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"  At the beginning of 9, society is in the thick of the industrial revolution. A scientist creates an intelligent machine that turns on its creators and destroys the human race. Left in the post-apocalyptic rubble are nine life forms--the creations of the regretful inventor of The Machine. The world is gritty, lifeless and dark--the rubble of a society that became &amp;quot;obsessed with machines and technology,&amp;quot; says director Shane Acker. &amp;quot;That lead me to think of the industrial age--the Victorian, Jules Verne-ian fantasy of how machines and technology will free our lives.&amp;quot; In true Victorian form, Acker wanted his film to be a celebration of technology, with over-the-top, ornate creations that &amp;quot;look beyond our modern-day focus on efficiency and pure function and celebrate the seduction of machines,&amp;quot; Acker says. This world is a steampunk world, he says, juxtaposed with the nine main characters, who are humbly low-tech, DIY creations--what Acker likes to call &amp;quot;Stitchpunk.&amp;quot; The two conflicting worlds are created by simple, low budget CG tricks and an attention to detail. The Characters In the world of 9, the main characters--simple creations, full of life--are at odds with their dead, mechanical surroundings. But they still had to come from somewhere within that world. To make the characters fit with their surroundings, the filmmakers took particular care to stay true to the reference they used to create 1 through 9. Acker and his team found inspiration for the look of his characters in an unlikely place--Los Angeles scrap yards. There, they bought bags full of &amp;quot;fascinating junk&amp;quot; that became the constituent parts of the characters: The stodgy 1 has a body made from a straitjacket, feet that are old fingernail and toenail clippers and ankles constructed out of pieces of bike chains that have been taken apart. The eccentric 6&amp;#039;s body texture is created out of Acker&amp;#039;s wife&amp;#039;s painting overalls. Characters 9 and 5 share burlap and zippers and 2 is predominately made of a tough leather shoe, complete with eyeholes and laces.  &amp;quot;We wanted to make [the characters of] things that could actually work in the real world,&amp;quot; Acker says. The junk was studied and played with to help the animators get a sense of how the characters&amp;#039; parts would rust and move. Next, the filmmakers scanned the pieces into the computer as reference for the textures used to dress the characters.   style=&amp;quot;background-color:#333; color:#ccc;&amp;quot;&amp;amp;gt; &amp;#039;9&amp;#039; Photo Gallery     + CLICK PHOTOS TO ENLARGE The World  The characters find themselves in a dark, forbidding world that, Acker says, &amp;quot;is oppressive, with things lurking in the shadows.&amp;quot; To heighten the tension, giving a sense that other creatures are lurking just around the corner, the team chose to use shadows and light that direct the audience&amp;#039;s eye to the action. To make the world come alive, &amp;quot;we had a lot of moving light sources like 9&amp;#039;s staff [which holds a light bulb], and we have lot of clouds, fog and other soft, moving light to let the scene breathe,&amp;quot; Acker says.  By using heavy shadows, the team was able to let the audience&amp;#039;s imagination run wild--and save money. &amp;quot;If you let things go into darkness and fall into shadow, you don&amp;#039;t have to put details in those areas,&amp;quot; and so you save time and money. &amp;quot;But you leave just enough silhouette and details that the audience can construct the rest for themselves,&amp;quot; Acker says. &amp;quot;The audience&amp;#039;s imagination is always going to be scarier than what you can actually show them--after you suggest a certain amount.&amp;quot; "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.popularmechanics.com/culture/movies/a4544/4330275/>