Pledge Drive to raise $18 500

Hi everyone, thanks for dropping by . . .

Well - my latest attempt to raise funds for BOUNTY HUNTER BUNNY is up.

There are still some kinks to iron out in the coming weeks, I really want to upload the second draft animatic to give you all an idea of what the film will be like.

Of course I still have a day job to maintain.

When I failed to secure funding from Screen Australia I admit I did feel a bit down about it, but then I remembered what Thomas Edison said after failing multiple times at inventing the light bulb,  "I didn't fail 3,000 times. I found 3,000 ways how not to create a lightbulb".

I found one way not to fund my cartoon.

So I figured, let's try crowd funding again . . .

Walt Disney always believed in taking his films straight to the public when everyone else said the public wouldn't go for it, that's how Mickey was born. In a way crowd funding is the same thing, you get a chance to be involved with making the film and walk away with something in return.

A lot of animation directors are using this method to raise money for pilots or short films because networks are just not as willing these days to take a gamble on something new or different.

Me - I really want to see funny cartoons like the ones that used to be made. Bounty Hunter Bunny will be that and a little bit more - please give him a chance.

This blog will keep you updated on what's happening and show you some of the progress being made visually. You can see some material already posted. E-mails will also be sent out to supporters.

If you follow the link below  or the wanted poster above  you'll be sent to the funding site, please read carefully and check in regularly if you are unsure.

I will get this cartoon made somehow, your help makes it easier.

THANK YOU.

http://www.pozible.com.au/index.php/archive/index/907/description/0/0

For those wanting to know what they are getting into before going, here is the project description as listed.


Project Description


Whatever happened to the funny slapstick cartoons we used to see? Anvils on heads, exploding dynamite etc. Sure there's a lot of verbal comedy type cartoons, but really they are mostly just talking heads saying funny stuff.

I'm tired of watching the same old cartoons, just with different names.

That's what BOUNTY HUNTER BUNNY aims to change. It is a classic cartoon with a modern twist, by that I mean it will be made in CG and be more adult . . . violent, suggestive etc. Imagine say Looney Tunes meets Clint Eastwood meets Indiana Jones.

The target audience, university students and up, though I'm sure kids will love it too.

THE STORY:

A tiny, lone gunman, BOUNTY HUNTER BUNNY traverses the desert wastelands of the American Old West in search of financial freedom – and a drink.

THE PLAN:

The project has been budgeted at $149 000. CG is expensive. Unfortunately this being a short film with an untried character there's not much chance finding an investor or investors for that amount.

I plan to make the film in stages starting with this pledge drive of $18 500, with that I will be able to have the final character modeled, textured and rigged, have the two sets the film will use finished and have the score written.

Why have the score written so early? So we can animate to it.

Once the characters and sets are completed, images will be created for the blog and website to start introducing the characters to the world (along with a weekly comic strip) as well as raise further funds through selling T-shirts, posters etc.

The final product will be a combination of volunteer and paid work to bring the costs down. A number of people have already put their hands up to be a part of it. They will share in what grows out this.

WHERE TO ONCE DONE:

The internet is going to be the place to see Bounty Hunter Bunny, on your laptop, desktop or phone. There will also be film festival screenings. Hopefully there will be enough interest in the character from that point to begin a proper licensing campaign and attract investors to create more cartoons. Possibly pave the way for TV screenings and ultimately a movie.

YOU WILL BE PART OF THAT . . .

Ultimately, the goal is to create and present a new character to the world, outside the influence of broadcasters and sensors who only seem to repeat the same old formula. Like the famous cartoon stars of the past Bounty Hunter Bunny will grow and evolve through public feedback - I am excited at the prospect.

BUT . . .

The first step is to finish the preliminary work . . . WITH YOUR HELP.

REWARDS OFFERED:

A$10+and up, You will recieve a crew signed poster, and name listed on blog/website as PROJECT SUPPORTER. You will also be entitled to a 10% discount on future merchandise sold on website.
 
A$50+and up, You will recieve a crew signed poster and set of 2 8x10s, DVD copy of the film when released, and name listed on blog/website as PROJECT PARTNER and THANK YOU in end credit roll. You will also be entitled to a 30% discount on future merchandise sold on website.
 
A$100+and up, You will recieve a crew signed poster and set of 8 8x10s, T-shirt, DVD copy of the film when released, and name listed on blog/website as PROJECT HERO along with a SPECIAL THANK YOU end credit roll . You will also be entitled to a 50% discount on future merchandise sold on website.
 

A$500+and up, You will recieve a crew signed poster and set of 8 8x10s, 2 T-shirts, 2 specially pressed DVD copies of the film when released, special signed art book and name listed on blog/website as PROJECT ANGEL along with a PRODUCER credit. You will also be entitled to a 70% discount on future merchandise sold on website.

BUNNY update

It's been a very long time since my last post, alot has happened since then, most importantly a change of address.

Now, on the BOUNTY HUNTER BUNNY front, I have finally finished my animatic and tested with very favorable results. Those who have seen it laugh in the right spots. It's always nerve racking to show your work in such an early state.

As you know last year I tried to raise money for my score, that didn't go too well, but really that was more of an experiment to see how things work. I've taken notes and am about to try again soon . . . watch this space.

With the help of my friend and volunteer Steve Cypreos, I will soon be modelling the villain Stinky as seen above in my recent sketches of the character. Between storyboarding and meeting deadlines to pay my bills, I need to finish the turn around in the next few weeks.

I also recently tried to obtain funding from Screen Australia, again  with no luck, but, I'm not surprised. Historically this is not the type of thing they fund.

I will soon have a Cafepress store up to sell Bunny T-shirts and stuff to help with funding and a comic strip is also currently in development.

Come back soon - this is the year of the rabbit after all, till then here are some BG mattes painted up by Mike Rule. These will be used behind the CG sets with added dust haze. Enjoy!

Test Footage

This is test footage only, the Ennio Morricone music is only a scratch track used to illustrate what I'm looking for. Also, please note that Mad Cow Pictures is no longer attached to the project, I am reworking this clip for YouTube.

FUND DRIVE for SOUND

INT. SALOON - DAY

A large grubby man, STINKY, stands at the bar slurping his poison through a straw. CAMERA angles around revealing the silhouetted BUNNY in the doorway - a Moriconi type musical sting punctuates the moment, a portent of things to come.

Well - at least that's the way I see the shot where our hero meets the bad guy. BUT I NEED YOUR HELP.

At http://www.indiegogo.com/BOUNTY-HUNTER-BUNNY

I have set up a puplic funding drive to raise funds for the music and sound.

MY PLAN

Is simple, to add the music and sound effects to the animatic. From there the animation will be created in time with the soundtrack - just like cartoons were traditionally made.

For those interested please follow the above link at which I have listed some 'perks' should you help. I do plan to take this character beyond the single 5 minute cartoon and I plan to offer more freebies as time goes by - I WON'T FORGET YOUR HELP.

I will be posting some test footage on YouTube soon.

                 

WHY A RABBIT?

Why a rabbit?!

No - that's not a lost line from a Marx Brothers movie but a question I can imagine people asking.

I mean, we've already had Oswald, Roger, Thumper, Max Hare . . . not to mention Bugs just to name a few. But then what out there hasn't already been done?

To be honest I just stumbled onto this character while drawing silly faces one day. I just tried out a few ears, cats, human, bunny - the bunny ears just looked right and with the frown spoke volumes.

At the time I was playing around with the idea of a goofy bounty hunter character type thing more as a spoof of the Star Wars bounty hunters than anything else - it didn't gel, but then it hit me while watching The Searchers, I thought a western parody would work. Inspired by the Chuck Jones and Friz Freleng western parodies I quickly gave my rabbit a cowboy outfit and BANG . . . it worked for me.

Now what? I have the look of the character? What do I do with him? and - more importantly who is he?

Without giving everything away, let's just say he is every bit as inspried by Clint Eastwood's "man with no name" as he is by the classic toons.  The name for this short says it all, he's tough with an attitude.

So in answer to why a rabbit? well - now it's the challenge to see if I can add something new to the long tradition of rabbits in animation.

WELCOME

Like so many people, I grew up with endless reruns of the classic Looney Tunes and Tex Avery cartoons, not to mention Tom and Jerry and classic Disney shorts which were just starting to appear on video back in the early 80s.

For my 14th birthday my dad gave me his old Super 8 movie camera - I soon found it could shoot one frame at a time - yes, there were no PCs yet nor animation software. I knew immediately what I wanted to spend the rest of my life doing.

MAKING CARTOONS!!!!!

Maybe even make cartoons which hark back to the Golden Age.

I've worked in animation for 18 years now, over that time I've written and sometimes boarded out small shorts only to be thwarted by a lack of funds - don't get me wrong I spent most of my money getting projects started. Maybe in some way the time needed to be right and experience gained before I could pay homage to those classic cartoons which got me started.

I recenty finished my first gig as an episodic director on a CG action series and found myself wondering what to do next, how do I continue directing? An encouraging word of advice from the new managing director of Flying Bark Productions Jim Ballantine got me thinking - it was time to do something that is me.

It's funny how things work, I kept seeing the same writing on the wall, even my producer at Flying Bark  Avrill Stark had similar advice - I was galvanized, having heard what I really needed to hear - time to dust off one of my favorite projects and get going.

So, here I am having decided to document the journey and introduce my characters. In time I hope to show clips of the work in progress maybe even add a comic strip - thank you for joining me.

WELCOME.