7.10.2013

Uzi's Party (pre-production)



Welcome to the 21st century, where art funding comes from tireless self-promotion and constant solicitation of your friends and loved ones. When Kickstarter came on the scene I had misgivings, and even now, I would much rather win some big grant than crowd source a film budget. But my views have changed, a lot. I've seen plenty of friends start their own campaigns, and most of them succeed. Incredible things like my friend Sara teaching girls in Cambodia how to make comics, my friend Lale putting together the Chromazoid anthology, places like The Comfort Station earning air conditioning; these are all projects I was overjoyed to be able to support, and I've gotten some really great stuff out of it, in addition to my virtue rewards. I think a well run Kickstarter campaign is a blessing to everyone involved, and I'm very proud to be at a point where I feel I've earned my own.

I worked very hard on this campaign, but not nearly as hard as I will work on Uzi's Party once filming starts. Big gratitude to Jeff Perlman, Ryan Gleeson, and Aren Zolninger for helping me shoot my fundraiser video (it's all one take!); Tyson for mixing sound; mondo thanks to Christly LeMaster and everyone at the Nightingale for generous use of their space.

I'll write more about the film soon. It's an incredibly ambitious 16mm experimental teen drama with a supernatural twist. Right now all of my energy is devoted to promotion and solicitation. Luckily, I was born to live in the 21st century. I may not be able to pull a plough but I can lift 200 personal emails and three simultaneous event organizations on my back every day.

Help me out! Donate, and above all, spread the word! Please and thank you.