Tag: Crowdfund This

Crowdfund This: ‘Nightmare Code’

by Derek Kraneveldt

This is a very cool project, and is most definitely a film that I’d love to see completed.

Nightmare Code utilizes surveillance cameras, PC cam, video call capture and eyeglasscam to tell the story of a troubled software start-up that is creating an advanced form of behavior recognition software capable of reading the thoughts and feelings of people on camera regardless of what they’re actually saying.

The team behind the project has been working on the film for more than two years, and they’re getting close to the finish line, but they need our help if they’re going to cross it. The film features a ton of talent that have worked on a multitude of other projects, including The Walking Dead, Castle, CSI, Nip/Tuck, X-Men: The Last Stand, Parenthood, Mad Men, The FP, True Blood, and plenty more, so there are some absolutely fantastic people involved here.

The team is looking for $30,000 to finish the film, and with two weeks left they’re sitting at 52% of that goal. Here’s the breakdown of where this money is set to be used:

20140225231621-Where_your_money_goes_graphic-01

As always, there are plenty of fantastic backer rewards up for grabs, but Nightmare Code also features a unique one. While lots of crowd funding projects offer backers the opportunity to be in a film, it usually requires the backer to be located in a certain area; because of the unique way that Nightmare Code is filmed and presented, backers can record their segments from anywhere. Pretty cool, huh? Other perks include t-shirts, digital downloads of the film and its soundtrack, signed posters, screening invitations, producer credits, and more!

You can take a look at the campaign video for Nightmare Code below, and head here to back the project!

Crowdfund This: ‘The Walking Dead: The Prison’ Board Game!

by Derek Kraneveldt

I’m a big board game player, so this is definitely a campaign that I can get behind.

The team behind The Walking Dead: The Board Game (not the Cryptozoic title based on the AMC series, but the Z-Man Games game based on the comic) has developed an intriguing sequel called The Walking Dead: The Prison.

The game will feature tons of Charlie Adlard’s excellent The Walking Dead art, and will showcase issues 13-24 of the comic, the “discovery of, fight to clean out, and struggle to control the prison.”

Here’s a brief overview of the game, straight from the title’s campaign page:

The Walking Dead The Prison – Board Game is a new, stand-alone board game in which you and up to five of your friends take on the role of one of the six leaders of the group from Robert Kirkman’s The Walking Dead: Rick, Tyreese, Glenn, Dale, Andrea, and Michonne.

The goal of the game? To earn enough Leadership Points to take control of the entire group of survivors.

To earn Leadership Points, they must fight their way through the zombie swarm in the prison yard, bash their way through the prison itself, reach their destination and secure the area. Along the way, players will have to collect additional resources, rescue Followers, and as expected…fight zombies.

Anyone who has played the first game will be familiar with many of the features and mechanics in this sequel.

The Walking Dead The Prison – Board Game  is both a stand-alone game and an expansion module to the first game, easily converting the first game into one half of an epic.

Now, the game’s development is almost complete, but rather than taking a traditional publishing route, the team has taken to Kickstarter to finish things up. By doing this, it gives fans an opportunity to get their hands on the game before it hits store shelves, and also offers levels of customization that wouldn’t be possible using traditional publishing methods.

As always, there are a ton of awesome rewards up for grabs, including copies of the game, tickets to Stan Lee’s Comikaze and the game’s launch party, custom cards, and a lot more. Here’s a breakdown of all of the available rewards:

Rewards

I can’t wait for this to release. The project is currently sitting at $12,021 of its $81,100 goal, and has 27 days left to reach its target. Take a look at the Kickstarter video for The Walking Dead: The Prison below, and let us know if you’ll be backing!

Crowdfund This: ‘Saving Throw – An Instructional Webseries About RPGs’

by Derek Kraneveldt

This may be the most useful project that we’ve ever featured on Crowdfund This.

RPG’s are freaking cool. And I don’t mean Pokemon X/Y or Final Fantasy XIV or Bravely Default (even though I have all three in front of me right now and they’re all fantastic), I’m talking tabletop; Dungeons and Dragons, Pathfinder, Warhammer, etc. Sadly, not nearly enough people have any idea where to get started when it comes to tabletop gaming.

I’m, unfortunately, one of those people. About a year and a half ago, I decided that I wanted to get into D&D. I went out and bought a shit-ton of miniatures (awesome deal on Craigslist), picked up the (now unavailable) Dungeons and Dragons Starter Set, grabbed a bunch of my friends, and… we got as far as character creation. Sure, I loved every second of it, but as soon as it came time to actually play the game, play our characters, and actually role-play, everything fell apart; people got silly, we had no idea what we were doing (even with the instructions, it was tough), and we only attempted to play one more time before much of the group decided that it wasn’t for them.

I’ve still been interested in the game since that time, but simply haven’t had an opportunity (or group) to really learn about what I was doing (and what any of it meant). Saving Throw may be just what I (and you) need to really figure things out.

Just take a look at the Kickstarter video below to get an idea of what it’s all about:

It’s really a simple idea, and I’m not sure why it hasn’t been done before, but here it is: an instructional series on how to play tabletop RPG’s. I’m in!

The project describes itself as “an instructional web-series and website, designed to teach you not only how to play, but why. We love pen & paper role-playing games and want to share that passion with you, your friends, and the world.

With over 40 years of history, RPGs can be an intimidating prospect for some geeks. And with new systems emerging each year knowing the choices and rules becomes daunting. That’s where Saving Throw comes in!

Saving Throw will teach you what you need to get started in a friendly and engaging manner where YOU are in control. Episodes will be bite-sized and shareable because we know you’ve got that life-thing that keeps getting in the way!”

'Saving Throw' hosts Ivan Van Norman, Amy Vorpahl, and Ben Dunn
‘Saving Throw’ hosts Ivan Van Norman, Amy Vorpahl, and Ben Dunn

The project is already at $6978 of its $8000 goal (a great start), but the group (including Ben Dunn, who you may recognize around these parts) has a variety of stretch goals in place to take Saving Throw even further, and you can be a part of it!

As always, there are plenty of awesome rewards up for grabs, including, shirts, bags, PDF’s, custom-written songs, producer credits, and a lot more! You probably always wanted to learn how to play RPG’s (or didn’t know that it interested you until now), and here’s your chance! You can check out the campaign page for Saving Throw here, and be sure to let us know if you back the project!

Already a tabletop gamer? What’s you’re favourite system? What are your thoughts on D&D Next? Sound out below!

Crowdfund This: ‘Ghost Source Zero’

by Derek Kraneveldt

This is damn cool.

Today, Machinima released the very first episode of Ghost Source Zero, a neat new sic-fi by original G.I. Joe Writer Larry Hama and Nerd Rage Productions founder Mark Cheng.

The project “takes place in the midst of the Artificial Intelligence Revolution. With Americans watching on their Living Wall flat screens and Genius Phones, Homeland Security’s Cyber Crime Division is the only thing trying to stop the ‘bots and ‘borgs from taking over, and they are so underfunded they have to allow a reality show crew to embed with them just to meet payroll-­‐ forget about the pensions. But are the robots really trying to usurp humanity? Or are they just seeking a seat at the table?”

Sounds cool, huh? Well, why not watch the pilot below, and look below to learn how you can help Ghost Source Zero continue. Yep, the creators want to make even more.

http://youtu.be/V6empiP5F44

Hama and Cheng would love to turn Ghost Source Zero into a film serial, so they’ve taken to Kickstarter to raise the funds. The campaign has raised a fantastic $29, 754 of its $65, 000 goal in just a few days, so it’s well on its way to becoming a reality.

The creators are looking for money to fund:

-production coordination
-locations
-travel
-audio engineering
-legal
-food
-YOUR MONEY WILL GO TOWARDS MAKING THIS FILM – AND OUR DREAMS – COME TRUE!!

Ghost Source Zero looks like a great project, and is certainly one that I’d love to see come to fruition. As always, there are plenty of amazing rewards up for grabs, including digital downloads, posters, Blu-Rays, credits, tours, costumes, and more! There’s some seriously cool stuff here.

Take a look at the project’s Kickstarter video below, and if you’re interested, head here to back the film!

Crowdfund This: ‘Condtradiction’ – An Interactive Murder Mystery Movie!

by Derek Kraneveldt

This is super cool, and not even a little bit like Night Trap (the project even states it in its FAQ):

Screen Shot 2013-12-10 at 5.38.15 PM

Contradiction is an all new murder-mystery game that uses  hundreds of short live-action video clips to create a fully interactive crime drama, in which you can move around freely, interrogate characters and trap them into confessions.

The game’s creator, Tim Follin, is no stranger to the industry. He spent years as a game musician writing music for consoles such as the ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, NES, SNES, and beyond, and for games like Ecco the Dolphin, Starsky & Hutch, and Lemmings. Now it’s Tim’s turn to create his own world, in a medium that’s never really been successful before.

Contradiction
The game’s current build running on an iPad

According to the project’s Kickstarter page, the game allows you to “move around at will, investigate locations, collect evidence and make notes. But the heart of the game is interviewing characters, asking them questions and spotting the lies they tell. It’s a system that’s designed to make you feel like you’re actually having a conversation that flows as quickly and naturally as it would in real life.”

It sounds like an extremely ambitious idea, and one that I really hope comes to fruition. Tim is looking for a very reasonable £10,000, and is already sitting at £1562 with 26 days remaining. He’s got a excellent shot at being successful, and of course, we can help! There are plenty of awesome rewards available for backers, including the finished product, blooper reels, your name in the credits, game music, or you could even name one of the game’s characters.

Take a look at Contradiction‘s Kickstarter video below, and head to the campaign page for more info (and of course to donate)! This is one project that I’d really love to see happen.

Crowdfund This: Jon Schnepp’s ‘Unicrom: The Unicorn Barbarian’

by Laura

As you probably know, here at Geekscape we’re huge fans of Jon Schnepp.

You’ve surely seen (or are at least aware of) some of his previous work like Metalocalypse and Grimm Fairy Tales, and maybe you even supported the Kickstarter for his upcoming documentary, The Death of ‘Superman Lives’: What Happened? I can confidently say that you’ve never seen anything like this.

Schnepp’s latest baby is an incredible-looking, what-the-fuck inducing animated film/series titled Unicrom: The Unicorn Barbarian. The official campaign page for Unicrom states that it’s “A surreal insano animated “Thundarr on Acid” adventure, this f’ed up feature film will force funnel funny until your brain explodes!!!”

After watching the project’s Kickstarter video, that’s clearly an accurate description.

Schnepp is looking for a reasonable $84,000 to fund a pilot episode, while an additional 9 episodes (completing the first season and also acting as a feature film) will cost an additional $45,000 each. This means that the total goal for the complete season is a hefty (but definitely worth it) $489,000. There’s even an opportunity for a secret Brony episode if the campaign raises enough funds!

Unicrom: The Unicorn Barbarian will feature an astonishing voice cast that consists of Mark Hamill (Mark freaking Hamill), Dana Snyder, Laraine Newman, Martin Star, and Bobcat Goldthwait (to name a few). The series sounds and looks absolutely incredible, and is a Kickstarter that I’ll surely be backing.

As always, there are some fantastic rewards in store for backers. You can earn everything from downloads, DVD’s and Blu-Ray’s, to Unicrom toys, posters, and even spots on the show! I saw some of Schnepp’s The Death of ‘Superman Lives’: What Happened? toys at last week’s Comikaze Expo, and they were definitely something that I wish I had.

Take a look at the Kickstarter video for Unicrom: The Unicorn Barbarian below, and head here to back! Be sure to let us know if you’ll be taking part in the campaign!

Crowdfund This: ‘Anna’, An Independent Horror Film Inspired By True Events

by Derek Kraneveldt

Based on the short included in the Kickstarter video, this project definitely looks like one worth backing.

It’s called Anna, and it’s a horror film based on true events by Justing Lareau. Anna follows the journey of Dr. Miller, a man who’s life drastically changes when he is visited by a teenage girl displaying the same bizarre symptoms to a past case; a case that continues to haunt him. Accepting that possession exists will be his most difficult challenge, but his fight is not only to accept possession and save the life of an innocent girl, but he will have to confront demons of his own in his old house. The humanity of the story and the dynamic relationship between Dr. Miller and the entity is sure to take you on a terrifying roller-coaster ride of epic proportions.

The project is set for production in Watseka, Illinois in June of next year, but it needs your help. To ensure that Anna becomes the best film that it can be, Lareau and Mulberry Street Films have set a reasonable campaign goal of $25,000. These funds will be used for visual FX, sound FX, and sound design, which of course are some of the most important aspects of a horror film (we’ve all seen horror movies with shitty sound, and it absolutely ruins them).

Of course, there are some great rewards in it for backers. Everything from DVD’s, downloads, t-shirts, autographs, tours, parties, and more! It’s a really awesome bunch of rewards, for a really awesome-looking project!

Take a look at the (creepy) Kickstarter video for Anna below (followed by an interview with the actress who will take on the role of Anna, Alexis Johnson). Head here to back, and be sure to let us know what you think!

http://youtu.be/cURj1unkSv8

Crowdfund This: Season Two Of Sean Aston’s ‘Vox Populi: Voice Of The ‘Occasionally Interested’ People’

by Derek Kraneveldt

This one’s already funded, but with six days left of its campaign I know that we can help Vox Populi hit its stretch goal!

You’ll definitely recognize actor/director Sean Aston. He’s stared in a plethora of films including The Goonies, The War of the Roses, Toy Soldiers, and most notably The Lord of the Rings trilogy (as the very important Samwise Gamgee). Did you know that Sean also hosts a discussion-based radio show?

That show is Vox Populi: Voice of the ‘Occasionally Interested’ People. It’s is a forum for politics, government & world events, divergent viewpoints and a high standard of civil discourse. Just like Geekscape, Vox Populi airs on the fantastic ToadHop network, which has a large archive of previously aired episodes.

970fb444862b9dc65880be8ab6bfe0c2_large

As the Vox Populi Kickstarter states, with absolutely no funding they’ve “managed to book National Caliber Guests, for example: U.S. House of Representative Members, & diverse high caliber influencers such as Noam Chomsky & Michael Medved. Everyday people from around the world, people with wildly divergent viewpoints on every topic listen and call in live to the show. After an exhaustive trial period, we are now ready to Launch the Show as a viable competitor in the National Pundit Marketplace. With your help, we are READY FOR PRIME TIME!!!”

Everyone involved with Vox Populi wants to create a bigger, more robust experience, so they’ve taken to Kickstarter in order to fund a fully-produced second season. Money raised from the campaign will be used to create a more secure infrastructure for the series. Staff will be hired, equipment will be purchased, and the show’s quality will increase exponentially. If the Vox Populi stretch goals are met, a full-time producer and part-time social media expert will be hired, and a dedicated Vox Populi app may even be produced (allowing you to listen, call, and text into the show with just a tap)!

a65aefb7e2d35b9ca4872b427e24dc50_large

It’s a great cause, and a very important series. Of course with all things Kickstarter, there are some great rewards available for backers! Exclusive booklets, credits on the show, wristbands, DVD’s, coffee with Sean Aston, and a lot of other great incentives are available.

Again, the project has already been funded, but I’d love for the second season of Vox Populi to be the best it can possibly be, and that means that we’ve got some funding to do! Watch the Kickstarter video for the project below, and head to the official campaign page to back!

Crowdfund This: Help Brad Carter Record An Album Before It’s Too Late!

by Derek Kraneveldt

We usually feature cool geeky projects and films in our ‘Crowdfund This’ column, but this campaign is simply too heartfelt and important to ignore.

Brad Carter is a Los Angeles based actor, artist, stand-up comedian, and guitarist. His name may sound familiar, as Brad’s been somewhat of an internet sensation for the past few months. His story has been featured on countless news outlets, and was even shown on the Today Show.

Brad has a disease called “Essential Tremor”. He’s had brain surgery twice in the past few months, and is going to need even more in the near future. All he wants to do is create a studio album before he can no longer play guitar, and he needs our help to do it.

Take a look at Brad’s Kickstarter video below, and read on for more info.

Heartbreaking, isn’t it?

As you learned in the video, Brad is looking to raise a minimum of $45,000. Here’s the breakdown of the costs associated with his album:

-Producer fee – $2500 x 10 Songs = $25,000
-Studio Time- $300 per day x 20 days = $6,000
-Mixing – $500 per song = $5,000
-Mastering= $1,200
-CD Production= $1,100
-Recording Total = Approximately $38,500

-Then we add in: Kickstarter Fees (5%), Amazon Fees (5%), and team support!

Let’s make it happen. There are plenty of awesome rewards up for grabs, including copies of the album, t-shirts, producer credits, and even private live shows and skateboards signed by Tony Hawk! Brad sounds like an amazing guy, and it would be absolutely incredible to see him able to make his album before it’s too late. If you can’t back, please share this one with your friends!

Brad’s campaign is currently 45% funded, with $20,391 of its $45,000 goal. There’s two weeks left to back, which is plenty of time to see Brad succeed.

Let us know if you’re planning to be a backer on this one!

http://youtu.be/ui-FftYyTJ4

Crowdfund This: Season Two Of Sketch Comedy ‘Watch Immediately’

by Derek Kraneveldt

The entire team at Kill Bosby is absolutely hilarious, and they need your help!

Earlier this year, the sketch comedy group produced a wonderful six episode webseries called Watch Immediately (watch in full here… immediately). The team received an incredible amount of amazing support, comments, and followers, while two main criticisms arose again and again: the show’s sub-par sound and lighting.

Kill Bosby is hard at work writing a second six episode season of Watch Immediately. The first season was funded entirely out of the team’s own pockets, and they’re looking for some help before production of season two begins.

A Kickstarter campaign for Watch Immediately is well underway, and is currently at $3707 of its modest $6000 goal. With 15 days in the campaign remaining, Watch Immediately is making some great progress, and will likely see its goal met and exceeded! All money raised will go towards procuring the much needed sound and lighting equipment, ensuring that season two of Watch Immediately releases with stellar production values.

Take a look at the Watch Immediately Kickstarter video below, and if you like what you see, why not throw them a few bucks? There are plenty of great backer rewards up for grabs, including t-shirts, exclusive podcasts, producer credits, and even a live comedy show in your living room!

Crowdfund This: ‘Iron Sky 2: The Coming Race’

by Shane O'Hare

YEAH BUDDY! This just came across my desk and as SOON as I saw the title I knew I was stoked for it.

The first Iron Sky was a pretty ridiculous concept to begin with. Nazi’s. From the Moon. It was bad, but bad in that good kind of way. It was a super fun, crazy cool looking Sci Fi adventure. I loved every minute of it. This time around they want to go darker and more over the top.

According to their IndieGoGo Page the production of the last film was plagued with problems. From financiers jeopardizing the story to not having complete control over distribution.

This time around they want to make the film exactly the way they want to. They have some lofty goals, and the first round of Crowd Funding starts at $150k! This will secure them a script, proper budgeting, and put together a promo reel.

So if you are interested then head over to their IndieGoGo Page and help out!

Crowdfund This: Michael Reaves’ ‘Blood Kiss’

by Derek Kraneveldt

With talent like this, I wonder just how quickly Blood Kiss is going to hit its goal.

Emmy Award winning writer Michael Reeves has developed an ambitious new film project, but he (and everyone else involved) needs your help if the feature is ever going to see the light of day. The project is called Blood Kiss, a ‘Vamp Noir” film (an entirely new genre) that revolves around detective Joe Belicek, who must solve the murder of a vampire before a deranged killer murders them all.

Inspired by Film Noir, Blood Kiss is set in 1940’s Hollywood, and already has some fantastic names attached to it. Blood Kiss will feature the acting debut of the incredible Neil Gaiman, who had some fantastic words to say about the film’s script:

“Michael sent me the script. I told him, “it’s a terrific script.” and he said, “I want you to act in it.” I replied “There’s nobody else I would act for.”

Blood Kiss will also star writer/director/actor Amber Benson, who is no stranger to vampire media after spending three years as Tara Maclay on Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Some of the cool rewards up for grabs!
Some of the cool rewards up for grabs!

It’s easy to see that Blood Kiss is going to be phenomenal, so let’s help the project get made! The Blood Kiss Kickstarter launched earlier today, and in just a few hours has raked in over $7000. There are some some amazing rewards up for grabs for anyone that contributes to the film, including digital downloads, posters, Blu Rays, premiere tickets, and much, much, more. If Blood Kiss sounds like your cup of tea, head to Kickstarter and pledge, pledge, pledge!

Watch the project’s Kickstarter video below, and don’t forget to check out Blood Kiss on Twitter and Facebook! We’ll be sure to keep you updated on this one as the campaign continues, and as we learn more about it!

Crowdfund This: ‘Nobility’

by Derek Kraneveldt

Are you ready to take back Sci-Fi?

That’s exactly what Cowboy Errant and the rest of the team behind Nobility want to do. The brainchild of Cowboy Errant founder and Science Fiction enthusiast E.J. De la Pena, Nobility is an upcoming Sci-Fi dramedy web-series that’s being dubbed as The Office in space. How has this not been made yet?

The Sci-Fi genre is filled with ripe examples of fan involvement keeping projects (and dreams) alive. From Star Trek conventions molding the franchise into what it is today, to ILM inventing entirely new pieces of technology to make George Lucas’s Star Wars a reality. Nobility aims to be the first Science Fiction project that puts fans front and center. Nobility is for you, and can only happen with you, so why wouldn’t the creative team want you to be involved?

b5fac717d7d490617eacf0c599db311e_large

Just how involved can you be? Straight from the Kickstarter campaign, Nobility promises to  “be in constant communication via social media, have regular podcasts detailing every aspect of production, and we’re even going to open some roles up for fans – for you to truly be a part of the series.”

There are definitely some cool folks attached to Nobility too. First (as mentioned above), series creator and Cowboy Errand founder E.J. De la Pena. He’s been an actor for years, starring in projects like 1996’s Jingle All The Way, to the currently in post-production Starship: Rising. From the Kickstarter video (embedded below) it’s easy to see just how heartfelt E.J. is about the project and how much of a Sci-Fi enthusiast he truly is. The project’s director, Neil Johnson, is no stranger to micro-budget Sci-Fi, and has helmed movies like Humanity’s End and Alien Armageddon. Babylon 5 alumni Claudia Christian has also joined the Nobility in a starring role.

Claudia Christian in 'Babylon 5'
Claudia Christian in ‘Babylon 5’

The project’s test footage looks great, and Nobility has some great folks attached to it, so why not give it a chance? Cowboy Errant is looking for $45’000 to fund the project, and at the time of writing (just over a day into the campaign), it’s sitting at $1126. If you’re a Sci-Fi fan, you can clearly see that E.J. and his team are too, so let’s do all we can to make their dream come true. Being a Kickstarter project, there are of course plenty of incentives up for grabs, including DVD’s, Behind-the-Scenes packages, posters, scripts, and even a few spots on the show.

Check out the project video for Nobility below, and if you like what you see, back the project and share!

Crowdfund This: The ‘Veronica Mars’ Movie EDIT: It’s Funded!

by Derek Kraneveldt

This is absolutely mind-blowing.

Apparently there are a TON of Veronica Mars fans out there, because a just-launched Kickstarter campaign with a goal of $2 000 000 has just hit the 75% mark. According to the official Kickstarter twitter account, this project is the fastest to ever hit $1 million, reaching the milestone in just over four hours.


Now, I’ve never exactly seen the show, so I’m not sure what all of the fuss is about, but there is obviously something very special about Rob Thomas’ creation. Veronica Mars premiered its three-season run in September of 2oo4 and instantly vaulted Kristen Bell into stardom.

Warner Bros. has given its blessing, Kristen Bell is in, and the fans clearly want it. With just under $500 000 to go and 30 days to do it, its pretty safe to say that we’ll be seeing Veronica again soon.

If you’re a fan, you’ll definitely want to head to the project’s Kickstarter page and check it out. A multitude of different incentives are available, including digital downloads of the completed film, DVD’s, and even a speaking role.

Watch Rob’s video regarding the project below, and fund away! Let us know if you’re excited for this one!

EDIT: Well, that’s incredible. The project has met 100% of its funding goal in just over 10 hours. Veronica Mars is back, baby!