CONTINUING MOMENTUM

We are so close yet so far away. At this point, everybody is probably sick of me posting about the pilot episode video that we are trying to get views on but it is really one of my main focuses at the moment. I so badly want this to succeed! Anyway, we have had some good feedback from people and I am stoked that at this point we have had so many views - I just don't want the momentum of the video to slow down. So again, thank you for your continued support and please keep sharing and commenting and onwards and upwards we shall go!

Episode 1 Pilot - Rough Cut Link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLPjLJjwZJg

OVER HALF WAY!

As I write this, our views are sitting at approximately 1200! We are over half way now and are getting so much closer to our target of 2000 views! I would like to thank everybody for their continued support and ask that you please keep sharing the link to the pilot and go back and comment on the video to let us know what you think of it! Hopefully, the pilot continues gaining views and we can get that little bit closer to our goal!

Episode 1 Pilot - Rough Cut Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLPjLJjwZJg

GETTIN' CLOSER!

Every day we seem to be getting closer and closer to our goal of 2000 views for our Episode 1 Pilot! You are probably all sick of me ranting on about the pilot but it this is a crucial part of the project because if we do not reach the 2000 views on it then we will not be eligible to apply for funding at all! This project has the potential to be way more awesome than it already is and I really do not want it to be stopped dead in its tracks before it really gets started! Besides that, so much hard work has been done on it already and it would be a shame for all that hard work to go to waste! So, please keep on sharing our pilot and thank you heaps for your support!

Episode 1 Pilot - Rough Cut: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLPjLJjwZJg

KEEP IT COMIN' PEEPS!!!!

Please keep those views comin' people! Every view counts and the more the merrier in this case! I am focused on getting the 2000 views we need for this pilot episode! Meanwhile, Jade and I have been trying to tweak and polish the funding proposal that we will be submitting into NZ On Air at the beginning of October. Unfortunately, I fell ill over the weekend, so was unable to dedicate the whole weekend to finishing the entire proposal. I am still recovering and need to take it easy but will be steadily getting it done. Anyway, check out the pilot episode and SHARE it everywhere with EVERYONE...... PLEASE!!!!!

Episode 1 Pilot - Rough Cut Link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLPjLJjwZJg

HAVE YOU??????

Have you clicked that link yet and checked our episode one rough cut??? If you haven't, then I STRONGLY suggest that you have a look at it and help us to spread the word by sharing it out to the world! Anyway, below is the link, so click it and have a look at some awesome animation!!!!

Episode 1 Pilot Rough Cut Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLPjLJjwZJg

VIEW & SHARE AGAIN & AGAIN!

Please keep sharing and viewing the episode one pilot - rough cut! We need as many views as possible within the next couple of weeks! Most of my posts util the end of the month will comment something about viewing the episode one pilot rough cut, so please go on over and check it out!

Episode 1 Pilot - Rough Cut Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLPjLJjwZJg

REMINDER: PATREON CAMPAIGN

Just a reminder that we have a Patreon campaign going to help with the costs of creating the series! Please have a look at it and share the link with anybody and everybody, so that we can encourage some more potential patrons to come onboard! Even become a patron yourself and reap some cool rewards! Last but not least, please don't forget about the episode one pilot on our YouTube channel! Go over and have a look at both of these cool things and help us out!

Patreon Link: https://www.patreon.com/noody
Episode 1 Pilot - Rough Cut: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLPjLJjwZJg

SO FAR, SO GOOD!

So far, so good! We have managed to keep up the momentum with the views on the episode one pilot! Our analytics are pretty much perfect! We seem to be building up a good following via Twitter which is good and I feel like we are heading towards our goals slowly but surely! Anyway, don't forget to check out the episode one pilot by clicking the link below! 

Episode 1 Pilot - Rough Cut Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLPjLJjwZJg

53 VIEWS PER DAY NEEDED!

Jade and I have worked out that we need an average of 53 views a day to reach our goal of 2000 views on the pilot rough cut! So, far we seem to be averaging that..... JUST! I am hoping that it will keep this momentum up and not lose it. Meanwhile, Jade and I are putting together the final edit of the proposal (which I should hopefully have the writing completed for by the end of the weekend)! Fingers crossed that our plan comes together nicely. If you haven't already checked out the rough cut episode, please click the link below and share, share share it absolutely everywhere!

Episode 1 Pilot - Rough Cut: www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLPjLJjwZJg

THE TALE ENDERS!

A big shout out to our friend and mentor Rachel Mann and her animated web series, The Tale Enders! The talented Rachel Mann is the creator of the awesome series that is currently in production! The series follows the trials and tribulations of six teenagers living in Invercargill, New Zealand. Check out the Facebook page and Rachel's blog detailing her experiences as she creates this series!

The Tale Enders Facebook Link: https://www.facebook.com/talenders/

VIEW, VIEW, VIEW & SHARE, SHARE, SHARE!!!

In order to be eligible for funding, we need approximately 52 views per day to reach the 2000 views that we require. So far, we have had over a hundred views on the pilot rough cut and it has only been live on YouTube for two days! If it keeps up this momentum then we will be well on our way to reaching our target! I will continue to promote the pilot rough cut for episode one and cross my fingers that we reach our goal quickly! If you are reading this,then please click the link below and pop over and see it!

Episode 1 Pilot: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLPjLJjwZJg 

EPISODE ONE PILOT - ROUGH CUT!

EXCITING NEWS: So, here is what everybody has been waiting for!The rough cut pilot for the first episode is finally up on YouTube!!!!! Please everybody, click the link below and take a peek, share and comment on this pilot!!!!! We need to get 2000 views in the next 30 days!!!!! Share, share, share and view, view, view!!!!!

Pilot Episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLPjLJjwZJg

SOUND IS DONE!

The sound is done! I have just picked the sound files up from the sound designer and all that is left to do is for me to take the files over to Jade and for her to do the final render and credits. The video will be live on YouTube tomorrow some time (as long as YouTube doesn't take ages to process the video in whopping 4K!) and I will post on this blog tomorrow confirming the link for everybody to view the first Episode of Mother!

SOUUUNNNNNDDDDD!!!!

I have written in previous posts about how I have had difficulty in finding somebody to do the sound for us and also yesterday Jade asked me if I could do the sound for the first episode rough cut but today I managed to find a friend to help us out! I am stoked that we have found somebody because I do not have the most confidence in my sound ability. Our friend is going to spend tomorrow sorting out the sound for us! I am getting excited for the release of our rough cut and can not wait to share it with everybody!

ANIMATION DONE!

The animation has been completed on the first episode. There are some place holders for some of the sequences but there is enough animation that will show the story and the stylistic intent. The next thing that needs done is the sound, so I will be visiting Jade tomorrow to discuss this and to try and sort it out. Jade has asked me to do the sound on the episode because she has been staring at it for hundreds of hours and thinks that somebody else needs to do it in order for it to be good. I do not really want to do the sound because it is not really one of my strengths. Hopefully, we can find somebody who will be keen to do it! Then we will be able to make the episode live on YouTube to try and start collecting some views!

TWITTER TWEETING

Over the past few days we seem to have had a bit of activity on Twitter. We have gained some new followers and have had quite a few likes on some of our tweets. I am hoping this is the kind of support that will help us to reach our goal of getting 2000 views on our first episode. We will continue to work away on everything and will stay positive while trying to reach our goals!

FIRST EPISODE DEADLINE

The deadline for the first episode to be live is coming up quickly. I am hoping that we will reach our goal so that we are eligible for the funding application. Jade's work is always at a high standard, so I don't doubt that it will look amazing but I am hoping other people will get behind it and help support the web series. I can not wait to see it and share it with everybody! In the mean time, everybody should check out the YouTube channel and Patreon campaign that we have up and running. The next few days, I will spend collecting more sound effects and trying to cold e-mail people to rally up support for this project!

BACK AT IT AGAIN!

As I have stated in some of my previous posts, I have been away from home in Christchurch to deal with some family business. This past week,I have not posted on the blog because of those family circumstances but I have now made it home and am ready to get back into blogging again daily.

The web series is still battling on and Jade has been very hard at work with it. Our social media manager Kim has been busy tweeting and tumbling about the project to try and ramp up more support for the release of the first episode which is coming up very fast. I now need to get my head back into advertising and getting as much support as I can for the series, so keep checking the blog for more progress updates! Also, don't forget to check out the Patreon campaign and our YouTube channel!

YouTube Link: www.youtube.com/channel/UC_lwKA_4OxXRRrMX2N4VO1g
Patreon Link: https://www.patreon.com/noody

MORE CHALLENGES!

Trying to build an audience for a web series can be challenging at times. Unfortunately, I am unable to sit online all day every day because I have a family and am currently looking for employment to pay the bills. The small amount of time that I get to spend doing work on my computer is realistically not enough time to do as much advertising as I would like to do. I hope that we can get funding and turn this into something bigger with what we are doing already and then we can pay somebody whose sole job is to manage all the online social media. Anyways, just to finish off this post please check out our YouTube channel and Patreon page and please feel free to share them with everyone and everywhere!!!!!

Patreon: https://www.patroen.com/noody
YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/channel/UC_lwKA_4OxXRRrMX2N4VO1g

WRITING FUNDING PROPOSALS

Writing a funding proposal must be one of the most nerve racking things to master - do it right and you will get exactly what you are asking for BUT if you stuff it up, your pretty screwed! Jade found an interesting article from a lady who decides whether filmmakers/artists get funding or not which details what makes a good proposal. 

Carole Lee Dean reads thousands of proposals for a film grant that she is in charge of and has written an amazing article on the do's and don'ts of writing a funding proposal. The most important thing that I picked out of the advice she gives is that the first three paragraphs need to be completely compelling to the funding panel. I have sent the proposal to a couple of people that I know who are really good writers and have received some positive feedback and pointers from them. So, here's hoping after all the feedback and advice our proposal's first three paragraphs are compelling and help us get our funding! The link to this article is at the end of this post, so go and have a look at it because it is pretty helpful!

Article Link: http://filmmakeriq.com/2009/04/how-to-win-a-film-grant/

YOUTUBE CHANNEL

Please check out our YouTube channel! There are VFX breakdowns and behind the scenes videos to show everybody what work has been done so far on the project! This channel is the first place that the first episode/pilot will be released! In the mean time, enjoy watching the progress videos that are on the channel so far!

YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/channel/UC_lwKA_4OxXRRrMX2N4VO1g

PATREON - CROWD FUNDING

Just a quick post to remind everybody to please share our Patreon page with everyone and everywhere! We would really appreciate the support with our project and especially with the crowd funding as this will help with the costs of making this awesome web series! Click on the link below and have a look at what is on offer and make a great project reach its goal of finishing the whole first season!

Patreon Link: https://www.patreon.com/noody

FUNDING REQUIREMENTS

It has just occurred to me that I may not have explained about the requirements for applying for funding for the web series from NZ On Air. So, to qualify for consideration for the web series fund from NZ On Air you need to meet the following requirements:

• Links to a pilot, episode or previous season of the proposed series must be provided. The sample should convey enough of the intended style for NZ On Air to get a sense of what will be produced. This is a big one because applications that do not provide video evidence will not be considered.

• Provide evidence of an audience for the concept.The pilot or episode must have been uploaded within the last 1-12 months and have at least 2,000 views or an already existing season that has been uploaded within the last two years and have at least 10,000 views across all the episodes. 

• Co-investment of at least 5-15% of the total budget needs to come from an external source of some kind. This can be private funds, third party funding, license fees or crowd-sourcing. Confirmation of the amount of funding to be provided by a third party and proof of their intent to provide funds must also be provided. 

• Web series that have a platform for distribution will be prioritised. A letter of intent from the preferred platform will be required to accompany the application.

• Applicants must be NZ residents or a NZ-registered company.

These are all the requirements that we must meet to be considered for funding which is why we need to get the first episode done and get people to view it or we may not be able to get the funding we need. Keep checking out our YouTube channel and checking the social media (and this blog) for when the first episode/pilot is released!

YouTube Link: www.youtube.com/channel/UC_lwKA_4OxXRRrMX2N4VO1g

FINALLY.... SOME CONTACT!!!!

I have finally had some contact back from some of the people that I have cold e-mailed! There have been some good comments from people about the web series and wanting to help us to rally up support! Hopefully, this means that we can get the views we need for the first episode to be eligible for funding from NZ On Air. 

On another note, please don't forget to check out our Patreon page and YouTube channel and help support our project!

Patreon Link: https://www.patreon.com/noody

YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/channel/UC_lwKA_4OxXRRrMX2N4VO1g

BEHIND THE SCENES #3

Jade has made another behind the scenes video to share with everybody some of the stuff that is being worked on for the web series. Click the link below to check it out! Don't forget to check out our Patreon page and show us your support!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DgrlUKxx0b1Y

COLLECTING SOUND EFFECTS

I have been trying to download as many sound effects as I can for the past couple of days. It is difficult to get done because I am still not at home and am still 600kms away from home. I have managed to get a little bit of work done while I have been away but it was always going to be a little difficult being around heaps of family that want to talk to you and catch up with you. Anyway, I will continue to collect sound effects for the project and hope we get something really decent out of it!

PATREON PAGE!

Jade has set up a Patreon page for the web series! Patreon is a crowd funding platform that allows creators to obtain funding from their fans on a recurring basis or per work of art. This means that patrons (the fans) can pledge some money (even a small amount) every month towards the project to help with the costs of making it and in return they receive special rewards to do with the project. This is a good way to keep your project funded. If you are interested in becoming one of our patrons, then please follow the link below and pledge our project some money!

Patron Link: https://www.patreon.com/noody 

FRIDAY!!!!

It is the end of the working week and I am still away from home! I am starting to miss my house, my family (In Invercargill) and especially my own bed! I still have had no contact from people/places about possible support or promotion for the web series! It doesn't help that I am away from home for other reasons and don't have a lot of time to focus on the project but I will hopefully be heading home in the next day or so and will be able to get re-focused and get support up and going!

STILL NO CONTACT!!!!

It is sooooo frustrating when people just do not contact you at all! Even an e-mail saying that they can not help or that they are not interested is better than nothing! I have had no correspondence back from anybody at all that I have contacted! I also don't want to come across as pushy either and send them another e-mail asking them the same thing. I also do not have much time to wait on an answer from them either, so it is kind of a catch 22 situation! I guess i will work out what to do and get things sorted! Fingers crossed!

TRAVELLING UP THE COUNTRY

Today, I have had to travel about 600kms away to Christchurch (the place in New Zealand that had the devastating earthquakes a couple of years back) from home for personal family reasons. It has been a long day and I am tired. I will be away for a few days and then will do the big journey home again. I still have not heard back from anybody that I have contacted about helping us promote and support the web series, which is frustrating to say the least. I will continue to persevere with everything and in a few days when I get home, I will get right back into rallying up support for our series!

SOUND DESIGNER

We still have not found a soundie to jump onboard and put some sound into the animation with sound effects and foley. At this stage, it is looking like we may have to do this ourselves (or that I may have to do this as Jade is already extremely busy), so I have started to collect sound effects to build up a library. Unfortunately, everybody I have asked either does not have time to do the sound or just declined because they do not feel that they are good at it. So, if I find somebody that is keen to do it, then that would be great but if not, never fear there shall still be sound! 

MONDAY!!!!

I am yet to receive any correspondence back from the people/places I have contacted. Hopefully, I hear back this week some time. Jade is steadily continuing work on the first episode and things are coming together. We will be getting some video blogs up in the near future, so keep your eyes peeled for those and keep checking into this log for more progress updates!

THE END OF THE WEEKEND!

The problem with the weekend is that people take time off work and so when you are anxiously waiting for an answer from a person/place/agency, it means having to wait an extra two days! It's all good though, it means I am looking forward to Monday this week (for a change), in the hopes that I should finally have some answers as to whether people/places/agencies are able to help this project out! Fingers and toes crossed for the best and bring on Monday!!!!!

JUST WAITING....

I am just waiting for replies from people that i have reached out to for help either financially or just people/places I have asked for help from to try and rally up support for the web series. This is sometimes a frustrating time because you can never force people to answer you when YOU want them to and if you harass them too much then they will just not want to help you out at all. The trick is to have a healthy balance of harassment as well as giving people space. It's a difficult skill to achieve because different people/places/agencies need to be dealt with differently. Hopefully, this week i should hear back from some of these people/places and fingers crossed that I get positive responses!

YOUTUBE CHANNEL INTRO

Last night, Jade and Lana made an introduction video for the YouTube channel. I was unable to be there for this due to prior committments and to be honest, I am a little awkward in front of a camera - it's not really my thing! I can't wait to see what the girls game came up with and will add a link to this blog as soon as it has been edited and put up!

CHEERS!

Work is continuing on the first episode and it is steadily getting there. Jade is still hard at work and things are coming along. The rest of our crew are working hard to get their parts of the project sorted and so, I thought they deserved a bit of a shout out! Thank you so much to all of our hard working crew - you're doing an AMAZING job and we appreciate all the blood, sweat and tears you have put into this project so far! Cheers, guys!

E-MAILS, E-MAILS, E-MAILS!

I have spent the last few days trying to rally up support for our project. I have sent e-mails to lots of different people and places to ask if they are able to help us promote and gain some support for the project. Now, it's just a matter of waiting for those people to reply back to me, so fingers crossed that happens soon and I get a positive response from all!

DIALOGUE RECEIVED

We have been receiving some dialogue recordings from our amazing voice artists! The recordings have been great and if any revisions have been needed, the voice artists have been more than obliging to get the job sorted for us. This post is really just to say a HUGE thank you to our amazing voice artists for all the hard work that they have put in so far and we really appreciate your support and effort! You guys are amazing and we are so lucky to have you onboard!

EXPENSIVE ADS

After looking into using social media ads and Google Adwords to try and promote our web series and in particular the release of the first episode, we have decided that as we are a low budget project that these options will not be viable. It is really expensive to advertise using these platforms! So, we are definitely going to have to go back to basics and advertise by word of mouth and by hitting the streets! I am kind of looking forward to doing this kind of advertising because it means I get to talk to lots of different people and share this project that has been a long time in the making!

PLAN OF ATTACK

We have started to get together a plan of attack for marketing this web series. We already have some components such as a Facebook and Tumblr page and a Twitter profile. Jade is going to put together a website and Lana and I are going to be working on our plan of attack to hit the streets and try and advertise the series locally. 

This is going to be a big job but in order for us to have a chance at getting funding for the web series, we need to increase our audience. Our first episode needs to reach 2000 views once it is out up on YouTube. I will also be putting together a press kit for the series and seeing if the New Zealand Web Series Channel would be interested in airing our web series. We only have a couple of months to have everything sorted before we submit our funding proposal to NZ On Air. Time to knuckle down and get our project out into the big, wide world!

MARKETING STRATEGIES

I have been researching some marketing strategies for the web series. Marketing a web series seems like a challenging task. I have read quite a few articles on how to increase the audience for your web series and they all say similar things. 

• Advertise it locally - get out on the street and tell people about it
• Utilize Facebook and Twitter - Twitter is great for networking with people
• Have your own YouTube channel for your series
• Write a blog
• Purchase ads - Google, Facebook, Twitter
• Have a website for your series

Here's some links to a couple of the articles that I found but trust me there are heaps more out there too!

Links: 
http://www.adweek.com/socialtimes/10-tips-for-using-social-media-to-promote-your-web-series/135179

http://snobbyrobot.com/2014/08/05/marketing-your-web-series-red-shirts-tips-on-the-worst-job-in-the-world/

NOT FUNDED

Unfortunately, our crowd funding campaign was unsuccessful! We did not reach our target of $1500 and even though we had $95 pledged to our campaign, we do not receive it because with crowd funding the campaign has to reach it's target to receive any money at all. I am a little disappointed but we will soldier on and come up with some more creative ways to try and fund our project! Keep an eye out for more updates on funding ideas and the progress of the project!

ONLY HOURS TO GO!!!!

This is it! Only 3 hours to go until our crowd funding campaign finishes and it is looking like we are not going to make it to our target of $1500. There is always hope though that somebody might put in some last minute pledges to help us reach our final goal! So, as a last attempt to try and get some pledges, here is the link and my last plea for help! Please if you can help us, click on the link and hook us up with a pledge or two! As the saying goes....... 'It ain't over 'til the fat lady sings!'

Pledge Me Link: www.pledgeme.co.nz/projects/4674-kiwi-web-series-needs-music-composer

WEIGHTING CHARACTERS

Jade and I had a Skype call tonight to discuss some things to do with the project. While we were talking, Jade was busy weighting one of the animated characters and the conversation subject changed from talking about general project chatter to that of weighting. Before I carry on, weighting is something that you do to a 3D character after you attach a rig or skeleton to your modelled character so that when you move your character it doesn't make your character deform weird or warped. 

Jade has discovered that weighting female characters is much more difficult than weighting male characters because male characters are fatter than females. (Fatter is the term that Jade used.) She explained that Kahu was way simpler and quicker to weight compared to all the female characters because all the parts of his body are larger and further away from each other. 

It's kind of a hard concept to grasp if you don't know anything about animation but I just found it interesting from an animator's prospective and a little bit amusing considering that there is only one male in this series. This project has been a huge learning curve and at times we seem to have done things the hard way usually finding an easier solution when the job has almost been completed. In saying that, it has been a great learning experience and I can't wait until we can share the finished product with everyone!

2 DAYS TO GO!!!!!

ONLY 2 DAYS LEFT!!!!! Share this link with everybody!!!!! PLEDGE!!!! PLEDGE!!!! PLEDGE!!!! 
There are only two more days left to be able to help us reach our goal of $1500!!! Sooooooo....... please be awesome and pledge us some money and encourage as many people as you can to pledge us some money too!!!! Any amount will be muchly appreciated!!!! 

PLEASE!!!!!

MORE EXPOSURE!

Jade and I have been discussing some ideas to get the project more exposure. We are thinking about making some more videos with behind the scenes footage and more breakdowns. We are also considering doing some podcasts and even getting our production assistant to start vlogging (video blogging) about the project because she has an awesome phone with a great camera! What ever we decide to do, I hope that it will give this awesome project much more exposure to a variety of audiences!

4 DAYS LEFT!!!!

There are just four more days left on our crowdfunding campaign! It is not looking hopeful at this stage, that we will reach our target. It's a little disappointing but in the same respect, there are four days left to go which is still four days that people can send in all those last minute pledges! So, here's that link for you to click and share with everybody you can!!!!

Pledge Me Link: www.pledgeme.co.nz/projects/4674-kiwi-web-series-needs-music-composer

VOICE ARTIST PROFILE - MARK THOMSON

NAME: Mark Thomson
ROLE: Character Voice Artist - Kahurangi

BIOGRAPHY:
Mark is a British born 27 year old man. He has always been a huge fan of animation, even as a child. He was drawn to the vocal side of animation when reading up on Chris Sabat and how he developed his abilities. Over the course of learning more and more about some of his favourite voice artists, he developed a real appreciation for the emotion and character that a voice can bring.

Outside of vocal work, Mark has two YouTube channels that he intends to relaunch after having had a break. He also loves music of most genres and is a self proclaimed HUGE nerd for anything manga/anime/comic book/graphic novel/game related.