Borrowed Wounds
In Onaga, a swordsman does not bleed: a kneeling servant called a Life Bond takes every cut meant for him. Rokuro Hane has knelt for Sadao Kiri, First Sword of Onaga, for twenty-six years. In the tournament final there is nowhere left on Hane’s body to cut, so Kiri does the one thing the law will not forgive. A samurai short in Japanese with English subtitles, made with AI.
Coming soon
This film is coming soon to IFN.
How it was made
Every frame, voice, and note was generated with AI, as the end credits say. Jeff Zambrano designed every character, costume, location, and prop and storyboarded the film shot by shot before generating it; Luis F. Aguilar edited, graded, and mixed it.
- AI-generated
Images or sound largely generated with AI tools, as the filmmakers describe it.
- Independent production
Made outside the major studio system.
Credits
- Written and directed by
- Jeff Zambrano
- Story and screenplay
- Jeff Zambrano
- Produced by
- Jeff Zambrano
- Character, wardrobe, location, and prop design
- Jeff Zambrano
- Storyboard
- Jeff Zambrano
- AI generation and cinematography
- Jeff Zambrano
- Original music, 13 songs
- Jeff Zambrano
- Edited by
- Luis F. Aguilar
- Colorist
- Luis F. Aguilar
- Sound design and mix
- Luis F. Aguilar
- Characters (generated, no cast)
- Rokuro Hane, Sadao Kiri, Toshiro Mabe, Tsune Mori, Kaoru Ide, Ino Tabe, Ryo Sagi
- Original songs
- “Borrowed,” “Morning is Yours,” “Deep Drums,” “Ino’s Pact,” “Kaoru’s Request,” “Rokuro’s Doom,” “Ronin’s Lament,” “Kizu Yo Modore,” “Lament for the Empty Valley,” “Solemn Incantation,” “The Last Samurai’s Song,” “The Last Shepherd,” “It Was Done”
- Generated with
- Seedance 2.5, Nano Banana Pro, ElevenLabs Music, Topaz
Follow Jeff Zambrano
Website Higgsfield YouTube Instagram TikTok X Threads Facebook LinkedIn
Keep exploring
Keep watching
