The Texas Filmakers Production Fund

http://www.austinfilm.org/page.aspx?pid=300

Brad, CEO and co founder of Powerhouse recently shared this little gem with me. Lately I have been struggling to find proper funding for my film's orchestral soundtrack, this might just be the ticket. If I can compile my latest shots, add in the shots from Steve Stanchfield and Mel McCann and get Sam Deats to rough out some layouts for the production I think we could have a really solid Leica Reel to show in order to secure the 4 grand needed for the soundtrack.

Things will be kicking into high gear very soon, and I'm still in the process of compiling all I need to send out to my other artists while I tie down more shots from the film.

Posters!

Hello everyone, and my apologies for the long hiatus.

A lot has been happening since my last post. I moved down to Austin TX for a new job, and my friends have all been busy with work, independent projects, and the like. Thankfully things are settling down and I am back full strength on the film.

With this comes two major updates. My composer Aaron Symonds has made a new score sketch for the films soundtrack which will be updated as soon as I can get him a new animatic to look at.

Secondly my good friend Mel Miller has completed the poster for "My Dad the Giant" and it looks stunning! The attention to detail, light, and texture really shows as well as her creativity in finding the right materials like the frame. The color scheme fits my film and explores the renaissance like theme I was going for perfectly. I couldn't be more happy with this picture and for those of you who donated $250 or more you will be receiving one of these in the mail.

Thank you for staying with this project and your continued support. More updates will be coming soon!

Mailing and posters

The buttons finally arrived in the mail, and I can now sit down and begin writing out all the addresses to everyone who donated. There are about 28 in total who are eligible and didn't opt out of prizes. Both came out better than I expected, and I can't wait to finish up my end of the deal (minus those who have DVDs on the way, those wont come out till after my film is released).

Next up is the poster design.
I finished the design and line work for the poster and now I am handing it off to my good friend and amazing artist Mel Miller. She has a knack for coloring, texture, and everything that will make a good poster great! I am very eager to see how it turns out, and I am giving her a good amount of creative freedom to really allow her to push this thing beyond what my simple knowledge of color design would allow.

After my college, CCS, finishes their student show, I plan to start getting back in contact with all the artists who have agreed to help work on my film. The biggest hurdles are going to be the backgrounds and possibly sound design. I am pretty confident about the animation department, and am nearing completion on that end. These next months are going to be interesting, that's for sure.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. :)
Patrick Stannard

Postcards and Buttons

The designs for the postcards and pins have been completed. This is what everyone who has donated $5 or more can expect in the mail once the funds are transfered into my account and I can print these. I will be printing these from Zazzle.com and will then mail them out to the addresses given to me by every0ne who replied to my mass emails.

Button Design

Postcard Design

The Poster design is still a WIP but I will post an update as soon as I finish the preliminary. The DVDs will not be released until my film has been released to festivals. Look for your name in the credits if it hits a festival near you. :)

I have also had a meeting with three new illustrators who have shown interest in hoping onto the "My Dad the Giant" production. They are:
Zach Ares
Karli Cooper
Erika Lavin

I have also received my first color key from Kieth and will be working with him to get the first establishing shot down. Background work will most likely not begin until everyone has finished their finals for this year at CCS, as that has priority in these final weeks of school.

Stay tuned for more updates on the backgrounds, animation, and sound in these coming weeks.
-Patrick Stannard-

We Did it!

With 30 total backers and a combined amount of $2,017 raised, "My Dad the Giant" has officially reached its funding goal!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/308950851/my-dad-the-giant

This couldn't have happened without the generosity of so many people through the amazing kickstarter website. Posters are being made, postcards and pins will go to printing, and DVD boxes will be prepped for when these last 9 days come up. The funding raised will help me purchase supplies, distribution methods, and so much to bring this project to fruition. As promised, to everyone who donated over 10 dollars, you get a big thank you from me here on the production blog!

Special thanks go to:

Amaquieria
Teresa and Brian Stannard
Dennis Ahmer
Fil Romero
Tom Conger
Alex Kain
Marcia and Ron Taylor
Amy Baird
Steve Stanchfield
Chris Carden
Matt Penna
Paul Driver
Jay Nungesser
Baree
Mark King
Simon Tesla
Dwight Williamson II
Charlotte Pouzanoff
Joshua Harrell
Bix707
Matt DeWater
Gary Johnson
Simon
Jay Sorensen
Kevin Johnson
Gregory
Kim Termin

Updates
Stay tuned for more updates as we begin to finish this film. One worth noting here today is a list of possible credits to those who are giving their time to help me complete this project.

Patrick Stannard - Director/Animator
Steve Stanchfield - Animator

Matt Dewatter - Tie Down Artist
Fil Romero - Tie Down Artist

Kevin Grassia - 3D Modeler

Tyler Scarlet - Background Illustration
Don Kilpatrick - Background Illustration
Kieth Newton - Background Art Director
Eric Olson - Background Art Manager

Justin Norman - Sound Engineer
Aaron Symonds - Music Composer
Greg Powell - Personnel Manager.

I will have creative discussions with Aaron Symonds this Sunday to talk about the scratch track and what specific instruments may be needed for the film's orchestra.

Again a big thanks to everyone who has donated not only money, but their time and experience to this project. I could never have dreamed to be able to do this just on my own.

Still chugging along. Tomorrow I will meet with Kevin Ingrassia to discuss work on the 3d environment and try to get some simple camera moves for my two moving shots. I am debating how best to tackle my backgrounds. Thus far I have three possible illustrators who may be willing to help work on the project. Another rout I could go would be to do something similar to 'deep canvas' where I use a 3d background but heavily texture paint it. A mixture of the two may even be an option. Stay tuned for more updates!

Below we have a rough of one of the later scenes in my film where the father tries to escape a falling 20 foot painting.



A good friend and Mentor Steve Stanchfield was nice enough to help me on some shots. Here he has taken some of my keys and added a bit of his own personality to the animation. This is still very rough and I will be going in afterward to put the character on model.

Work continues on finishing up the animation for my film and moving into the 'tie-down'/'clean-up' phase.

I was able to talk to my friend and supporter Doug Stratton, the other day and begin discussion about how else I could promote and fund my project. I plan to hit up the Mitten Movie Project on March 1st and meet with Connie Mangilin, the starter of the festival and the one who contacted me about submitting my film.

In 2010 Doug Stratton interviewed me about my film after I had received the Stratton Scholarship. Many people have asked me about my career in art, my internship, and my film and here I discuss it all. You can find a video of it here:



or check it out at TheStrattonFoundation.org.

After Steve Stanchfield finishes his shots and I can talk with Kevin Ingrassia, I should have enough material to complete a fully animated Lyka Reel. Keep an eye out for it on the blog.