Kickstarter

Hello everyone! So here we are, about a year out from our original funding requests. We have had some changes- including the tragic loss of our lead actress last summer, a change from a live action to an animated format, the hospitalization of my mother (and subsequent recovery), our animator's sudden (and very much welcome) deluge of contracts in December which lead to Firedust taking a backseat, finding voice actors all the way from South Africa (which lead to lots of transatlantic mail), a pretty terrible back injury, fiddling with soundtrack, fighting with the audio provider to get access to the song, and the chaos of my PhD program. Needless to say, it's been a heartbreaking, uplifting, hectic year.

Through everything- the funeral, the hospitals, the announcements of format changes, the promotions, and the long bouts of radio silence as we worked at this project, you placed your full faith in me and in our animator, Zee Bashew. That has meant the world to both of us as we fight through life's ups and downs to finish this and do it right.

We are now left in post-production. Zee has all the animation work done, is essentially done with the coloring, and is now left with the task of fine-tuning the voice synching, cleaning up the soundtrack, and generally buffing this gem til it glows.

Next, in April, I will send out our first package- a semi-complete gem which actually made me stand up and cheer the first time I saw it (I am still trying to figure out how to attach video files on here, and kickstarter has stubbornly refused- so in light of this delightful, and at this point rather predictable technical problem, I will upload onto the Firedust facebook page).

Our goal is to have this project completed by the end of May. We appreciate all of your patience, passion, and interest. We are working hard, and we can't wait to send each of you a finished project. Through all of the sadness, the joy, the chaos, and the normal challenges of life, you have been wonderful supporters. We will never forget it.

Best,
Tegan

Hello Everyone!

With the semester over and some major project setbacks fully resolved (including voice actor changes, storyboarding shifts, and the normal chaos of life), I am pleased to report that we are in the process of wrapping up work on Firedust. We will be sending out copies of the DVD, maps, an interview from the animator and myself, and for a few of our key top-tier donors, a signed Teeshirt and a copy of the revised novel in January.

I have loved every step of this process, and appreciate your patience in the past 9 months, through some difficult losses, some major project shifts, and artistic transitions. You have made something wonderful possible, and each of you will forever be in my heart as I continue to tell this story.

Best,

Tegan

Hello everyone! We are moving along smoothly, with Zee working on the animation. We expect production to be done in October, roughly. As many of you may have noticed, individuals at the $10 level received surveys in May recording their contact information, which lead to them receiving their maps. For those of you donating at the $25-$100 level, surveys will go out in October to collect your contact information to send you a map, and the DVD, in later October/ November. For those donating at the highest levels, we will send a survey in December, and prepare teeshirts, maps, and the DVD- with the book coming (depending on Lulu's printing process, shipping period, and the good grace of my Editor), the book will come in January. 

I can't thank each and every one of you enough for helping to make this trailer a reality! Take care, and have a safe and productive fall!

Best,

Tegan

Hello everyone! I am shipping out the maps (after a variety of printing issues caused a few delays) tomorrow or Wednesday. 

As some of you may know, we have transitioned from a live action format to an animated format for the trailer. This decision was made partially based on resource and equipment constraints and partially based on the expanded capacity to create fantasy elements such as monsters/swords/magic inherent to the medium compared to live action. Leading this process is the immensely talented Zee Bashew. We will be releasing a demo reel sometime in July/ early August. I can't wait to share the results with all of you- the designs are absolutely gorgeous, and I can say with full confidence that this trailer is going to blow you away.