We’re still a long ways away from the cyberpunk dystopia of Blade Runner, but a long pan over the Los Angeles skyline this July 4th might have you thinking otherwise. As many outlets have pointed out, fireworks (or least people’s complaints about them) have gone way up this year, culminating in a spectacular conflagration on Saturday. When KTLA happened to capture it all via aerial footage, all it took was a title-card, an iconic score by Vangelis, and some editing magic to transform our Los Angeles into a neon-drenched playground for the Tyrell Corporation.
The editor in question is Mike Dent, also a voice actor, sound designer, podcaster, film-maker, and writer for Otaku USA Magazine. Over on Twitter, where his Blade Runner-ized footage has since gone viral, he described his thought process as follows:
https://twitter.com/Mach_Dent/status/1279676293148221441
Of course, all the technology in the world doesn’t mean you’ll never typo in your tweets (a fact that we can all sympathize with):
In case this goes places, do me a favor and do some good – https://t.co/ol0kbZAerL
— Mach Dent | Emissary of Hell (@Mach_Dent) July 5, 2020
You can also view the footage on Vimeo, where the resolution isn’t quite as high, but sharing around is made easier!
Compare it to Blade Runner‘s actual opening scene below. The obvious differences in definition and *clears throat importantly* cinematography notwithstanding, you’d be forgiven for having to do a double-take. Just edit in some (bigger) flames, hovercraft, Brutalist ziggurats, and voila!
