It’s been cool to be a nerd for several years now (at least that’s what my Mom tells me), but the beautiful people are quickly taking over. In a time when a large percentage of this country wants to be an American Idol and many people you run into have had some sort of lift, tuck, enlargement, lengthening, it’s clear that the nerd revolution is being squashed by the army of glam. Everyone wants to be a rockstar. Everyone wants to be on TV, or on the cover of a magazine. Nobody wants to know who the f**k Gary Gygax is. And if they do, into the trash can with them, just like it was back in high school. Hey, it could be worse, you could be hunted down and destroyed for that massive game console collection you have back at home. And that brings us to Jon Schnepp’s short, “Nerd Hunter 3004”.
It’s 3004, and being a nerd is a crime punishable by death. Due to the nerds once bringing the world to the brink of destruction, anyone with a spooky obsession and knowledge for things such as comic books, video games, movies, technical equipment will get ya killed. Eric Hoffman plays Derek Rillix, a nerd hunter in the vein of Rick Deckard from “Blade Runner”. In fact, “Nerd Hunter 3004” is, for the most part, a spoof of “Blade Runner” with various types of nerds taking the place of the deadly replicants. As in “Blade Runner”, an opening scene of NH3004 has Derek Rillix interviewing a guy who eventually blows his cover and reveals himself as a computer nerd. The nerds are gonna love this!
On the hunt for MasterGeek, played by Bob Odenkirk, Derek Rillix wanders through a dizzying digital world. Those of you familiar with filmmaker Jon Schnepp’s previous work know what to expect from the vibrant, hallucinogenic visuals and spastic action. For those of you not familiar, you’re gonna need to check this s**t out. And if you’re a nerd, then “Nerd Hunter 3004” is a love song just for you as the jabs at nerds contain so many little inside nerd culture jokes that this film could only be truly appreciated by nerds.
Yeah, I’m a nerd. So what?
