M dot Strange is a director who is silently on the come up. If you've heard of him chances are your thinking outside the box. Originally from California M dot is redefining what is to be an independent filmmaker. With his skill set he could easily land a job at a reputable post production facility doing animation work but he is sticking to his guns and putting his visions on screen via the internet.
I have mad respect for this brother because he is a true artist in every since of the word. He first appeared on the radar with his innovative film "We Are the Strange" which premiered at Sundance Film Festival in 2007. Budgeted at $20,000 M dot created a unique animation style called St8 anime---inspired by 8 bit Nintendo video games. His style has been shamelessly ripped off by many copy cats but he continues to innovate.
His latest film "Heart String Marionette" has taken five years of his life to develop. M dot has bypassed studio distribution and decided to released the film himself over the internet. He has uploaded a try before you buy version and a premium download for $5.00. According to his website he's sold 438 downloads as of this posting.
M dot is interested in moving onto other projects as of now but I suspect that "Heart String Marionette" could have done better if it was marketed a little bit more. I haven't seen the whole film so I wont do a review but I feel that most of his fans like him as a person and artist. I believe they will over look the narrative quality of his work and respect the effort.
M dot's work isn't going away and cannot be ignored if he keeps putting stuff out there and doesn't quit he will reach his goals. Countless unknown artists have inspiration to draw from thanks to M dot's work.
In numbers obsessed Hollywood it's refreshing to see someone creating visual art for the love but I hope his work finds a way to the big leagues.
No comments:
Post a Comment