In 2005, on this day NINE, LLC released a computer animated short film featuring a sentient rag doll living in the ruins of a decaying parallel world. Click to watch 9 By Shane Acker.

The Making of "Twelve"Founded by a student called Shane Acker, the company employed only five animators and three lighters who took four and a half years to create the movie "9" on a three-computer dual-processor render farm using regular "commodity" software comprising Maya 1.5-5.5 for 3D modeling, Photoshop for the textures.

Nevertheless, Ackers enjoyed a string of awards which included Student Academy Award - Gold Award for Animation, SIGGRAPH - Best in Show, Animex - First Prize, 3D Character Animation, Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Foundation College Awards - First Prize, Non-traditional Animation, Florida Film Festival, Newport Beach Film Festival - Best Animated Short. "We had such potential. Such promise. But we squandered our gifts. And so, 9, I am creating you. Our world is ending. Life must go on. " ~ the ScientistMore importantly, the fanfare brought the movie to the attention of Film Director Tim Burton who was greatly impressed with Acker's artistic vision.

Tim Burton proposed a feature-length adaptation to be directed by Acker and distributed by Focus Features. In so doing, Burton eliminated a "plot hole" from the original ten-minute movie. Because the Scientist states he is afraid of The Machine because it lacks a human soul. However, The Machine begins to operate only once #2's soul is transferred inside it, and it ceases to function once all the souls are drained from it. This would suggest it has to possess a soul to operate at all, contradicting the Scientist's claim.

From this chance focus on the spiritual dimension, Burton and Ackers re-evaluated the completeness of the artistic vision, deciding to imbue the movie with a stronger biblical subtext. Released on 12.12.12 for Christmas 2012, the protagonist is more strikingly an apocalyptic Jesus figure, and the remaining stitch-punks are also characterised from the disciplines. Click to watch the Trailer.