The 8-Bit Show

A: The 8-BIt Show started as a series of original hand-drawn animations inspired by classic retro video-games and general 80s and 90s over-the-top-ness. The 8-Bit Show is created and produced by Jeff Nitzberg. Follow The 8-Bit Show on Instagram - Youtube or subscribe for updates via The 8-Bit Show Newsletter

A: Yes! Hard Sandwich is an animated 8-bit feature-length film written and directed by Jeff Nitzberg. Jeff started writing the movie in 2022 and the movie entered production in 2023. The style of the movie takes inspiration from retro video games for the NES, Sega Genesis, SNES and DOS amongst others. Imagine if the cutscenes for the original Ninja Gaiden Trilogy on the NES and Snatcher on the Sega CD were mashed together with the plotting of games like Bad Dudes, Contra, Double Dragon, and Super Mario, whereby an incredibly simple premise leads to an absolutely over-the-top bonkers plot. Think summer blockbuster of the late 80s early 90s released on the Nintendo Entertainment System. Also, for anyone who has ever wanted to see a sandwich movie, this is it. As far as what a “Hard Sandwich” is exactly, it is best explained by watching the trailer and/or the movie.

A: There is no official release date yet for Hard Sandwich, but the movie is currently in production. You can follow the movie’s progress, behind-the-scenes, and latest updates via The 8-Bit Show’s official newsletter.

A: Jeff Nitzberg is an artist, illustrator, filmmaker, designer, and dad. He is also the creator of The 8-Bit Show and Hard Sandwich. Jeff grew up playing Atari ST, NES, Sega Genesis, Game Gear, SNES, and DOS games (among others). He loves the original Ninja Gaiden Trilogy as well as Snatcher, Prince of Persia, Flashback, Out of This World (Another World), and countless other cinematic games. Jeff is also an avid movie and film score nerd.

Currently, Jeff lives in Vermont with his wife and two kids. He enjoys the great outdoors, videgames, and movies. For work, Jeff’s background includes everything from Graphic Design and Illustration, to Marketing and Project Management. Though he studied visual art in school, Jeff is also self taught in animation, filmmaking, and music production.

It’s always been Jeff’s dream to make a full length 8-bit cutscene movie, and now he’s doing it.

Hard Sandwich doesn’t have an official rating, but the rating probably would be something like this:

Movie-ish rating: PG*

Video game-ish rating: E for everyone*

Common sense media-ish rating: 4+*

*Ratings are not official and are based on the movie containing mild slapstick violence, mild language, wacky humor, and plenty of weirdness.

A: No AI was used to make Hard Sandwich. The entire movie was made lovingly and painstakingly by hand by Jeff Nitzberg. Jeff went to school for visual art and has worked as a creative professional for many years. Jeff is also self taught in writing, animation, filmmaking and music production.

A: The software used to make Hard Sandwich was primarily: Photoshop, After Effects, Premiere, Figma, and Logic. For more software and behind the scenes of how Hard Sandwich was made, sign up for The 8-Bit Show’s newsletter.

Thanks for your interest in the project! To get a custom funny producer credit in the special thanks of Hard Sandwich (both on the website and in the final film), get in touch here and ask how.