lit. Liked the way (context) in which you used the FX. (Actress playing Chell is rather nice to look at too.)

[@annietrinity1833]

I like this Chell; she's bad at baking. The one that's good at baking, I don't like her. She steals things. Cubes, radios, men...

[@vincikeeper1581]

why

[@ericatrent89]

XD YE-wait men?

[@annietrinity1833]

Erica Trent It's a reference to Blue Sky and also my persona as a creepy possessive fangirl for Wheatley.

[@ericatrent89]

oh

[@mrsir3658]

Aww she finally got her cake!!! I love it 💖

[@paulallen579]

You're very talented, Eisen. This video was witty, emotional, relatable for the fans while still being original. Really awesome!