Pine Devil
“Man hunts, but The Devil preys.”
About Pine Devil
A hunter is already shut in a forest cabin with a shotgun when a creature forces its way in. The thing has a horse-like body, thin deer legs, and bat wings. Lights fail while the two of them fight it out at close range.
Cast & crew
More about Pine Devil
David Romero made the short as 2D computer animation and put it on Vimeo on April 13, 2016. He later wrote that he wanted it short, quick, and kinetic, with a rough design and rough animation. Giselle Rosser did the music and the sound effects.
Themes
Making
Romero built the creature from woodland animals he wanted to look wrong: spindly legs like a deer, wing membranes like a bat, and motion taken from newborn animals and vampire bats. He said earlier Jersey Devil films kept drifting away from the old descriptions.
Reviews
Cartoon Brew ran the short as a Pick on January 13, 2017. On February 22, 2018, Michael M. Miller wrote it up for Bloody Disgusting’s World of Death series and noted the multiplane depth, a hit on the lens, and Rosser’s spare track, including the hum of failing lights.
Audiences
Romero posted the film on his own YouTube channel on May 3, 2017. By October 2026 that upload had passed three million views.
Music
Giselle Rosser wrote the music and the sound effects. Miller called the score minimal and pointed to small noises, such as the hum and click of lights going out.
Preservation
On July 6, 2022, reviewer GRuban confirmed the Vimeo attribution license, and a 1,920 by 1,080 WebM was copied to Wikimedia Commons the same day.
Notes
- Vimeo timestamps the upload April 12, 2016, at 11:12 p.m.; Wikimedia Commons dates the same film April 13, 2016.
- Romero’s YouTube tags name the Jersey Devil and his handle, Cinemamind.
- The channel Lets Read posted a hosted copy on January 30, 2017, before Romero’s own YouTube upload on May 3, 2017.
- The Commons file is VP9 video with Opus audio, 1,920 by 1,080, about 78.85 MB.
- Wikidata lists the languages as English and no linguistic content.
Scenes
- The hunter is already inside the cabin, shotgun in hand, when the attack starts.
- The lights fail with a hum and a click while the creature presses in.
- Something strikes the camera during the fight.
Influenced by
- Jersey Devil folklore
Also available
- Vimeo (162634840)
- Wikimedia Commons (David Romero - Pine Devil (2016).webm)
