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[EPISODE 10 IS OUT!!] "The Soviet Connection" - Turning GTA IV's story into a TV series

Zuma4Life

By Zuma4Life
in GTA IV

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Zuma4Life

Zuma4Life

Posted
Posted (edited)

NEW!! Watch the Episode 10 Here:

What if GTA IV Was a TV Show?

Have you ever thought GTA IV deserves the cinematic treatment—a full-fledged movie or TV series? So have I. That’s why I started this ambitious project: to reimagine the entire GTA IV storyline, along with The Lost and Damned and The Ballad of Gay Tony, as one cohesive, immersive crime drama.

This isn’t just a simple gameplay edit—I’m meticulously crafting each scene by blending cinematic gameplay footage, cutscenes, and even custom-made sequences using Native Trainer to enhance storytelling. I aim to make GTA IV feel like a professionally produced series, complete with dramatic pacing, character-driven moments, and a gripping narrative structure.

How Far Have I Gotten?

I’m planning for 3-4 seasons, and as of now, Season 1 has wrapped up with 10 episodes. Each episode refines my approach, improving in editing, directing, and storytelling—so if you’re starting from the beginning, know that the series only gets better as it progresses!

Press Recognition 🎉

In November 2021, GamesRadar reached out for an interview after discovering my work through this very thread. I was both shocked and excited that such a major gaming publication took notice. The article was published on December 8, 2021, and since then, my channel has exploded in popularity!

 

On 12/11/2021 at 12:37 AM, Kirsty said:

GamesRadar reached out to us to make contact with @zuma 4 life, and have now featured him and his work with an article and interview. Congrats!

 

https://www.gamesradar.com/meet-the-hobbyist-filmmaker-painstakingly-turning-gta-4-into-a-netflix-style-crime-drama-series/

 

 

📢 Check out the full GamesRadar feature here:
🔗 Meet the Hobbyist Filmmaker Turning GTA IV Into a Netflix-Style Crime Drama

Trailers & Behind-the-Scenes Content 🎬

📺 Season 1 Official Trailer:

🎥 Behind the Scenes:

Spoiler

 

🎞️ VFX Breakdown (Episode 9):

Spoiler

 

📌 Snippets from Season 1:

Spoiler

LQc93ze.png

🎬 YouTube Shorts from Season 1:

Spoiler

 

Before You Watch...

🚨 A Quick Note: Don't judge the series based on the first few episodes! I've been improving my skills in editing, storytelling, and directing ever since I started this project nearly five years ago. Each episode is better than the last.

🎮 Modding Choices: I originally used graphics and vehicle mods in the first few episodes to modernize the visuals, but not everyone liked that choice. Starting from Episode 8 (the snow season), I went back to the game’s original aesthetic.

Watch the Full Series Here:

Or Watch Individual Episodes:

📌 Episode 1 (Remastered):

📌 Episode 2:

📌 Episode 3:

📌 Episode 4:

📌 Episode 5:

📌 Episode 6:

📌 Episode 7:

📌 Episode 8:

📌 Episode 9:

📌 Episode 10 Teaser 1:

📌 Episode 10 Teaser 2: 

📌 Episode 10: 

💬 Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on the series! Drop your feedback below. 🎥🔥

Edited by zuma 4 life
Updated content
Mindshower

Mindshower

Posted
Posted
43 minutes ago, zuma 4 life said:

EDIT: Added screenshots from different episodes!

Great cinematography, glad you didn't mod the game into oblivion, still looks like the GTA IV we know and love. 👍

Zuma4Life

Zuma4Life

Posted
  • Author
Posted (edited)

UPDATE: I NEED YOUR OPINION ON THIS!!

I was advised by a viewer to try adding motion blur to my GTA IV Series. But as you know there's no such option in rendering videos from inside the R* Editor. After some research, I found a way to add motion-tracked motion blur Davinci Resolve - The software I'm using to edit my videos -, but it's not perfect. I can tweak it a bit according to the scene and I will have to find a way around these camera glitches you might notice between every two points of movement, because It interferes with the optical flow of the effect. Another downside to this method is that it took me 3 hours and a half to render these three scenes from Davinci. So is it really worth it? So tell me what you think in the comments so I can decide whether I go through with this in the next episodes.

Edited by zuma 4 life
  • 1 month later...
Kirsty

Kirsty

Posted
Posted

GamesRadar reached out to us to make contact with @zuma 4 life, and have now featured him and his work with an article and interview. Congrats!

 

https://www.gamesradar.com/meet-the-hobbyist-filmmaker-painstakingly-turning-gta-4-into-a-netflix-style-crime-drama-series/

 

 

ChumCrumpet

ChumCrumpet

Posted
Posted (edited)
53 minutes ago, Kirsty said:

GamesRadar reached out to us to make contact with @zuma 4 life, and have now featured him and his work with an article and interview. Congrats!

 

That's so dope! I love it when a good machinima gets recognised. Great work @zuma 4 life

 

  Edit: Since this wasn't answered

On 10/14/2021 at 10:56 PM, zuma 4 life said:

UPDATE: I NEED YOUR OPINION ON THIS!!

 

I think motion-blur on looks pretty good, it helps remove the game-like stutter and makes it more cinematic. In my opinion anyways.

Edited by ChumCrumpet
Zuma4Life

Zuma4Life

Posted
  • Author
Posted
2 hours ago, Phil McCrevis said:

I seen this on Games Radar. Absolutely amazing. I particularly like how you reordered Faustin's missions and cut out a lot of the fat. Eagerly anticipating episode 6.

I'm happy you noticed.. I try to keep a good pacing between the missions and remove unwanted filler scenes and missions.

Ash_735

Ash_735

Posted
Posted
19 hours ago, Americana said:

Too bad about these mods, unnecessary.

Judging from the episodes there's a lot of close camera shots that sadly GTA IV stock doesn't handle up close well enough, so sometimes mods are required and sadly there's going to be times where they don;t match 100% with the original style but are at least close enough or good looking enough to be passable.

 

That being said @zuma 4 life feel free to check out my texture packs to cover the remaining vehicles, etc, that are still stock:

 

Zuma4Life

Zuma4Life

Posted
  • Author
Posted
On 12/13/2021 at 1:00 PM, Ash_735 said:

That being said @zuma 4 life feel free to check out my texture packs to cover the remaining vehicles, etc, that are still stock:

 

I'll check it out for sure! Thanks

  • 2 weeks later...
  • 3 weeks later...
Zuma4Life

Zuma4Life

Posted
  • Author
Posted
On 1/16/2022 at 10:14 AM, FewPoleCat42 said:

This is incredible so far. I'd love to see more, but I'm wondering if you'll incorporate any strangers and freaks characters or if we're sticking strictly to story?

I'm glad you're enjoying it. Obviously, I can't include all strangers missions as I'm already trying to cut off main missions that don't add much value to the story. There are some strangers in mind I'm planning to include on the way. We'll see.

FewPoleCat42

FewPoleCat42

Posted
Posted

Ooh, I'm excited for that! Also, I love how you incorporated Brucie's introduction as an email instead of a cutscene. That made things flow much smoother without interrupting the pace of the story! Also love the writing and how in character it was! 

Zuma4Life

Zuma4Life

Posted
  • Author
Posted (edited)
6 hours ago, FewPoleCat42 said:

Ooh, I'm excited for that! Also, I love how you incorporated Brucie's introduction as an email instead of a cutscene. That made things flow much smoother without interrupting the pace of the story! Also love the writing and how in character it was! 

I was waiting for someone to notice it! Thank you! I'm trying everything to make the story fresh even for people who have finished it multiple times.. I'm glad you liked it

Edited by zuma 4 life
  • 1 month later...
universetwisters

universetwisters

Posted
Posted

This is cool and all but the mods really annoy me, idk why. Like I get it, it's an old game and you need the mods there for it to look good, but idk it just feels unauthentic 

Zuma4Life

Zuma4Life

Posted
  • Author
Posted
1 hour ago, universetwisters said:

This is cool and all but the mods really annoy me, idk why. Like I get it, it's an old game and you need the mods there for it to look good, but idk it just feels unauthentic 

Totally understandable, but I made the decision to give the game a new coat of paint to provide a newer experience rather than just nostalgia

universetwisters

universetwisters

Posted
Posted
6 minutes ago, zuma 4 life said:

Totally understandable, but I made the decision to give the game a new coat of paint to provide a newer experience rather than just nostalgia


Same reason why there's real life car makes and models than the ingame ones?

universetwisters

universetwisters

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, zuma 4 life said:

yep

 

It seems kinda odd to make it a story about three guys in Liberty City and seeing real brands, it just pulls me out of the story but idk, I know I'm prob the minority bringing it up

  • 1 month later...
Zuma4Life

Zuma4Life

Posted
  • Author
Posted

A quick teaser of the next episode! I'm still currently facing a lot of technical issues along with some personal ones slowing down the progress on the episode, but I'm trying to overcome them.. All I have to say is that the next episode is going to be a banger! Also, a little longer than usual

spacer.png

  • 3 weeks later...
Guest

Guest

Posted
Posted

@zuma 4 life - Hi there, just dropping by to say that you've done an excellent job on the TV series. This has to be the perfect TV show version of GTA IV.

 

I have only watched Episode #6 and Episode #7 yet, but even then the experience is extremely solid and cinematic despite being a rather "short"-ish one, it's almost like a movie. I can't wait to see how you'll handle the diamond deal scene with such excellent perfection.

 

Keep it up, brother! 👍

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