Massachusetts-based 'entertainment production company' Cecropia has been doing some interesting work for a while now, heavily (and just about solely!) covered by sister site Gamasutra - see the 'Fluttering Off The Beaten path' profile and an Ernest Adams column on the subject.

Ernest Adams describes the project best: "[Cecropia is] making a coin-op game about emotion, controlled by the earliest of videogame input devices, a single knob. They call their game a "filmgame." It's an animated cartoon built by highly experienced ex-Disney animators, still working with pencil and paper in the traditional manner. The characters aren't gawky mo-capped 3D models whose polygons are showing; they're beautifully drawn 2D people whose feelings and state of mind are visible in every frame - true personality animation. They're charming, tough, sexy, aggressive, sweet, goofy, and just plain fun to watch."

Well, now they've added a trailer for 'The Act' to their website, and it's really neat stuff, showcasing a 'old-time movies' visual style that almost feels like Humphrey Bogart meets Harold Lloyd, and some great-looking hand drawn animation. It's truly unconventional, and we really hope there's a place in the market for this alternative thinking - wonder how it'll play? Dragon's Lair++? [Via Cartoon Brew.]