Kickstarter

When we launched STRIPPED, we set a Kickstarter goal of $58,000. It was a tightly budgeted, but realistic, amount to finish the film.  And it was intentionally on the low side. See, Kickstarter uses an "all-or-nothing" funding rule: If you raise even $1 less than your goal, you get nothing.  Nothing!  So we intentionally set our minimum low.  

But the outpouring of support was amazing: We reached $58,000 in just six days. And that support gave us the courage to set our sights higher.  So we announced four additions we could make to the budget: Closed Captioning for the Deaf, High-Fidelity Sound (Dolby), Hiring More Animators, and Additional Interviews.  It was a new goal of $110,000 -- to make this film not just great, but extraordinary.  

And the unbelievable part? With just a few days left, it's theoretically possible to get there. You guys have been amazing in your support. Don't stop now! Help the film with one last push:

• 1.) E-mail friends who love comics, and tell them to watch the trailer at http://kck.st/pQSxVq.  That one simple act has immense power, trust us. Your opinion can sway a lot of folks to support the film!
  
• 2.) Please give one last public shout-out!  Everything helps: Retweeting, Facebooking, blogging. And to make it easy, here are some easy links to use: Retweetin': http://twitter.com/#!/davekellett/status/106087506113601536 
  Google+: https://plus.google.com/109311112384460791833/posts/1kkpurYHgww
  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sheldoncomics/posts/137575839670147 
• 3.) If you believe in the film, and have the means to add a dollar or two to your donation, that would be amazing.  
  (...And listen: This recession is a cruddy time to ask that. As artists, we know that intimately. So don't even consider it if times are tight. But there might be a few of you who believe in the film enough to add a dollar or two to your pledge….and if you can, know that every bit will make a better film!)

We are IMMENSELY, IMMENSELY GRATEFUL for the outpouring of support you guys have shown.  It's been amazing. YOU'VE been amazing.  

You've placed a lot of trust in us to make a film all comics fans can enjoy.  We are not going to let you down.

Thank you!
Fred 'n Dave

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For those who missed it, here's the budgeting breakdown for the additional items:

• CLOSED CAPTIONING: We want this film to be accessible to everyone! Help us add a closed-captioning option to the DVD.  Additional Budget: $2,500
  
  
• ANIMATIONS: We want to hire independent animators to create snippets and shorts to illustrate points of the film. We had already budgeted for a set amount of AfterEffects, but an increased animation budget will give more work to worthy artists, *and* make the film really shine. Additional Budget: $30,000
  
  
• HIGH-FIDELITY SOUND MASTERING: Good films live and die by their sound quality.  Listen to an indie film, and you'll see what we mean: They often sound terrible. With just a little extra, we can bring this film into Dolby. Additional Budget: $10,000
  
  
• TRAVEL: We've lined up additional interviews with folks like Jeannie Schulz, Mike & Jerry of Penny Arcade, and more. But we'd also still love to sit down with Lalo Alcaraz, Keith Knight, Matt Groening, Garry Trudeau, Randall Munroe, Art Speigelman, and others.  Additional funding will help make those trips possible for our crew and equipment. Additional budget: $10,000