The OceanMaker seeks funding
A new animated short film from Lucas Martell, the creator of Pigeon: Impossible is seeking your help over on Indiegogo. Shane Davis from the Oceanmaker team took some time to tells us about the project.
About the Film
The OceanMaker is a 9-minute animated short film that takes place after Earth’s oceans have disappeared. It tells the tale of one courageous pilot who fights against vicious sky pirates for control of the last remaining source of water: the clouds.
From a visual standpoint, we’re steering away from the air pirates often found in steampunk and going straight-up “Mad Max” in the sky. The film is packed with old, beat-up planes that have been cobbled together from spare parts found in airplane graveyards.
About Production
Why make an animated film on an island?
There’s several reasons. First off, it’s very hard to be creative when you’re sitting in some dark, windowless room. Most modern animation studios resemble sweatshops more than creative spaces, and the bean counters don’t seem to realize that the happier an artist is, the more productive they are, and the better their work gets. Plus, many studies have shown that the best way to boost creativity is to travel. By experiencing a totally different place and culture, the creative side of your brain is thrown into overdrive.
Another big reason was a simple practical matter… I’ve worked on several remote projects, and while its possible to have meetings online, animation is a collaborative art form. Having artists in the same room and able to bounce ideas around is not only more efficient, but it leads to a much better end product. I knew that this would really make a big difference for our production, but as an indie animation, how do you get a team of professional artists to commit to working on something full-time with such a limited budget? The answer, is that you turn production into a once-in-a-lifetime experience that is too cool to pass up.
Because of the nature of the project so far, we want to lay this out very specifically so everyone who donates knows exactly how the money will be spent. (And we want to make sure no one thinks we’re taking a vacation with their money. 🙂
After the credit card fees and costs to deliver everyone’s perks, 90% of what we raise will go to paying and feeding the crew. For the round of production we did in Belize, everyone worked for next to nothing. Even though it was an awesome experience, we cant ask them to do that again so soon. We’re all freelance professionals in the animation industry, so this isn’t just a hobby, it’s our livelihood. Taking time to work on this project will mean passing up other paying gigs, so we need to make sure that everyone can cover their monthly expenses.
The remaining 10% will go towards travel expenses. Our first round of production showed us just how effective we can be when we’re all in the same space, so its definitely worth it to get the team in the same location once again. See the section below for a much deeper explanation of how the location will be chosen.
Beyond our goal, we have a number of “stretch goals.” For instance, if we hit $60,000, we’ll be able to hire a live orchestra to record the score. That additional $10,000 beyond the previous tier will go towards the orchestra and recording expenses.
Where will this last phase of production take place?
At the moment, its wide open. The simplest choice would be Austin, TX where a significant portion of our crew lives. However, it comes with many of the day-to-day distractions we managed to escape during the first round of production. So, we’re also looking at several places within driving distance of Austin. If we can somehow replicate a few of the conditions that made us so productive in Belize, while staying within our modest travel budget, that would be optimal. Finally, going outside of Texas would almost certainly cost more than our budget, BUT, if anyone out there has a living/working space you might be willing to let us use for production, it could very well be cheaper to bring the whole crew to your location. So, if you are the proud owner of a large(ish) house, hotel, chateau, castle, abandoned orphanage (with good wifi) or perhaps even a boat big enough to sleep 8 people, please email us directly to chat about it.
Animated Short Film Masterclass: Put your Ideas into Production
The overall focus of the masterclass is on creating animated short films. There’s a wealth of information out there about specific aspects of animation, but this class will focus on the bigger picture of how to create, write, fund, direct, produce and distribute your own short film. Several topics will be applicable to any type of animation, but some segments will be specific to CG.
The class will be broken up into 8 sessions at 1 hour each, starting the last week of May. You’ll be able to tune in and participate live via streaming, but we’ll also record all of the classes in case you can’t be online during one of the sessions. The more people who sign up, the better the class can be. So help us spread the word by reposting the above video!
What is the online masterclass ($99/$250) about?
By popular demand, we’ve added a slightly modified version of the masterclass to make it more accessible. Its the same as the $250 level, but it does not include Session 8, which is a private one-on-one session, and it also does not include any physical items that would need to be manufactured and shipped. However, you will still get an HD download of the film, plus any other digital content from the previous tiers.
