Approximately two years ago,
Matt McUsic (producer) and
Joel Schroeder (director) of this film project contacted me asking about doing an interview in Los Angeles. At the time of they were interviewing I wasn't in LA so I wasn't much help. However, they've kept in touch with me, giving me updates on
DEAR MR. WATTERSON. Now that the film is nearly done, I mentioned the film to a couple of people I know who are very interested in displaying
DEAR MR. WATTERSON in their theater.
This is a film I would love to see. I'm sure that many of you feel the same way. If you feel compelled to help with a pledge, bravo! If you want to offer support by sending these folks a note to that effect, I have no doubt that they would appreciate the kind words. If you would like to be contacted for a possible interview, let them know!
Here is the Facebook message I received from Joel Schroeder earlier today:
Subject: 15 days to go for Dear Mr. Watterson
In the last 75 days, 257 Calvin & Hobbes fans--mostly complete strangers--have pledged a little over $17,000 for "Dear Mr. Watterson."
Thank you so much to those of you who have contributed, helping to give this film a huge boost. We believed that fans would flock to support this project, and "Dear Mr. Watterson" is now the 21st most popular project on http://www.facebook.com/l/fba81;Kickstarter.com, out of hundreds of projects! Greater participation will make the project even more visible in the Kickstarter community.
With 15 days left to raise money on Kickstarter, we want to go all out and make every minute of fundraising count.
Considering how quickly we reached our initial goal, it isn't impossible to finish off this fundraising drive by actually doubling that amount and hitting $24,000 if we can finish as strong as we started.
The more we raise right now, the more likely we'll have the flexibility to be able to travel to interview cartoonists such as Jef Mallet of "Frazz," Richard Thompson of "Cul de Sac," Jim Davis of "Garfield," Bill Amend of "FoxTrot," Stephen Pastis of "Pearls Before Swine," and other cartoonists living all over the country.
Our Facebook group has over 3,600 members, and this may be your last chance to support the film so easily--you've already got a Facebook account to sign into Kickstarter, so all you need is an http://www.facebook.com/l/fba81;Amazon.com account. Pledging at Kickstarter guarantees you'll get exclusive updates as we continue production, which will include occasional previews of interviews and scenes from the film.
And there are great perks when you support through Kickstarter: for instance, a gift of $75 includes a credit in the film and a DVD signed by the crew, including a disc of special features.
We hope you're inspired to make a pledge, and please spread the word about "Dear Mr. Watterson" so that we can complete our fundraiser with a bang.
Here's the link:
http://www.facebook.com/l/fba81;www.kickstarter.com/projects/fingerprintfilms/dear-mr-watterson-a-cinematic-exploration-of-ca
We'd love to see our number of backers climb to 400 or 500, and we can't do that without your help!
This is a film that will explore the magical world that Bill Watterson shared with us. Thank you so much for helping us to make it happen.
Joel
p.s. Oh, and check out page 18 of the March issue of Wired--we got a mention!
It started at the Toonfest some 6 or 7 years ago.
As a part of the art exhibit, I brought some new, older pieces from my portfolio including two large airbrushed pieces from my work-in-progress, MARTIANS — THE SEARCH FOR INTELLIGENT LIFE. One of the two featured one of the Martians sitting at the breakfast table, sporting a stripped bathrobe, a pair of pink fuzzy slippers, reading the morning edition of MARTIAN CHRONICLE and a steaming hot cup of radioactive coffee near by.
Between events, I was standing outside the Masonic Hall watching the quiet. As I recall, everybody was at the Uptown for the cartoonists presentations. You remember those. :-) This fellow walked up looking a bit lost. He was maybe a year or two older than me, wearing one of those caps that you'd picture a middle aged gentleman wearing while tooling around in his 50s MG-TD. I said, "Hi," and he reciprocated. He asked if I was one of the cartoonists.
"Yes, I am," I replied.
"Have I seen your work?" he asked.
"Probably not as most of my work is freelance and rarely gets into newsprint," I said. "But I can show you some of my works, if you like."
We walked into the Hall and I pointed to my work.
He was, and still is as far as I know, John Tibbetts, professor of English at KU or KSU. He walked around the exhibits, stopping at the MARTIAN CHRONICLE piece.
He said, "I like this."
"Thanks," I said.
"Has Ray seen it?" he asked.
Looking quizzically I asked, "Ray?"
"Bradbury."
"I seriously doubt it as it hasn't been published and I don't know Mr. Bradbury," I responded.
Still gazing at the piece, he said, "I think he'd like it."
"Well, I hope so, but as I say, I don't know him so I couldn't say for certain."
He replied with a sense of authority, "Well I do and I think he would."
"You know him?" I asked with only a mild touch of celebrity worship.
"Yes. Would you like his address?"
"Ah YES!" I responded like a dumb-founded teenager.
He promptly gave me Ray Bradbury's home address and phone number.
Once I got home I wrote Mr. Bradbury a letter, explaining the chance meeting with Professor Tibbetts and enclosing a copy of the MARTIAN CHRONICLE piece. Within 10 days he wrote back, thanking me for the note and the copy of the artwork. In my letter, I asked if we might meet the next time I was in LA. He said he would love to and encouraged me to get in touch with him upon arrival. Soon thereafter, I was in LA, staying at a friend's in Valencia (just up the I-5 from the City of Angels). I called Ray only to find that he was asleep and wouldn't be up until after 11:00 a.m. and I should try back.
We missed each other.
When I got home, I wrote him again a time or two. His last letter to me arrived in the mail on the day of my dad's memorial service. I had arranged the service, his friends gathered to send him off. I spoke from the heart about my dad and how he valued his friends and what they meant to him. It's been said that entertainers can lose as much as 10-15 pounds during a performance. You know, singers, dancers, musicians, actors, etc. I felt as though I was now among their ranks. Before going inside to crash, I got the mail and amid the bills, junk mail, and such was a letter from Ray. It was exactly what I needed on that day. It was fairly long and just a very nice read.
I truly wish we had met at his home. That would have been a memory never to be forgotten. I've loved his writings since I was in jr. high and took a class in science fiction writing. The piece we started with and eventually was the focus of the entire class was THE MARTIAN CHRONICLES.
At my first Comic-Con, I did sit in on the conversation between Ray and his life-long best friend, Ray Harryhausen. That was incredible! But it was in Room H at the San Diego Convention Center; a room designed to comfortably house roughly 8,000 people. Hardly an intimate setting. It was a packed house!
That's my Ray Bradbury story...
