Everybody loves the movies. The art of cinema captivates every age, race, gender of human kind. For some, the infatuation with the moving image cannot be shaken and the ties of affection shape our past, present and future. In this case, movies have transcended the human race to captivate a silent monkey named Looee, and like a movie, a magical and mysterious object turns Looee’s world upside down as he accidentally travels through time and space. Welcome to Bulb. 

At ORWAV, there has always been a soft spot held for all things animated, due to the ability to connect young and old through the universal themes that run throughout this genre of films. As we’ve often noted in our CEL Mates series, the animation genre abounds with innovation and excitement, often containing more potential than any other genre. With Bulb, this affection and imagination appears to have been infused deep into its core.

Courtesy of: Radicle Films

Courtesy of: Radicle Films

So who and what is Bulb? First of all we have Looee, who, as has already been established, is a monkey. Looee’s day-to-day life revolves working with Dr. Ed in his underground laboratory. However, when he signs off from his daily shifts, Looee utilises all his free time to develop gadgets and technical marvels to allow him to pursue his affection for film. Whilst Looee’s fascination lies with film, Dr. Ed is fascinated by the prospect of time travel enraptured with the idea since his youth. He will do anything to achieve his dream. When Dr. Ed sends his loyal assistant Looee away through time and space, Looee doesn’t return as happy as he left off. This triggers Looee to destroy a crucial part of Dr. Ed’s machine but neither could have calculate the repercussions…

Courtesy of: Radicle Films

Courtesy of: Radicle Films

The sweet sounding story, free from vocals, appears to be a charming and heartwarming tale. Coupled with a strong visual aesthetic, Bulb holds plenty of potential to soar beyond its Kickstarter roots. Fascinatingly, Bulb is an ambitious 3D animated movie. There’s no obvious financial gains for this choice with no cinematic distribution lined up. Instead there appears to be a genuine attempt to utilise the format to enhance the humour and depth of the relationship of the two main characters. This format will be used to allow “the 3D characters to move within a 3D environment”, that will then be overlaid with 2D single-frame drawings to create a stunning, unique visual finish.

Considering all of the necessary work required for the project, it’s understandable to see why Bulb have turned to Kickstarter for help. With a goal of €5,400 to raise, the money will be used to stretch across all areas of the film’s production. In particular, the production team note how they wish to use the funds to increase the overall visual quality of the final composition, record the necessary sound effects as well as cover entry fees for upcoming festivals, with the 2015 Hong Kong Film Festival acting as the foremost goal for the team.

Courtesy of: Radicle Films

Courtesy of: Radicle Films

As with all Kickstarters, the risks and responsibilities section is a must. Usually filled with nonsense and ill-thought out eventualities, Bulb takes their responsibility seriously. They openly admit that this is their first project together and that the journey from A to B has not been smooth. Beginning in June 2014, the project has faced rendering troubles throughout, causing the project to fall behind schedule. As well as this, the budget for the production is, in their own words, “very low”. It’s never easy to find individuals happy to give up hours upon hours of employment for little or no reward but luckily, this tightly bound team of eight are happy to do so. Their passion and devotion to the project is seemingly just reward for their creative efforts.

There’s a sense throughout the project that they are bashful to ask for funds. The hope that they could finish their project by themselves is obvious. Nevertheless team Bulb’s enthusiasm and hope for this project is infectious, with the sense that this is simply another challenge that they will overcome to achieve their dream. As always, we heartily recommend you check out their Kickstarter efforts here, and check out their video feature below.  If you’ve got a project you would like featured on Making It Big, get in touch via the About Us page.