El tango de roxanne | Baldur's Gate 3 Animatic

Content Warning: This source material that this animatic is based on contains sex, blood, and violence and this also includes those things. If you are not 18+, turn away now! (Or don't... Moulin Rouge! was my favourite movie when I was like, three years old, so whatever 🤷. Use your best judgement for if you are comfortable watching content containing those things. Just like, you've been warned.)
Characters: Astarion Ancunín, Karlach Cliffgate, Gale Dekarios, bard Tav, Cazador Szarr, and Sebastian from Baldur's Gate 3 (and before anyone asks, my Tav is not a dwarf or gnome, just a very small drow 😅). I do not own the rights to these characters and am not associated with Larian Studios, the creators of Baldur's Gate 3, in any way. I'm just really obsessed with their amazing game ❤️.
Music: El Tango De Roxanne from "Moulin Rouge!"
(The song has been edited down for the purposes of this video. If you haven't seen the full version from Moulin Rouge!, go watch it, it's really, really good!)
You might also enjoy: • Roxanne but it's just ...

[@G.F.SF55]

Honestly, only with these actual illustrations do I understand just *how terribly* Astarion actually lived

[@salti1976]

And yet this only scratches the surface of the things Cazador did to him. 😭

[@inkpencil5409]

Have you explored cazadors palace , cos you only see a sliver of what's been done to him and hear it from his own mouth and the bone guy in the kennel

[@Tamietwist]

😭

[@Inugirl582]

I love the timing of Karlach's rage to the belting near the end

[@thecheck968]

I was imagining some saucy dance animatic. Can't say I'm disappointed (this was fantastic and even better), just traumatized

[@benten2462]

Literally my exact feelings, when do we meet in the support group for people who’s been mentally impacted by this song (in the best way possible) (my heart is broken tho)

[@tevalina616]

the ANGLES??? the ROOMS?? the POV??? the ART STYLE??? the FLOW?!? this is AMAZING!!!

[@stephaniehoyland4901]

Love the way that even when astarion is going through flashbacks of his old life your tav is always by his side to help him come back to the present where it's safe and he's got firend to help him

[@hotterhatter2211]

*lays on the ground crying* This is fine.

[@hollycrossingxo]

I am SO GLAD SOMEONE MADE A BG3 ANIMATIC WITH THIS SONG!!! It fits SO so SO well for our favorite tortured vampire.. Oh Astarion you've suffered so You did such an AMAZING job on this- the build up towards the end had my heart pounding- the roar matching Karlach, Gale getting his wizard shit ON, TAV rushing to their beloved! aaggghghhg my heart!! Really hope to see more from you!!

[@riverwyvern]

Thank you so much! ❤ I have a few other little Baldur's Gate animatic/animations I'd like to make so you can look for more in the future (but it will likely be a long while before they're ready to post - I hand't really done anything really similar to this before and it took me several weeks to make, but it was really fun to work on!)

[@222liss]

I was almost not gonna watch it to the end because Astarions abuse scenes really hit my feels. But that revenge, uuh. That was worth it. Made me ecstatic for Astarion. He deserved to return the favor.

[@NicoleSalamen]

holds him so gently......... Also I love how READY Karlach is the entire time. Like she is ready to remove heads from necks the moment that door opens because she is NOT about to go easy on anyone who hurt her vampire.

[@ms_twigs]

This made me feel all of the things and makes me want to go boot up the game just to give him another hug. The "dine with me" scene hits so hard seeing it all laid out like this.

[@Hiraeth_Nightshade]

Especially if you had the "you were my first kiss" conversation with Sebastian in the game.

[@superstardum]

My god this is INCREDIBLE! From the facial expressions, the focus between the present and Astarion’s memories, Karlach raging in time to the music, it’s all done so fantastically! This has to be one of the best BG3 related animatics I’ve seen yet!

[@Lileedawn]

It's raw and perfectly fit Astarion's turmoil. I love it.

[@yihbey520]

The combination of Moulin Rouge and Astarion's backstory is just beyond perfection! I felt the pain and suffering, which made me kind of emotional since I'm also a big fan of Moulin Rouge. Great work! Thank you for making this!

[@julzyplays]

very talanted! came for the song, stayed for the art. thank you

[@thedrawer2379]

OH MY GOD THIS ANIMATIC LITERALLY MADE ME RUN A LAP AROUND MY HOUSE, SO GOOD THAT I STARTED TO ASCEND TO A NEW PLANE OF BEING, SO GOOD THAT I STARTED TO FLY, SO GOOD IT CURED ALL MY MENTAL ILNESSES, SO GOOD THAT IT AUTOMATICALLY MADE A BETTER PERSON AFTER THOSE 3 MINUTES AND 8 SECONDS, THANK U FOR THIS MEAL‼‼‼

[@sophiafox6953]

What a masterpiece!!! You did so WELL capturing his traumatic past, it really made me feel bad for him. No wonder Astarion is the way he is now! Also this is drawn and animated wonderfully and this song fits so well!

[@samb4067]

I actually found this kinda triggering, ngl, which shows just how damn well you captured the emotion and just… absolute sense of looming dread and fear that made up most of Astarion’s life. To be clear, despite finding it kind of difficult to watch, I absolutely love this animation and you did a phenomenal job

[@Somniatica]

This gave me a literal visceral reaction, I started CRYING dear GOD PERFECT ANIMATIC JUST AMAZING AAA I'M SHARING THIS WITH EVERYONE?? BOOSTING THE HELL OUT OF IT THIS IS INCREDIBLE ;-; WHAT A im still crying while i type this WHAT A GOOD WOW

[@rulerofzeuniverse]

Really good animatic! I loved how Cazador just looked like a little germlin man

[@katsyxo]

Aaaand I'm crying. My sweet traumatized prince of the night 😭

[@n0izu]

God that was beautiful and heartbreaking at the same time, you did an amazing job portraying so many aspects of his live, thank you

[@jellybeantroll9044]

*God has blessed my recommendations page this morning*

[@abcdefghij337]

An excellent song for this character, and I think of okay to put it into blunt words. Astarion is a (former) prostitute, a sex worker. Stolen and forced into it, continuously isolated from the world and people who might’ve been able to help him, beaten when his performance wasn’t good enough or didn’t bring in enough customers, and all the gain goes to his handler who doesn’t view him as anything. Oh, and branded. And … there are people who live like this.

[@asterinlovely]

GOD THIS IS I CANT EVEN PUT INTO WORDS HOW GOOD THIS IS literally is boutta make me draw Astarion like emotional

[@user-qj9en1kp1m]

Amazing job, this illustrates so well how horrible his life was. I am playing BG3 and I expected a boss fight, but the cutscenes before the boss fight: talking about the torture he endured, meeting Sebastian, the Gur children...and then Cazador just takes him anyway. Just as Karlach here, I raged a bit irl, because Astarion happens to be one of my best companions in combat, so when Cazador took him I really started panicking about having to fight Cazador with 3 people only. While my elven Tav was like "you just gave me another reason to hurt you, then". The after-fight cutscene also shocked me and hit me hard. You captured those feelings so well.

[@CptQuinnElle]

This is just perfect. I’ve always loved this version of the song and had already put it on my Astarion playlist but your animation has literally brought me to tears. I hope Neil Newbon sees this

[@alexandralockton5671]

Same. I loved the movie. The song fits him so perfectly. I have a stupid long Astarion playlist with this on it 😅

[@beckyfal]

I’ve never heard this song and Jesus CHRIST am I glad THIS is the video I first heard it on 😱 that was INCREDIBLE

[@selma7458]

this changed my life i’m so serious

[@bubble8c492]

The entire video was great but may I just especially compliment you on the doors, cups and furniture, and how you can seemingly draw anything from any angle??! You are a very accomplished artist, thank you for sharing your work!

[@riverwyvern]

Thanks so much! I spent a lot of time running around Cazador's palace and Fraygo's Flophouse taking tons of screenshots to use for reference, I'm glad the extra work shows :)

[@sophiebeatrix7348]

This is incredible, just played this quest and finished it off last night. All I wanted to do was give him the biggest hug after 😢

[@SameenaNasir-cb5by]

This breaks my heart repeatedly to know that Astarion experienced such horror, torture, and depravity at the hands of Cazador. Trauma changes you forever, as my trauma that i experienced in my life did to me. I feel nothing but immense compassion, understanding and love towards him regardless of his behaviour.

[@thekameru6058]

Some serious talent on display here.

[@ElyLynn]

That. Was. Sunning. Absolutely. Stunning. ✨

[@jewelcrusher2091]

Another video that shows me that I really like the way I got rid of cazador in my play through

[@authorkellylclark]

This is ~extactly~ why I multiclassed Astarion into Vengance paladin rather than going full Rogue.

[@microwavedsal4299]

This was so good, absolutely delicious work and yummy animation. Astarion is such a fun character with such a good backstory, this song fits SO good it's insane!! Absolutely rad B]

[@J_Daguiar]

10/10 experience would play again just for Astarion to go through it again (with all serious I love your art and Astarion deserves healing even if he ain’t real 😊)

[@RabbitPlum]

literal chills, mate. I-- how dare you make me feel like this.

[@sophiapacione]

This is my favourite song ever, I love this so much

[@Bobalilly]

THIS IS AMAZING OML!!! WORDS CAN NOT EXPRESS HOW INCREDIBLE THIS TRULY IS, THE EMOTIONS, THE POVS, THE FLASHBACKS, THE ARTWORKS. ABSOLUTELY FLABBERGASTING

[@LastSummersDance]

I'm so fucking impressed by how goddamn good this is and how perfectly the song fits. Amazing job, love this! Now to watch it seven more times in a row...

[@orionsnotlyin]

WHY MUST YOU MAKE ME FEEL THESE THINGS 😭😭😭😭😭 (translation: beautifully done animatic, incredible song choice, 17/10)

[@Crow.Of.The.End.]

AHSHFSSASHHAFHH I’m so the peak of my Asterion obsession and holy shit??? This is incredible!? The animatic is perfectly on time with the music. When he crawled out of his own damn grave? The emotion is so raw! This is incredibly done. Just wow.

[@valquiriairiarte9107]

Esta es una pieza de amor al personaje, gracias por hacerla, quedó increíble.

[@MulderHiggins]

gonna cry. ur good at this animating

[@MJTheScientist]

I am not normal about this. Fuck the animation is so good.

[@CorvidQueen319]

THIS. THIS IS IT. THIS IS ***THE*** ASTARION ANIMATIC OHMYGODS. I cannot tell you how much I loved this!!!!!

[@c82401]

Congrats on making the most upsetting thing I've ever seen! Such a devastating story

[@helloiimyss]

A masterpiece. Also, as a Moulin Rouge! fan: THANK YOU

[@mariasokolova9605]

Oddly enough, I also thought of this song (and of the Moon over Bourbon Street, also by Sting) in the context of Astarion's story. A heartbreaking story indeed. Thank you so much for your wonderful artwork and visualization of the idea.

[@anhelina2726]

that lil wave of Hands tav did to free Astarion im sobbing

[@ladychaost2653]

Seriously amazing work that fits perfectly with this song. I was connected and upset and stressed even though I knew the outcome. Bravo!

[@missfortune8553]

I’m at a loss for words, this was beautifully animated. I’m very sad now though. 😭 You’ve got a new subscriber. 🌸

[@CamilleOLIVIER-n3o]

I was ready for some sassy vampiric dance. What I wasn't ready for was how good your animations are and how beautifully you convey the terrible past of Astarion

[@craycraygurl4504]

this actually hit me right in the feels! wonderfully done!

[@minzyGG]

ASTARION WITH MOULIN ROGUE OMFG i have died and gone to heaven this is amazing

[@ravenrose_99]

I absolutely love this! Your action animations were incredibly well done! And you built up to the climax of the song perfectly! Awesome job!

[@ferring.2154]

I’m losing my mind at this!!! Omg the expressions are so fucking good

[@ferring.2154]

I also played as a bard tav who romanced astarion 🤝 (btw rewatched this video twice cus you nail the intensity so solidly!! I am a changed man)

[@yulso5816]

Amazing. I am in tears, really, bravo.

[@tacticalmakeouts]

Crying T-T This is so well done.. my poor love

[@stormyjane7384]

i was just making comments about this song being perfect in the astarion discord i'm in. gods i'm so glad someone else saw the vision too!!

[@williamswilliams213]

this really helped me picture astarion's suffering. amazing work

[@4kutagawas]

this is beautiful oh my god

[@severigne_m7652]

I am sobbing, this is so good

[@YuukaHanamaya]

My GOD this is so unbelievably good. I'M GONNA VOMIT FROM AWE!!! I love you for making this.

[@kat_s_z_fantastykapolska]

By all gods!!!! This is sooooo frikin good! *_* I absolutely adore, that you showed Astarion's beginnings as a vampire spawn *_* And the ending with the fight was awsome!!!! :3

[@PrinceJudas]

200 hundred years.

[@emsitdown9141]

It takes a LOT to make me cry. Congratulations. This is incredible

[@MiralukaNaima]

I finished the game twice and one of them was with him as origin play. It didn't matter tho, I ugly cried when I watch this. This animation broke my heart more than I played the game itself. Splendid job!

[@elbdot]

THIS IS FANTASTIC This song fits him SO PERFECTLY Oh my god 😭😭😭😭 What an emotional rollercoaster, absolutely excellent job done, those flashbacks of Astarion having in to lure his victims and the pain he's experienced really hurt to watch. We get to hear so much of his backstory, but seeing it illustrated like this makes you sympathise and feel for him even more, imagining how he's been through this kind of torture almost daily for 200 YEARS... Wishing you the best that more people to get to see your work, it's great!!

[@brooklynd7046]

God I already love this song and BG3 but you have worked magic to combine them

[@ladymidnight022]

Was literally watching this with my jaw on the floor! Incredible work, you’ve really captured his trauma so perfectly

[@lari2804]

This is so amazing, I am absolutely addicted ❤

[@penny7494]

This was insane I’m bawling my eyes out rn

[@FengNirothar]

That was stunning

[@soundlessroom]

oh god I made like 30 seconds animatic with gale, but that? Thats amazing af, I love it, I love it, I love it, oh god the angles and transitions!!

[@CristinaBonelli85]

I've been listening to it and watching it on repeat... I've always loved Roxanne and this animatic is amazing, I love it!

[@KellyMichaelsR]

The song alone gives me chills but the accompanied animations of Astarion's story is just *traumatizing* well done 😭

[@sweetdreamssleepambience]

The emotions I felt while watching this were so visceral...I'm glad I was walking outside to burn off the excess energy that built up while the music and drama rose!!!

[@vamp-shy]

LOSING MY GODDAMN MIND ABT THIS THIS IS SO INSANELY GOOD

[@tranquilityofroses]

Excellent song for this and fantastically done!

[@wriewygs7022]

What the actual heck this is amazing why doesn't it have more views, definitely sharing it

[@abi21891]

Okay this hurt my feelings (I mean that as a compliment)

[@melissaamato1139]

Finally a back ground tale of Astarion's back story. Well done, RoXanne ẞites down the mood. This was fang tastiqe. Thank U Darlins. I wanted to actually cry too, at the end. Not for Caz, of course, but our sweet lil Vampling. ❤️‍🩹🗡️🗡️ 🩸

[@wolflithay6380]

This was so good! Keep at it and im sure you will be making even greater animations ❤

[@ladypossum1776]

This is for you baby boy *hugs astarion* And this is for 👏 👏 love the fight sequence and the art is incredible

[@FaeydinGaming]

This gave me chills oh my god. So powerful! I'll be in the corner crying over Astarion... as usual.

[@apocodino3785]

Absolutely beautiful! Thank you for making this!

[@mariliasimoes9872]

TARGET AUDIENCE REACHED I LOVE MOULIN ROUGE AND I LOVE THIS

[@EzrasMoon]

I'M SO NORMAL ABOUT THIS HOLY SHIT god this is so amazing and so beautiful and I love him so much and any time I get to watch him kill cazador to one of the best covers from moulin rouge is SO GOOD AAAAA

[@YayAGreenOne]

I wasn't ready for this, but damn, did I enjoy watching it!

[@hollibee]

AHHHH HIM WITH THIS SONG WHAAATTTTT I WOULD HAVE NEVER THOUGHTTTTTT. THIS IS SO GOOD MUAH MUAH MUAH

[@smol_angr_void7224]

This is AMAZING! Awesome work! 😍 You did a great job portraying Astarion's past, it really puts things into perspective seeing how things were for him. The expressions are excellent, Cazador's death is satisfying as hell, and you should be proud of yourself!

[@macarthurstewart5863]

NAHHH CUZ YOU GOT MY UGLY CRYING!!! Gods i love how you made the fight and how just... EVERYTHING LOOKS I AM AT A LOSS FOR WORDS, GOT ME AND THE WHOLE SQUAD CRYING 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

[@LynonAkasaky]

GG ! C'est trop bien fait et imaginer ! Bravo

[@acerocks_]

Abseloutely beautiful, I just wish that fight was ACTUALLY that easy😔

[@Nao-lp6zx]

This is amazing work! I loved it but it made me so sad 😭 poor Astarion 💔

[@rizliesmur1226]

It's a great job. I got goosebumps all over and almost burst into tears, and this is an indicator. what you did caused me very vivid emotions. I admire you, thank you for what you are doing.

[@jordyncrowe6695]

What a masterpiece 😢

[@rockinrobbbie]

I JUST ADDED THIS TO MY SPOTIFY PLAYLIST FOR HIM TOO OMG-this is so gorgeously done. Loved every second