ESTRANGER

Yes yes, many Easter eggs and lore in this one.

Finally have fancy disclaimer! It seems to be necessary, because people always tend to ignore the description :(

Anyway, here it is! I'm so proud of this. Originally, I just wanted to make the Estranger meme, I'm glad I stuck with making the longer version, it explains and shows much more.

If you have theories please share them below! I'd love to see it. :D

I'm also happy to finally be showing off the dog protagonists! (Did I mention there's gonna be more than one?) If you keep up with my community tab, you might know that I posted a poll on what breed you think the dog protagonist was going to be. Funnily enough, it turned out to be the 2 least voted breeds: Rottweiler & poodle.

Those are Eiche & Lotte. Eiche (meaning Oak tree in German) is the Rottweilers name. Lotte is her best friend, she's a mini poodle.
Both of them care a lot for the beauty of nature. But they are not happy with the state of the world. The Earth is at risk from their own kind. And no dog fortunate enough to be in a position of power seem to do anything against it, even though the problems are undeniable. Global warming is getting worse, habitats are being wrecked by pollution + huge amounts of habitat loss caused by deforestation as well as many species of animals facing certain extinction, and more. No one seems to care. But Eiche and lotte DO care. They want to help so badly & would do anything they can no matter the cost, even if they can only do small things. But they are two dogs. Only two dogs against the rest of the selfish world. There are so many terrible dogs who hold more power than them, who certainly don't care about what happens to the earth as long as they get paid. Dogs who see other animals as toys and fancy house decoration, dogs who see trees as nothing but a nuisance blocking the way for a new parking lot, and dogs who don't even care about other dogs. How are Eiche & Lotte supposed to change the world? It's seems impossible. Unless... they get help from something that is more powerful, deadly and ancient than civilization itself.

This kind of builds off of/continues from the "I'd rather sleep" meme the same way "I'd rather sleep" builds off the Useless meme. In rather sleep and Useless, I was showing a very specific side of the problem. Sport killers who kill for fun in their spare time with no respect for anything-a few terrible individuals with awful hobbies. Estranger expands on more of the overall global/societal issues. It shows the bigger picture of all dogs and their world instead of just this one kind of cruelty. That is NOT to say all dogs are bad! Eiche & Lotte are the best example that that isn't true. And there are more dogs like them too, they're just hard to find these days.

Answering some frequently asked questions:

Q: Where are the humans?
A:Humans do not exist and never have in this universe. Dogs take the human's place, and have evolved to be that way naturally.

Q:Why, and HOW are the dogs wearing collars if humans don't exist?
A:The dogs wear collars as normal everyday clothing, and as status symbols/ jewellery! The dog- tag also serves as ID. It's unspoken social rule to wear your collar in public, dogs who don't could be silently judged. (Most dogs wear their collars, but there are exceptions for homeless dogs and young puppies sometimes.) It also symbolises them being civilized as opposed to wild animals.(+ It's just a nice design choice that makes too much sense!)

As for HOW, well, they just put them on themselves. They also made the collars themselves. As well as the technology, and the cities and everything around them that isn't nature/earth. Taking that into consideration, them putting on the collars themselves isn't that much of a stretch.

Additional info:
The dogs have anthropomorphised personalities. Meaning they emote, think and act like people. It's a fable! Think of movies like The Lion King.

The wild animals ALSO have anthropomorphised personalities, but there are language barriers between species. The more closely the species is related, the easier to overcome the barrier. For example: Wolves and coyotes understand each other fairly well- but they still have accents of their species. A wolf and a fox is a bit harder. And a Wolf and a lynx won't work unless they try to learn each other's languages, which is possible!

This is NOT the Estranger MEME! This is as a original AMV. I think, it has enough differences for it to be it's own thing.
The original MEME was made by Joycawn though.

Song: Estranger by Jack Stauber.
Art & story by me.

[sunflower]

If we let our home die…there is no reverse
The Earth needs a blessing
Let’s not be it’s curse

Absolutely stunning and beautifully made! You are an absolutely wonderful artist!

[wingedwolf]

This is so gorgeous!!! The pixel art is such a unique look!!!

[e.o]

I just lost my brother I can’t believe I’m getting this today. I really needed this and your wonderful art. Never forget it can be the light to someone’s very dark day.

[OZZ_BALL]

Well this got sad and terrifying at the same time REALLY quickly.

[Valsbook]

Unless someone like you who cares a whole awful lot, things aren't going to better. It's not.
- Dr. Suese

[Bailey-the-Domain-Keeper]

Aw this is lovely, also the two puppers that actually were admiring the world and took the time to help made my heart feel whole there, omg

[newtsinsuits]

God i love the idea of a white albino “deer” representing earth! For some reason it just fits so well in my brain that its a deer

[Kippo]

The little white crow at the end looks like Erethena…I may be wrong but Erethena might have been reborn in some kind of way. The way she looks at the two dogs picking up trash makes me think about what you said in the description about getting help from something powerful and ancient.

My theory, anyways!

[stormystorm]

At the end with the bird I feel like he/she was thinking "Good job, their are dogs who care" and they went off to tell the white deer/thing that looks like white deer, but I also like the pixel art and the fact that it's an actual story lol

[theshortlagugana]

My faith on the dogs are being restored due to that puppy

[TopazTimes]

EYEYEY IT'S HERE!! I've been looking forward to this :DD
I'll edit this after the premiere- but I know that it's going to be incredible already, just from the WIP shots!!

[SnowWolf]

Okay you win. This is hands down the most creative and beautiful version of the Estranger Meme ever. The detail in the pixel art, the story, and the gut punching moral behind it.

[ravenwithcall]

My theory is that since Mother nature cannot physically interact with the dogs she made Ethena in an attempt to try save her world.

[CheeseCakeCupcake]

This story is absolutely beautiful. I can't even put it into words how this story makes me feel but I am already captivated

[Lanarostisseraychicken]

The Rottweiler and Toy Poodle give me absolute serotonin and restored my faith in humanity, the ending was so heart warming <3

[thesilvercat]

omg the end is honestly so heartwarming, this story is so sad but i love it and the animation is really smooth aa hsv im so tired right now

[kalestars]

ooo yeah i voted for poodle on the poll!! the pixel art style is so crazy impressive to me, it looks so pleasing but also looks like it took forever lol i absolutely love your story and how real it feels, plus the protags are simply adorable! (the baby gators are also absolutely adorable, i adore them)

[lupinb-par]

My god I am blown away
Loving that style and the diversity of species you're showing! But my favorite thing has to be that horror-like imagery, you need to do more of that

[Azucenary]

Awful what we do to this world. It’s hitting us hard but will only get worse. Thank you for the wonderful amv bless you

[radiotelevision]

THIS WAS INSANEEEE!! THE PIXELATED ANIMATION STYLE, THE STORY LINE, THE TIMING! THIS WAS INCREDIBLE! THE MESSAGE AND ALL IS JUST UWHWHDUEBWHEHDGEVUSH!! PHENOMENAL JOB!!