BEHIND THE CURTAIN: An Animated Musical Extravaganza 

BEHIND THE CURTAIN Now you've hung your hat, and you've seen the writing on the wall Just sit back and relax, we'll tell you all about the fall Of the greatest mind, the ol' director pulling at the strings Who thought the fool was Abel, and the wiser man was Cain It's the Big, Bad, Clinically Mad, the greatest show you've ever seen Yeah, we're Deep, Down, Below the Ground, where only projectors gleam A world of Black and White, a place of magic putting life into your dreams And when the credits roll, we'll be lookin' close to see WHO'S BEHIND THE CURTAIN? "Just a pencil and a dream," a modest proclamation of his goal But no-one saw when it was spinnin' out of control Every soul, every wish, all for one man's bliss 'Cuz all the good intentions don't mean a lick In the pursuit of it, you still wind up down below Well, the pipes they got a-pumpin', the beat of a creator's heart Or that's what he had told them: just a "sacrifice for art" And the walls, they turned to paper, and the ink began to fill our veins Oh, it's easy to rationalize pain to the insane! Oh, it's the Big, Bad, Clinically Mad, the greatest show you've ever seen Yeah, we're Deep, Down, Below the Ground, without a hope to be redeemed The only Man Who Saw the ego twisted behind the scenes Was the one who set the whole production in full swing WHO'S BEHIND THE CURTAIN? What's the use of a hero without a monster to be slain? And is he a man, who makes a deal that others have to pay? "Every note, every take, every drawing you make, Should be a fitting price, it's only you at stake," He made a living hell out of the wishes the maker made Now, it's easy to see how one could be so charmed By the draw of fame and success But you'd think that the price would be cause for alarm When an inky heart is all that's left! Oh! It's the Big, Bad, Clinically Mad, the greatest show you've ever seen Yeah, we're Deep, Down, Below the Ground, where only projectors gleam A world of Black and White, a place of magic putting life into your dreams And when the credits roll, we'll be lookin' close to see Oh, it's the Big, Bad, Clinically Mad, the greatest show you've ever seen... Take a Wild Guess who the hero of the tale is gonna be... A world of Black and White, where it don't matter why you left or where you been... You gotta be a man, and take the credit for co-writing the scene... WHO'S BEHIND THE CURTAIN?

I love this interpretation of Bendy. He's mad at Henry but genuinely does not want him to get hurt at the same time, its cute.

Alice’s voice is so powerful. Definitely adds a lot of character to the song, and that’s all without mentioning the phenomenal animation.

It's so wonderful to see the Bendy fandom is still alive and kicking!

This is giving Betty Boop, Marilyn Monroe and Jessica Rabbit all at the same time

I won't lie. My favorite part is Henry's flashback to finishing Bendy's original art design with a smile on his face...before getting a note telling him do it over again. He just looked so proud that the subsequent falling out he had with his boss hit that much harder. It's a sharp contrast to the grumpy gut old man he's been portrayed as in both animatics.

THE WAY HE BLUSHES AT HIS OWN DRAWING 😭

The detail in this is awesome. I'd say my favorite part is at 3:55 when you can see Henry call out Norman's name, and Norman recognizes it. I found that cool.

i love how abundantly clear it is that you've taken inspiration from the movements and gestures of older cartoons and animations for Bendy and "Alice's" animation styles. like the slow and suggestive (for lack of better word) movements of "Alice" make me think of Jessica Rabbit, Meg from Hercules, Betty Boop, heck, probably a bunch more I haven't seen. even if i can't name 'em all, it's very obvious what your intentions were with animating "Alice" from start to finish. like, her closeups and singing on each TV screen, all the way to her movements on the big screen. you've probably taken inspiration from other actual female singers/actors from the past as well. for both the movements and singing. ("Alice" in quotation marks cuz that's definitely Susie Alice.) i've also liked how the Welcome Home leitmotif starts (exclusively) playing at 2:49 and reaches a crescendo (i think) at 3:01 after Bendy starts smiling. and how at 3:16 both the animation and the lyrics are implied to be kind of elaborating on or alluding to some of what Bendy was singing about in that song. you could even hear a bit of it right before Bendy grabs Norman. "Take a Wild Guess who the hero of the tale is gonna be..." with ink bendy in massive distress over what he's done to Norman and seemingly being ashamed of himself looking and being like that in front of Henry, knowing that it's not at all what Henry created him or wanted him to be like (hence the flashbacks)... ...that shit hurted. 😔😔 man, i just gotta say. i've been looking at your Bendy art and story for like, years (on tumblr). before BATIM was complete and chapters were still being made and you were still making up your own little rendition of the story as the game progressed. i'm really looking forward to seeing what you have in store for us now that the game's complete and you now have a much better idea of how you wanna mesh the game's actual story with your own. bonus tidbits i've caught: 3:55 - 3:59 Henry: "Norman?!" _Henry stares at Norman in disbelief of what he's become, or if it even IS him_ Norman: "...?" _Norman stares back, almost entirely unable to remember that mentioned name and this man he's about to kill_ Bendy: "Well, well, well! If it isn't Henry?" Joey: "Well, well, well. If it isn't my dear old friend." Bendy: "Don't be such a stranger, old buddy." Joey: "Don't be such a stranger, old buddy." i love how you're paralleling these two. to me, it's very likely implying that Bendy is starting to become the very thing he TRULY hates, but has no idea. he sees Henry as Joey (not literally, yk), but is becoming more like Joey himself. it's crazy. in the actual game, Joey's tapes are often found in places/areas closely relating to the Ink Demon. so that's another reason why i think it's cool you're still paralleling them here. remember when so many of us thought Joey was Ink Bendy? haha, those were the days.

I had a BLAST watching the livestreams of the draft animatic being made, and I can just tell by the trailers that it's going to be more than worth those 2 years.

It has been both a privilege and a really fun experience animating for this project and being part of the team👍

Poor Bendy. Angry with his creator for leaving, yet hates to see him hurt. A toon becoming a monster and scared of what's happening. This is incredible!! Looking forward to what comes next.

I love how bendy tries to scare the projectionist by doing the finger wag since for him it seems to work with everyone else

The little bits are what really get me. The sketch drawings of Bendy, the models and how well animated they are, not to mention… Alice was a hoot! I can’t wait for more! Wish I could save all those little sketchy doodles for reference. I’d love to draw Bendy again!

0:55 Calm down sir, its just a drawing. 🙃

OH HAILEY THIS WAS WONDERFUL! I was there for quite a few of the storyboard production streams, and its incredible to see this project in its final state!! This is such an interesting take on the bendy series, I cant wait to see where it goes next!! The teaser after the song has me kicking my feet here!!

The short before the song actually premieres was a blast

I can’t wait to listen to this until my ears bleed

I love how Sammy was terrified of bendy and he could probably kick him across the room and how bendy was stomping like he was a giant XD

Sammy has more of a snatched waist than the angel

I cannot explain how excited I am for this song to release- Thank you again Hailey and your team for another amazing song!!!

I’m looking forward to all the hard-work put into action. After the storyboard streams, the trailers, the music and the visuals, I can just tell this is going to be another masterpiece. ♥️

"Don't be such a stranger, old buddy." now where have we heard that one before?

The way Alice was designed and animated for this reminds me of Jessica Rabbit 😄 I think that’s really cool! Overall the production for this song, storytelling, and the animated music video feels like a large improvement when compared to the song about Bendy 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼😄

2:46 One little detail I noticed is that when the camera moves to Bendy after he catches Sammy trying to kill Henry, his (Bendy’s) shadow is actually his beast form. You need to pause at just the right times to see it, but it’s an interesting little detail I felt like pointing out.

I loved Welcome Home and looking forward to seeing all the hard work that's gone into making Behind The Curtain, Hailey. Enjoyed watching the masterpiece being worked on during the livestreams.

It was so worth the wait, the animation, how stylized they are, the music accompanying it. It was all such a thrill to watch, couldn't stop bouncing in my seat. I appreciate everyone on the team who made this possible, EXCITED TO SEE MORE FROM YOU GUYS >:D

This is beyond amazing, the 3d models, the animation, Alice’s voice, bendy, Henry, the projectionist, Sammy EVERYTHING!!!!!!

This was absolutely outstanding! Everything, the animation, the singing, the lyrics, etc. Hailey, you and your team deserve massive praise for creating this masterpiece! Thank you guys so much! Oh and… “to be concluded?”. Just when I thought the hype couldn’t get any bigger! I’ll definitely be staying toon’d for that as well! 😁

I'm dying at the fact that Henry is like: 😳

This. Is. Amazing! I was a huge fan of "Welcome Home," and even I have to say, this has improved immensely! The animation, the singing, and everything else was really, really good. I literally spent months struggling to learn the piano part to "Welcome home" because I thought it was so cool (I do not play the piano). And this was so much better! I tip my hat to you, Hailey Lain. This was by far worth the wait. Alice Angel is also my FAVORITE character, so seeing something that centered around her more than Bendy was awesome! I'm super excited to see what else you guys come up with, you rock!

4:52 Henry still cares bout Bendy he want looking for him!❤

I honestly want a full fledged Bendy Show in style like this where it's mostly stylised 3d and 2d animation. Love Your Work!

Wow! I didn’t think Bendy would snap out of his ink demon form and look so terrified. This is incredible!

Omg this is literally "the greatest show i ever seen" !!! I love how alice's voice is so thick but also veryy beautiful

Man this is a great song... I like how you turned Joey into a cartoonishly evil villain that's for some reason giving me mob boss vibes.

What a thrill! I loved Welcome Home and I loved its remastered version, I'd say Behind The Curtain is going to be no exception, I'm sure it's going to be even better in every aspect!!!!

Very excited! Loved the small comics at the start, and I bet I’ll love the music and the animation even more! It looks absolutely wonderful.

Alright, as a future 2d animator, this animation was just OUTSTANDING ! From the animation to the characters' expressions ! I just love everything about it ! It was really worth the wait ! Man... Now that i look back to the first one, i can see that i've really evolved over these last years... I used to draw THIS bendy in particular cause i liked his expressions and how he was drawn and acting ! Thank you for this "blast to the past" Hailey, you and all the others should be proud of yourselves, you've all done a fantastic job making this animation ! Hands down ! :)

You gave Alice Angel a kinda Jessica Rabbit feel to her character (Clever, a little flirty and don't need no man kind of feel) and on top of the classic take on the music, I think you portrayed her perfectly ^^

Your rendition of Alice Angel really has me out here questioning my sexuality- Gorgeous art and song!!! ❤

3:30 HEY, I was there for the making of this part!

4:22 FATALITY 💀

TOON NOIR at its best! LOVE IT! Congratulations on a masterful piece of work! A BIG round of applause for Jessica, Hailey and the entire creative team! Look forward to seeing what's next!

Welcome Home was such an inspiration to me and this song is no different. The art, the animation, the music; everything is so well done! I've been happy watching this song progress from the different streams you had, and the perspective of the story you've chosen to tell has been really interesting to me. I'm definitely going to be here to see the ending. Thank you and your team so much for all your hard work!

That Fleischer Studios undercurrent of scary ghosts and krazy paranoia is really used well here! This is my first look at this project, and it’s easy to see the love and care that went into this. The cel-shaded CG that mimics the look of old-timey rubber-hose animation is really nicely done. Applause to everyone on this film!

This lowkey has better expression and emotion than the actual games.

I absolutely loves this!! Alice being 2D most of the time was really cool because it was like she was still on paper before she became real. I loved the simple reaching through the screen and her hand became 3D for the one moment. Plus Henry's expressions were just so cute and just awesome! I love the designs and everything about it! I can't wait for the next one!

I don't know how to process the beauty of what I've just heard and seen. Everybody who worked on this did an incredible job!!

Okay! HOLY CRAP HAILEY!! This was one heck of an animation! The models for Bendy and Alice are so amazing! Even your beautiful singing!❤😍 Never stop being amazing! 👏

Alice is like such an icon 💅

This turned out AMAZING! Thank you so much for having me be a part of it.

fantastic work on this hailey glad to hear it finally released!

Jeez, its so amazing to finally see a sequel to this. I was a fan of Welcome Home back in the day, and seeing the remaster was amazing. But this? This is a work of art. Words cannot describe how awesome this song is, along wjth the animation! I love the touch of Alice's head seeming to have a chunk taken out of it while still looking like her usual self. Really adds the emphasis of the fact that this is a cartoon henry au-based animation. I love it!

This was amazing!! Everyone did such an amazing and beautiful job doing this. Also was I the only one getting Jessica Rabbit vibes everytime Alice was on screen?

Most people touch on the voice or the content of the animation, and those are both lovely, but I’d like to mention how smoothly the animation actually flows, things like Alice walking, or Bendy’s giant hand breaking off the projectionists head. They look incredible!

I remember first watching welcome home and thinking that your animation couldn't get any better, but you've proven me wrong, seriously I loved watching this.

I was ill prepared, but my hat is off to all the wonderful people who worked on this. Very good work!

"I'm not bad, I'm just drawn that way" -Jessica Rabbit

The fact that henrys blushing

"Oh Henry, welcome home! You've been away for oh so long" 😈

GONNA MAKE IT OUT OF THE STUDIO WITH THIS ONE 🔥🔥🔥

I like Bendy in this video. He’s bad, but he’s more driven by his anger and hatred. He wants to hurt Henry, but he doesn’t want to kill him. Even when Bendy kills Norman/The Projectionist, he genuinely looks like he regretted killing him.

Wow, this animation was done extremely well on all fronts. This explained the plot 10 times better than the actual game did lol. The singing was phenomenal as well! Great job!!!

I love How even corrupted characters are in a cartoon/original style

Your animations are always stunning and so unique, a true pleasure to watch ! Even better when it exactly match the lyrics of the songs. Loved the Sammy Lawrence redesign btw !

nobody gonna mention sammy's mask had emotion?

the fact this was uploaded in my birthday

This was absolutely amazing. The Keyblack “rebrand” fit perfectly for this, and I’m glad to have been around for it.

ok i'm just gonna go out and say THIS IS AMAZING the amount of detail, the smooth movements the classic cartoon theme not to mention the work you put on Alice Angel cause she's gorgeous i give this animation song a solid 100/100 well done Hailey Lain

What plans does she have for Henry? He leave him out cold with her standing in front of him, so does Alice resent Henry to or does she seem him as a pawn in her own plans.

I love how the 3D models are in this, it’s like a mixture between 2D and 3D

This is AMAZING!!! ♥ ♥ ♥ I love the 2D animated Alice Angel throughout the entire video and hope to see more of her!

This is absolutely fantastic! The integration of the 2D animation on the papers and the screens, and the 3D animation in the actual story was smooth. This definitely belongs to the top 10 best animations on RU-vid.

The bendy community is still alive after YEARS and I am happy to be a part of it! Your songs about the game are amazing I will never forget them!🥰

3:30 I’m obsessed with how Alice Angel is animated in these lil scenes especially this one. The animation makes her seem so charming

I’m sad This song is only five minutes I wish it lasted for a day. And why was I blushing for Alice? I guess it’s just the amazing art style.

I Like this take on batim, a little spin off sorta thing!! I was kinda skeptical of this bcuz I wasn’t a fan of an old song but this one was awesome!!

What a masterpiece. The lyrics, the beats, the atmosphere it portrays *chef kiss*

I would leave a comment saying how people are still using original models for Henry when BATDR gave us his canonical look, but it looks like she made original models and styles for everything. So all I have left to say is, this totally deserves to be "Welcome Home" 's sequel

I realy like how Alice looks in this animation

Wow, this is literally 💋👌. I'm seriously blown away, this just literally blurs the line between the 2D and 3D aspects here, it's just flawless! ❤🤩

You did this beautifully, and Alice’s movement’s are graceful and move perfect with the beat of the music

Loved the fluid animation and vocals! Great job to everyone who worked on this!

1:04 simp alert

I'd love a full length movie with these types of models, theyre so pretty and unique, being simple and expressive while not looking entirely goofy as some other 3d stylised animations. Also the music absolutely slaps, love the jazzy tunes and the sound effects, they add so much character to the video, like in the section where henry passes out, the music has that creepy sound mixed in with the jazz to make me feel a bit uncertain and complements corrupted alices appearence near him.

I love the bits from the previous song in this 2:50

0:35 HEYYY I see that Anything Goes reference :0 I love this so much

This will be incredible, we will have a good show with Miss Alice Angel :3

I am hyped for part two of Welcome Home Its got me so HYPED!!! I am now hyped for part three.

This is All really well done and I love the animation both 2D and 3D and the art style is just *Mwah* Chef's Kiss. I look forward to see the next part of this video. Also Hailey, Lovely singing 👍

BRO BLUSHED AT HIS OWN CREATION 💀 but in all seriousness, that was amazing! the production quality was insane, and the animations (both 2d and 3d) were superb! i especially loved the expressions, seeing the edges of bendy's face sharpen and straighten in anger can't wait for the next one!

The animation on Alice is just ......GODLY!!!!

1:59 when I see Alice

The 7 minutes was worth it

This was a magnificent masterpiece that no words can describe how truly good this is!! The animation, the story, and your incredible voice!! Thank you so much for putting this together! Truly remarkable!!!

Watched it about 12 times now and get a little bit more from it each time. Getting some strong Gnostic vibes now. A great work, looking forward to more.

4:04 Bendy: 'Hey buddy stop that now' *dies by getting slapped☠*

0:58 henry is just like me when seeing alice

YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Now this, THIS is peak af :D For a 7 Minute Song, You improved alot over the years Hailey :> Can't wait too see what's cooking for your next story plot/song of your Batim World :)