Blue Ridge Bloodfest - My June Pick

And so, after the usual hand wringing, I have made my June selection for my "Shine Some Light" project to fund culture that I believe in. June's selection is a horror film festival that is the brain child of a child, a young man named Ammon Winder all of 12 years of age. Full disclosure, Ammon is the son of some old friends of mine (his Mom, RoseMarie has a great blog called "Random Acts of Poverty"), so he had a head start, but his story would have won me over regardless of his connections. The Blue Ridge Bloodfest is in it's second year and will be held in Charlottesville, Va. on the weekend of August 24-26. I didn't attend last year, but I hope to be there this year. From what I see of last year's program, it looks like Ammon is programming independent filmmakers both short and feature length films. There is both a web site and a Facebook page that you can visit for updates or if you have a horror film, send it in! Currently, the fundraiser has eight days left and nearly $2,000 left to raise. Contributions start at only $10, so I encourage you to get onboard and throw the lad a tenner.

OK HW

My May Pick for the "Shine Some Light" Project

Phil Tippett's "MAD GOD" on Kickstarter

I am encouraged by the response to my first month of the "Shine Some Light" project to find and fund worthy creative projects. I have had some wonderful interactions with some truly creative folks and it will make it difficult to make a choice. Please note that I am a tad behind, making my May pick in June, but better late then never. So how to choose? While thinking on how I will sort through the options, I came across a new Twitter friend's blog post on just that subject. Camilla Castree writes quite lucidly about why she is willing to put her hard earned money behind a project. This bit here hit a chord with me;


Its not the perks, although that’s a great bonus – in some cases an incredibly generous bonus – but the feeling of making a difference with the PEOPLE you ADMIRE and who have PASSION about their project.


Passion. That is what attracts me as well, as it helps me keep my own creative juices fired up. Please take a moment and read her entire posting, especially if you have ever considered throwing in on a Kickstarter or IndieGoGo project. >> Camilla Castree's blog post, "Why I back a project"

Here is the list of people whom responded. These are folks that followed my simple criteria for being considered.

1. Follow me on Twitter. >>Weaverwerx on Twitter
2. Send me a link to their Kickstarter or IndieGoGo project.

Here is a list of who responded;

1. Once A Week Film Fest - web site (IndieGoGo - project closed)
2. "String Theory" a documentary on Levi Weaver (IndieGoGo - ends 6/4/12)
3. Silver Beech Studios - Ipad Accessory (Kickstarter page not launched yet)
4. "Fat Kid Rules the World" film (Kickstarter - ends 6/16/12)
5. Tom Lancaster - "Nothing is Certain"- (Kickstarter project closed - new one for July pending)

And that was it. Out of those, only two of the projects are currently available, "String Theory" and "Fat Kid...". So for the month of May, my backing goes to..........

"String Theory" a documentary on Levi Weaver!

Now I did say I would pledge $25 a month, but there is no $25 option, so I will be going in for $35!

Levi Weaver is currently touring and will actually be playing in my town Monday night at a joint called H20! I am looking forward to meeting him and hearing his music.

Finally, I included the photo from Phil Tippett's Kickstarter project "Mad God" because I also backed it in May. Phil Tippett is an animator and special effects genius behind tons of classic Sci-Fi movies, including "The Empire Strikes Back", "Robo Cop" and "Starship Troopers". I didn't make his project my official May pick as he isn't participating in this project.

Be sure to spread the word amongst your pals to send me their project links for June!

OK HW

Shining Some Light...

A couple of posts back I talked about a Kickstarter project my friend Barbara Nesbitt has launched to raise funds to record an album. She's about halfway to her goal and has a little over three weeks to go, so if you want to be part of helping bring some great music to the world, check out her project and consider throwing something in.

"Light and Brick" by Casey Gwinn

Even before there was a Kickstarter or the internet, I have supported other artist's projects. The mad ones, the creative ones are my tribe and by my code, we have to help each other out, show up for the opening, the concert, the reading, hold the mic boom or light, make sandwiches, roll around in the dirt after midnight to get THE SHOT, whatever it takes and I've done all that and more. Art is never made in a vacuum, even if that artist is alone, there are always unseen hands moving in the air behind their head, phantom tongues wagging in their ear, some lifting up and others tearing down. I hope to add a pat on the back or some helpful praise and comments to see that work gets done. Artists, and I use that label in an all encompassing way to include writers, film makers, poets, musicians; you know who you are, also need money. Art is made in this world and of this world and money is the air we breath, the electricity that keeps things going. Web sites like Kickstarter and IndieGoGo have been creating opportunities for artists to fund their projects and connect with a community of likeminded people. We are all patrons now. The tide can rise for us all and there's plenty of room on the boat.

With all of that in mind, I've hit on the idea to commit to investing $25 a month in a new creative project through the end of 2012. So, if you have something going on and would like to get my support, all I ask is you follow me on Twitter (@weaverwerx) and send me a link to your project. I am registered with both Kickstarter and InideGoGo and will only consider projects listed on there. I will make my decision by the end of every month and reserve the right to make my choice at anytime during the month. If I do choose your project, not only will you get my money, but I'll also help to spread the word by blogging and tweeting about it. I am ready to shine my light on your efforts, so send me what you got!

Special thanks' to my good friend Casey Gwinn for use of his photo. He has a wonderful photo blog called COGfoto, please check it out!

OK HW