Successful Kickstarter campaign for SLIDE

WE DID IT!! Or, rather, YOU DID IT!!

For anyone out of touch or who hasn't checked in with me for a while, we just completed a Kickstarter campaign to raise funding for my upcoming cowboy comedy called "Slide".  It ended last night, and we met our goal with about two hours to spare. 

I've done a few Kickstarter campaigns, and this one was probably the most unsettling, because of the pandemic and so much unemployment and evictions, I thought this might be the absolute worst time to try to raise some money.  But then again, quite a lot of film productions are shut down right now, animation is one of the few mediums that can keep going.  And, as my office manager pointed out to me, a lot of people are working from home, spending more time on-line, and nobody's going on vacation or spending money on Broadway shows, concerts or fancy dinners.  So, just maybe, we had a shot.

Things were slow at first, but my fans came through with flying colors - we were hoping to reach $78,000 to finance the completion of "Slide", but we did even better, $84,000!  Wooopeeee!!

What was different about this campaign was the use of so many filmed promotions we made, plus we did a number of streaming events where I talked about the film's story, did live drawing demonstrations for some of the characters, and even sang and played a real live lap steel guitar!  Imagine that!!  The cool thing was that people on Facebook watching the stream really responded to what they saw.  They loved the drawings (which we raffled off to backers), the characters and the music.  That makes me feel a lot more excited about "Slide". 

Now, I have enough money for me to turn down commissioned work for a while, and just concentrate on the animation and post-production involved with completing my newest epic.  I'm going to become a hermit and just chain myself to my drawing board and get this film done!  

By the way, if you did miss the Kickstarter campaign, we're still accepting donations, and we'll still offer the same cool prizes if you want to be one of the supporters of "Slide".  Just contact me or my staff through the campaign at KickstartSlide.com

So, I wish all you people who contributed to my campaign a healthy and happy 2021, and likewise to everyone else who reads this.  Have a great holiday season and thanks for keeping my studio alive and busy for another year!

Love, 

Bill P.

KickstartSLIDE.com

 Hey, fans - 

We've seen a great outpouring of support for my next feature, "SLIDE" via our Kickstarter campaign.  But we've only got a week left in the campaign, and we're only about halfway to our goal.  YIKES!  As you may know, a Kickstarter campaign is "all or nothing" so we've got to reach the goal in order to collect any funds.  So we still need your help!

We've got some totally cool rewards that also make perfect Christmas gifts for your friends with an interest in animation - or hey, just keep them for yourself.  But if you want to send anything as a gift, we can send you a certificate of support to put in somebody's stocking!  That way, even if the rewards come in January or February, they'll know that they're on the way!  

We're offering a series of "how-to" animation lectures from yours truly, which includes a live session on Zoom or Skype to critique a personal portfolio of work.  

OR...a collection of all my animated DVD's, which we're calling the Full Plympton Experience, plus we'll send you a copy of "Slide" on DVD once it's released (after theatrical and Oscar-qualifying screenings). 

OR...you can provide a voice for one of the characters in the film "Slide" and I'll draw a caricature of you as a bad guy (or gal) right into the film!

OR...a set of three frameable prints, based on artwork from the film.

OR...better yet, original color-pencil art from "Your Face", "How to Kiss", "25 Ways to Quit Smoking" or a "Simpsons" couch gag.  How about that?  

OR...we've just added copies of my hardcover book "Independently Animated: The Life and Art of the King of Indie Animation"!  I will sign the book, which is another great gift if there's someone in your life who studies or loves animation!  

Please check out the campaign at KickstartSlide.com to see a list of all the awesome rewards you can get by pledging.  We've just updated the rewards based on fan comments we got during my LIVE Facebook sessions - so if you want to combine rewards, upgrade your pledge or want something else, please let me know! But do it quickly, because we've only got a week left!

I'll be honest with you - it's tough being an independent filmmaker in these days of no cinemas, no comic-cons and no live film festivals.  Plus, I'm going head-to-head against $200 million blockbusters from Disney, Pixar and Sony.  

I believe that people want to see animation that is unique, different and a little more adult.  And I hope you do, too!  So please help me complete "Slide".  I think it's going to be my greatest film ever.  An epic with the best art, funniest story, greatest characters and coolest music.  Imagine if Mel Brooks had made "Blazing Saddles" in animation!

Anyway, please help spread the word and get other people excited about "Slide"!  Direct them to KickstartSlide.com so they can check out the campaign!

Thank you so much - this week's gag cartoon is below.

--Bill P.

Support SLIDE on Kickstarter!

So maybe you've read my recent blog posts about the COVID-19 pandemic.  We closed my animation studio for about two months, but by June I'd had some projects lined up, so we re-opened as soon as we could.  I only had to furlough my long-time office manager for 6 weeks, and I kept my other two employees paid with one of those PPP loans from the SBA.  

Now that those projects are finished and I'm back working on "Slide", my staff and I debated about whether this would be a terrible time to raise funds for the new film, what with Trump basically ignoring the pandemic, rampant unemployment, and long lines at food banks.  But with film festivals and even Comic-Cons going virtual, and all the NYC cinemas still closed, a lot of my revenue has been cut off.  Thank God for music videos, "Simpsons" couch gags and royalties from international streaming services like Kanopy.  

But all is not lost, it turns out that it may actually be a great time to crowd-fund a project - most live-action filmmaking went on hold when the virus hit, and nobody's spending money right now on exotic vacations, expensive Broadway shows or even fancy dinners at exclusive restaurants.  So maybe we can raise some money to keep my studio open and continue work on my new cowboy comedy, "Slide"!  

Our Kickstarter campaign began a few days ago on November 30, and it ends on December 17.  Yikes!  That's only two weeks from now!  So our little studio cooked up a bunch of reward tiers to raise some much-needed moolah and we've got some incredible prizes:

You can be part of a Zoom-based holiday party with me and my staff in our NYC studio!

One hour of private tutoring in animation, combined with my nine Vimeo lessons, which cover all aspects of animation production, from concept and storyboarding, to financing and distributing your own film!

An opportunity to be in the voice cast of "Slide", for a character based on your own photos!  This includes getting your name in the film's on-screen credits and on IMDB!  

We've also got an 8-DVD set of my classic features and shorts compilations, plus a DVD copy of "Slide" after it gets released and a streaming link once the film is finished!  

Also, we're offering tickets to the NYC premiere of the film, because we believe that someday theaters will re-open and we can watch movies together again in public!  Hey, call us crazy dreamers, that's OK.  

And if you want to give any of the rewards to someone as a holiday gift, we can supply a gift certificate that you can give to the intended recipient, so there will be something to unwrap!

Please check out the campaign at KickstartSlide.com to find out more!   You can also watch a cool video of me there, in which I play my pedal-steel "slide" guitar and talk about the inspirations for the film.  

Also, I'll be on Facebook Live Thursday, December 3 at 3 pm - go to my Facebook page and I'll see you then!  Thanks for watching!

--Bill Plympton