OATS Studios

Director Neill Blomkamp produces a series of experimental short films that envision post-apocalyptic worlds and nightmarish scenarios.

OATS Studios (2021) is an American science fiction anthology created by Neill Blomkamp, produced under the Oats Studios banner and presented as a miniseries of ten brief experimental episodes running about twelve minutes each. Rather than following one protagonist through a continuous plot, it stitches together standalone short films that envision post-apocalyptic worlds and nightmarish scenarios, with the cast including Sigourney Weaver, Dakota Fanning, Jose Pablo Cantillo, Carly Pope and Eugene Khumbanyiwa appearing across the vignettes under character names rather than conventional storylines. Each segment operates as its own speculative experiment, with the engine of every piece being a single unsettling premise pushed to its visual extreme. The shape is short and episodic, so viewers move from one bleak scenario to the next within a single sitting. The tone is dark, harsh and provocative, leaning on atmosphere and spectacle over dialogue-driven drama. Fans of Black Mirror, Love, Death and Robots and Electric Dreams will find resonance in its speculative unease and anthology format. The series is rated TV-MA and carries graphic and disturbing imagery throughout, making it best suited to adult viewers who enjoy experimental science fiction.

Audience reception is mixed, with viewers split on the experimental short-film format and its bleak post-apocalyptic scenarios.

• Black Mirrorshared experimental sci-fi short form, post-apocalyptic robot imagery, and bleak anthology-style vignettes
• Love, Death & Robotsshared anthology of standalone speculative vignettes with a dystopian, unsettling register
• Electric Dreamsshared dystopian sci-fi mood and bleak visions of technological collapse

Created by

Neill Blomkamp

Release Date

2021-10-01

Episode runtime

12 min

Rating

6.3 / 10 (88)

What is OATS Studios about?

Neill Blomkamp's OATS Studios is an anthology of experimental short films imagining nightmarish post-apocalyptic futures.

What is OATS Studios like to watch?

Ember's analysis rates the pacing of OATS Studios as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as easy to follow.

Is OATS Studios violent?

Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in OATS Studios as moderate.

What did critics think of OATS Studios?

Audience reception is mixed, with viewers split on the experimental short-film format and its bleak post-apocalyptic scenarios.

Which shows are like OATS Studios?

Shows with a similar feel include Black Mirror, Love, Death & Robots, and Electric Dreams.

How long is OATS Studios?

OATS Studios: 1 season, 10 episodes.

Is OATS Studios still running?

No, OATS Studios has ended.