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Tyrannosaurus Attacks Somallya was a short produced by Ted Phillips with T.J.'s Cracked Egg Productions. Unlike his earlier films that used stop-motion animation, this only followed the trend of using panoramic backgrounds. It was recorded on VHS-C format media on November 28, 1993, but was not edited or released to the public until November 30, 2008.
Tyrannosaurus Attacks Somallya was a short produced by Ted Phillips with T.J.'s Cracked Egg Productions. Unlike his earlier films that used stop-motion animation, this only followed the trend of using panoramic backgrounds. It was recorded on VHS-C format media on November 28, 1993, but was not edited or released to the public until November 30, 2008.
History
Shortly after making Tyrannosaurus Attacks Somallya, Ted created promotional invitations for the opening screening. However, the invitation called the film Dinosaurs Attack! At the time, there was no confusion with his earlier work Dinosaur Attack (based on the Topps Dinosaurs Attack! cards), because that film was actually untitled at the time.
There has been some debate among scholars about whether the tape's label, which listed November 28, 1993 as the production date, was correct, since Jurassic Park figures are used in the film. Jurassic Park was released only a few months earlier in June 1993, and Ted is documented to receive a number of Jurassic Park action figures for Christmas 1993, a month after the purported production date. However, in the archival footage of Christmas 1993, Ted talks about 2 specific figures that he already has prior to the holiday, one of which is the eponymous Tyrannosaurus. Since there is no known evidence other than the statements regarding those specific figures, it is unclear whether all of the figures in Tyrannosaurus Attacks Somallya were already in his possession early enough for the November date to be accurate. However, at this time, there is not any evidence to contradict it, because none of the other figures he received in the Christmas footage appear in this film.
This film received a sequel in 1995, called Tyrannosaurus Rex 2.
There has been some debate among scholars about whether the tape's label, which listed November 28, 1993 as the production date, was correct, since Jurassic Park figures are used in the film. Jurassic Park was released only a few months earlier in June 1993, and Ted is documented to receive a number of Jurassic Park action figures for Christmas 1993, a month after the purported production date. However, in the archival footage of Christmas 1993, Ted talks about 2 specific figures that he already has prior to the holiday, one of which is the eponymous Tyrannosaurus. Since there is no known evidence other than the statements regarding those specific figures, it is unclear whether all of the figures in Tyrannosaurus Attacks Somallya were already in his possession early enough for the November date to be accurate. However, at this time, there is not any evidence to contradict it, because none of the other figures he received in the Christmas footage appear in this film.
This film received a sequel in 1995, called Tyrannosaurus Rex 2.
Cultural References
- Ted chose the country name "Somallya" after asking his parents to list all the African countries they could remember off the top of their heads. It is homophonous to the country "Somalia."
- The Somallyan bridge built with Waffle Blocks.
- The firehouse is a 1987 Kenner The Real Ghostbusters Fire House Headquarters (Item #80580).[1]
- Many of the dinosaurs featured were Jurassic Park action figures.
- When Ted yells "I can see their heads, and they're pretty mean," it sounds more like a reference to a special birth circumstance: "I can see their heads, and they're premies!"
- Godzilla makes a cameo appearance.
Trivia
- When applying to film school, Ted Phillips described Tyrannosaurus Attacks Somallya in his portfolio:
Ted Phillips said:
Categories:
Dinosaurs
Old Camera
Panoramic Backgrounds
Stop-Motion
Pending categories:
Stub
