Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Black cats & funding reached, 7 more questions w/Mr. Salmon

a few more questions with Christopher Salmon:

Q:
So! Big congrats!! You raised your goal funding and now THE PRICE film will see the light of day.
What did you/will you do to celebrate?

A:
Watch a great movie, of course! (Still haven't seen the latest HP!)

Q:
Some people are asking how they can get some of the goodies being offered as incentives.
There are still a few more hours to be part of THE PRICE.

A:
Some of those goodies will eventually be made available on www.neverwear.net

Q:
Now that you have mastered the Kickstarter experience, what, if anything, would you have done differently? Any advice for future users of this terrific marketing tool?

A:
Keeping people consistently interested is difficult. There tends to be high interest at first, then a long stretch of "death" when no one seems to be paying attention (ours lasted about 12 days -- sheer agony!), followed by a final spike of great interest. I think if I were to do it again, I would try to come up with some interesting attention-getting tactics to use during the lull.


Q:
Am so looking forward to Zoe Keating’s musical input, at what point do you start to add soundtrack? I know each filmmaker does it differently.

A:
For me, sound is at the top of my list -- I am very inspired by music and have strong emotional reactions to it. Piecing together the temp track alongside Neil's narration was the first thing that I did on The Price. It helps me chart out the emotional landscape of a film, and to find the pace. Once I have that in place, everything else is pieced together around it. I am very excited for composer/sound designer Rob King and the wonderful Zoƫ Keating to begin working on our original soundtrack right away! VERY excited!!!

Q:
No rush, honestly! however, Everyone is asking, when may we expect to see a finished film? Ballpark is fine.

A:
It's a good question. I want to get The Price submitted to several specific film festivals, and we are creating a production schedule that will allow that to happen accordingly. We will need several months of intense production in order to complete the film, but I hope to have it completed by early summer!

Q:
what question would you ask a psychic right now?

A:
If I do a good enough job with The Price, will I get to do The Graveyard Book someday??? :)

Q:
without jinxing anything, have you started thinking of your next project?

A:
I have several ideas of my own brewing in the background, plus some adaptions (other than the aforementioned Graveyard Book) that I'd love a crack at (absolute favorite non-Neil book: The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss).


Great answers, from @XtopherSalmon!
it's me again,
there are FiVE hours left on this Kickstarter project, and then the dust settles for a minute until Christopher can begin production on his vision, the battered black cat as hero, Neil's short story THE PRICE.
I am copying in his latest update on the project, that has several more answers, I always learn something new.
the one-sheets are in production now, I will have them in three days...& they start shipping out!


here he is:


GOAL!!!!!!!!
Update #10 posted about 2 hours ago
My head is still reeling ... like many of you, I watched the numbers late into the night, as they kept going up and up and up ... so when we crossed the $150,000 mark (just after 7:00 MST), it was really hard for me not to get emotional, vacillating between feeling a little weepy, to laughing hysterically, to just wanting to throw-up! :)


But that was, like, 9 hours ago ... so why are people still pledging? Simply put: the more we can raise for "The Price," the better the final film will be.


The way Kickstarter works is you set a minimum amount that you need to raise in order for the project to fund, but that doesn't mean additional funds won't be put to good use as well! Every dollar pledged to this film will be used judiciously and with extreme care -- several of you have shared with the rest of us the many sacrifices made in order to participate, and along with my deepest gratitude, that earns my very highest respect.


And there is another reason as well: people really believe in what we're doing. The ability to decide what entertainments we want, and to have a hand in making them happen is a wonderful, powerful thing.


Please, continue to encourage your friends, family members and professional associates to take a look at what we're doing. In addition to participating in a revolutionary new way of creating the type of media we want to enjoy, pledging is still the only way to get copies of the finished film (or any of the other rewards ... including the 6 remaining VIP screening invites with Mr. Gaiman himself).


And remember that any backer who increases their pledge will get one of our new, limited edition, embossed 1-sheet posters (not to be confused with the limited editions poster from the rewards section) -- there are still some left!!!


I'll see you all again in about 8 hours from now ...


Monday, November 29, 2010

40 hours left on THE PRICE & a gift...

so it's almost over and we are oh-so-close...




to show our appreciation for those of you who have come back in and upped their pledge (that's me included in this group of niceys), Christopher announced a gift of a one-sheet poster (different from the print coming with the $65.00 package)
actually I will let him tell you in his own words here:



In fact, the response from many of you has been so generous, we wanted to do something special to show how much we appreciate the efforts of those of you who have already increased their pledge amounts (many of you by twice as much or more!), as well as to encourage our newest backers (over 200 in the last 40 hours alone) to try and do the same ... here it is:

For everyone who increases their pledge, we're sending you a specially created "1-Sheet" movie poster! (One more time: check out the image below!) This will be limited to 500 prints and embossed for authenticity! (Note: this is NOT the same as the "Limited Edition Poster" listed in the rewards section, but something completely new!) And yes, 58 of these are spoken for by those backers who have already increased their amounts!

So act now! Being this close to the goal, please consider doubling your pledge amount -- and remember that every dollar counts! Also, to help me keep track of things, when you increase your pledge please send a note along as well so I don't miss anyone! :)

Thank-you all SO MUCH for the mind-blowing support!!! Keep telling/writing/calling/texting/tweeting/Facebooking everyone you know!!!

WE ARE ALMOST THERE!!!

- Christopher

me again, isn't it pretty--


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Sunday, November 28, 2010

a new Neil mailbox-November 2010

hello all you kind & goodlooking Neverwearers.
I write to you from a rare moment at the treehouse.
The ever-fluffy Miss Selina Kyle and I settled down on the faux zebra to take photos of some of the beautiful items that have arrived in the mail for Mister Neil. She insisted on holding the dynamite hand-knit Goldie by Casey H from Kansas City.
When he said, "meep", we all fell in love with him:





so many many letter from here & there & everywhere...
(the "shameless self promotion" post it made me giggle)







the classy Annette from Chicago sent a bound book of photos for Neil from the House on The Rock event, which was so thoughtful of her, he will really treasure this:




(just because Selina was sleeping does not mean she was bored. no. just really tired. from her busy cat day. of doing nothing.)


these beautiful one-of-a-kind art cards by Jessica in North Carolina, ravens, posies & trees- meow...!





From Illinois & minds of greatness, a birthday greeting full of Good Omens inspired art:








this one was for moi, some of the most magical smelling soap fromBLACK PHOENIX ALCHEMY LAB our dear friends Beth & Ted
shown here with the Lady Miss Palmer...Please go shop with them this busy holiday, you will never smell better and all their scents boost your IQ. really!





there's more, so much more, but i am heading off on an evening adventure with my husband, he's home from tour for only one day.
more soon, stay tuned--
oh and last thing, we are down to the last few hours on THE PRICE Kickstarter program.
Let's make it happen!

Sunday, November 21, 2010

THE LAST FIVE (*SIGNED) SAUCERS PRINTS AVAILABLE

Last month, the ever-lovin' Jouni Kopenen was in America, all the way from Finland,
and he brought his last few SAUCERS prints with him.


He and Neil both signed them, these were a numbered edition of 8,
we have 5 left for sale.
Five! as in Jackson Five!
These prints were sent over to Finland before the
the numbered edition that Neverwear sold--
so these are the last ones of this print run, ever.










SAUCERS PRINT AVAILABLE HERE!

while I have you here,
can you please find ten dollars (look in your couch cushions?)
to help bring THE PRICE to the silver screen?
we have nine days left!

EVERY BIT HELPS!!
thanks all. CLICK HERE TO GET INVOLVED!

Friday, November 19, 2010

13 Questions w/Christopher Salmon

There are 12 days left for THE PRICE to meet projected goal for funding...
I had a few questions for Mr. Salmon of SilverFish Creative...

13 Questions With Christopher Salmon

1) You must be a cat person--do you have any pets yourself?

We have an incredibly beautiful gray longhaired cat with stunningly green eyes named "Trinity" (her brother was named "Neo" of course, but sadly he went into The Matrix several years ago).

2) What do your kids think of this project?

Between us, my wife and I have 6 children (23-6), all of whom have been very supportive of "Dad's Black Cat Movie." In fact, I'll be pressing some of them into service Thursday to help me pass out "The Price" flyers to the midnight-movie crowds waiting to see Harry Potter -- it is going to end after all, right?

3) I know you've been floored by the success of this so far; is your iPhone keeping you up at nights?

It's definitely hard not to check the Kickstarter page during a 3:00 am 'call-of-nature.'


4) When choosing time slots for Kickstarter, why 30 days?

The Kickstarter staff recommend a 30 day funding period -- it is the internet after all -- insisting it is a fallacy that more time = more donations. Thirty days is like thirty years on the Internet!

5) Let’s talk about Hollywood and the changes happening.

The idea that Social Media will never amount to much of anything beyond a fad is still a tenant of the Old School Hollywood mindset. One of the coolest things about this project is the opportunity for us to show that fans have real power in choosing what projects they would like to see, and can help independent filmmakers like myself in a very literal way to bring these films to life! There are alternatives to only being able to vote with your ticket purchase at the local Megaplex for whatever formulaic mush happens to be playing that weekend. Kickstarter is important in facilitating that wonderful connection point between the artist and the audience!

6) Is there any particular movie that you have in your mind’s eye as reference to how The Price will look when completed?

Not really, as I'm trying to give it a very distinct look and feel. I want it to be heavily stylized, like the work of Tim Burton and Henry Selick -- you can always recognize their work from the very first scene.

7) Which movie has scared you the most?

The original Halloween by John Carpenter made my 14-year-old legs literally shake in my seat (I think I had to use the bathroom 3 times during that first viewing). We were visiting my grandparents for Christmas and I was sleeping on the living room floor ... I almost made it until their old clock suddenly started chiming the hour, and ZOOM!!! I was shoving into my younger brother's bed in 3 seconds flat, and stayed put the rest of the night. YEESH!!!

8) The wonderful Zoe Keating is working on soundtrack; can you name a soundtrack that has stuck with you after the film?

Wow -- there are so many!!! My most favorite of recent films are definitely Howard Shore's mind-blowing work on the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and I was seriously floored by Hans Zimmer's work on Inception (had to buy that right away). And who can ever forget that haunting refrain from Halloween? (Sadly, almost every one of my kids can play that on the piano -- great Dad, right?)

9) Your favorite Neil Gaiman book?

My favorite all-around book is The Graveyard Book (and want to make it into a film more than anything ... but I'm sure director Neil Jordan will do just fine). Of his adult fiction, I really enjoyed Stardust and Anansi Boys -- talk about cinematic imagery ready-to-go!!!

10) What would your superhero power be?

To fly and not to get hurt while doing it (because I'm a little clumsy)! Absolutely and without question.

11) Favorite movie monster?

LOVE the Balrog from LOTR. And the Angel of Death from Hellboy 2. And the Aliens from, of course, Aliens. And Darkness from Legend...

12) Favorite real monster?

The Ogopogo, a cool sea-serpent native to the incredibly gorgeous Okanagan Lake in central British Columbia (where I grew up). And yes, I still swim in it anyway!

13) How many toys do you have in your office?

There is no real way to tell; I've tried counting them several times, but I think they just keep switching places on me while I'm gone ...

Optional question: Why Silver Fish?

I like the color silver, and ... a salmon is a fish! That's it!!! :)

Cat here again,
I am going back in now to add more money to my pledge, i really want to see this on the screen, and be a part of the new wave of artists
controlling their work more directly and hands on.

EVERY BIT HELPS!!
thanks all. CLICK HERE TO GET INVOLVED!

Monday, November 8, 2010

November is here...already....

Some years ago, Christopher Salmon sent us his unfinished take on
THE PRICE, Neil’s short story about a tremendously brave black cat who stops at nothing to protect his humans from harm....

Now you can help bring it to the big screen.
Kickstarter is making this possible,
for as little as a $10.00 pledge.
If his project doesn’t raise enough pledges, nothing will be charged against the donation.
There are many incentives to make it worth any amount you wish to pledge, from only-available-here signed prints to digital downloads of the finished film.
At this moment there are 590 backers ...(including Steve Wozniak (!!), my cute little parents & Neil himself who blogs about it
HERE.)
I want to see this story unfold...
Don’t you?

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE



here's Christopher talking about his project:




ps. Happy almost birthday to you, dear Neil...


for the month of November, any $10 purchase will get a free AMERICAN GODS sticker, drawn byJouni Koponen (who blogs about the AMERICAN GODS weekend here)
our little Viking has substituted runes for stars...see the birthday boy holding it here:



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pps. I will get a blog up about the adventures of miss Quiche Lorraine & I this skatehappy week over at furrytiger, soon!