Snowblind: A Puppet Music Video
A$55
of $6,000 targetyrs ago
Closed on 15th Nov 2014 at 10:56PM.
Snowblind is a story of two star crossed lovers, Leo and Luna who have embarked on an epic journey to find the Abominable Snowman in the Land of Winter. Their journey is fraught with danger and tragedy and they encounter many animal friends along the way who are touched by their journey. They help as many of the animals as they can, including one tenacious little penguin, who Leo forms a kinship with after learning he's been orphaned. It's a simple story about chasing your dreams and not giving up, told beautifully with completely original puppet characters made by the amazing Kevin Gorby of 'Luna's Puppets' and to a brand new cover of the wonderful song 'Snowblind' by Rob Thomas, lead singer of Matchbox 20.
Snowblind is a project that I have been working on for over two years now and is something i'm very passionate about. It came to be with a little lightning bolt to the brain, as most good ideas do, while listening to the song 'Snowblind' by Rob Thomas. It was simple enough, two lovers trek across the snowy landscapes of Antartica looking for something, but only finding trajedy. The twist was that they are all puppets and the story was not to be told with kid gloves, I want them to feel every bit of the cold and the danger they are in and in turn, for the audience to feel it as well. This is what I felt watching the original Muppet films as a child and what I think is missing from the recent incarnations, catering to not just children, but to everyone who enjoys a good story and connecting with memorable characters.
In order to use a song by such an established artist, I had to gain permission and get a license to do a cover, so I sent the idea through to Rob Thomas' management at EMI and thinking I wouldn't hear back at all, almost forgot about it. About a day later I got a very pleasantly surprising email from Rob's management saying they loved the idea and couldn't wait to see it! That was two years ago now and i've been working on it ever since, now we're in the final stages of pre-production and are almost ready to shoot, it's been a long time coming..
So when I decided I wanted to do this and went about trying to make it a reality.. what I found out was, puppets are expensive! I have personally invested over $7000 of my own money on this project already, getting the characters made and we haven't built the set or organised the shoot yet. I've spent the better part of two years getting my characters created from scratch and now I have them all and they're ready to have their moment in the spotlight. I'm so enamoured with them and I think other people will be too, I want to give them life in the video now and to do that we need your help!
Snowblind is a project that I have been working on for over two years now and is something i'm very passionate about. It came to be with a little lightning bolt to the brain, as most good ideas do, while listening to the song 'Snowblind' by Rob Thomas. It was simple enough, two lovers trek across the snowy landscapes of Antartica looking for something, but only finding trajedy. The twist was that they are all puppets and the story was not to be told with kid gloves, I want them to feel every bit of the cold and the danger they are in and in turn, for the audience to feel it as well. This is what I felt watching the original Muppet films as a child and what I think is missing from the recent incarnations, catering to not just children, but to everyone who enjoys a good story and connecting with memorable characters.
In order to use a song by such an established artist, I had to gain permission and get a license to do a cover, so I sent the idea through to Rob Thomas' management at EMI and thinking I wouldn't hear back at all, almost forgot about it. About a day later I got a very pleasantly surprising email from Rob's management saying they loved the idea and couldn't wait to see it! That was two years ago now and i've been working on it ever since, now we're in the final stages of pre-production and are almost ready to shoot, it's been a long time coming..
So when I decided I wanted to do this and went about trying to make it a reality.. what I found out was, puppets are expensive! I have personally invested over $7000 of my own money on this project already, getting the characters made and we haven't built the set or organised the shoot yet. I've spent the better part of two years getting my characters created from scratch and now I have them all and they're ready to have their moment in the spotlight. I'm so enamoured with them and I think other people will be too, I want to give them life in the video now and to do that we need your help!
The Team
We've got a great team of experienced puppeteers, film crew and set builders on board already. The entire puppet crew, including myself, have completed a Masterclass in TV Puppetry by Noel MacNeal of 'Sesame Street' and 'The Muppets' earlier this year and have greatly increased our knowledge of TV puppetry in doing so.
Kay Yasugi is the lead Puppet Performance Director, is an established puppet builder and has worked on TV on shows including 'Play School' and created and performed with puppets for high profile short films and advertisements.
Our set designer is Lucy Scott, who has worked extensively in Sydney's Opera and Theatre scene, including creating set and costume for the Marion Street Theatre. Having desined productions starring and aimed at children that have been successfully run for the past several years, she is suited perfectly to bring our winter world to life.
The rest of the crew are all experienced puppeteers who have performed in Oz and Overseas and who all have a wealth of experience to add to the production, with over ten characters, we'll need all the hands we can get!
Kay Yasugi is the lead Puppet Performance Director, is an established puppet builder and has worked on TV on shows including 'Play School' and created and performed with puppets for high profile short films and advertisements.
Our set designer is Lucy Scott, who has worked extensively in Sydney's Opera and Theatre scene, including creating set and costume for the Marion Street Theatre. Having desined productions starring and aimed at children that have been successfully run for the past several years, she is suited perfectly to bring our winter world to life.
The rest of the crew are all experienced puppeteers who have performed in Oz and Overseas and who all have a wealth of experience to add to the production, with over ten characters, we'll need all the hands we can get!
How The Funds Will Be Used
The budget we need to get this done is very basic in it's requirements but it is a lot of money considering how much has been personally invested in this already and we need your help to get it done.
We need to hire a large green screen studio for three days, a professional film camera and to build a set to make the puppet world come alive. That and we need to feed the crew and provide travel expenses to everyone who is generously donating their time on the shoot. Everything has been worked out and every cent donated will go towards one of these costs:
Studio Hire: $1950 for 3 day hire
Camera Hire: $1350 for 3 day hire
Prop Sourcing: $400
Set Construction Costs: $2000
Crew Food and Travel: $300
We need to hire a large green screen studio for three days, a professional film camera and to build a set to make the puppet world come alive. That and we need to feed the crew and provide travel expenses to everyone who is generously donating their time on the shoot. Everything has been worked out and every cent donated will go towards one of these costs:
Studio Hire: $1950 for 3 day hire
Camera Hire: $1350 for 3 day hire
Prop Sourcing: $400
Set Construction Costs: $2000
Crew Food and Travel: $300
The Challenges
This project has been challenging from the start, due to the logistics and high cost of all of the different elements but we're finally at a stage where all we need is the money to get the shoot done and we will have all the pieces to complete the project. We have a wonderful team of people experienced in different areas of production and i know we'll have a wonderful outcome when it all comes together. Please like us on Facebook for updates and behind the scenes goodies for the duration of the production!
https://www.facebook.com/snowblindmusicvideo
https://www.facebook.com/snowblindmusicvideo
Wintery Wallpaper
You will recieve a high resolution wallpaper featuring our roster of wonderful characters for your kids (or your) desktop and our gratitude!
0 chosen
Est. delivery is Dec 14
Snowblind Poster
You will receive an A3 sized custom Snowblind poster, signed or unsigned by the cast, to hang on your wall to remind you of your generosity and our cast of wonderful characters. You'll also get the separate digital wallpaper to complement the poster and our massive thanks!
1 chosen / 19 available
Est. delivery is Jan 15
Snowblind DVD & BTS Video
For your generosity you'll get a DVD of the production, including a BTS video with insight into how we produced the video and all previous rewards!
0 chosen / 50 available
Est. delivery is Feb 15
Personal Video Message
Your favourite character will record a video message to you or someone of your choice to say Happy Birthday, Merry Christmas or whatever you like! You also get all previous rewards! Give someone a gift that they'll remember always.
0 chosen / 10 available
Est. delivery is Dec 14
Folkmanis Hand Puppets
We have a number of the wonderfully cute Folkmanis hand puppets featured in the video including a Turtle, Baby Seal, Hedgehog and many others. You can take home one of these characters along with a signed cast photo of them creating the video and all previous rewards! For big kids and little ones!
0 chosen / 5 available
Est. delivery is Dec 14
Visit the set!
If you are interested in how these things come together, you can come visit us on the shoot in Sydney, in late November. We're aiming to be filming over three days and you can come visit us on set on one of those days. Meet the cast and crew and see how it's done! You'll have to be in Sydney or organise travel if you're interstate, but you also get all previous rewards! (You may take a Folkmanis puppet too, but only if the previous rewards don't sell out, first in first pick.)
0 chosen / 3 available
Est. delivery is Nov 14
Penguin needs a name!
In this special reward, we will let you name our beloved little orphaned penguin character, his parents aren't around to name him so you'll have to! You also get all previous rewards and the warm feeling of knowing you've given a gift that will last him a lifetime.
0 chosen / 1 available
Est. delivery is Nov 14
Your Own Penguin Pal!
For your amazing generosity, you will receive a genuine hand made twin brother of our little penguin pal, exactly as he is in the video! Fully functional eyes and flippers and a face that just makes you want to give him a hug! You also get all other rewards except Penguin needs a name!
0 chosen / 1 available
Est. delivery is Jan 15