Dear crowd,
The book is out! Have a look at the preview and click the order button, not just to help financing the movie but to get your copy of this fantastic, illustrated story!
On my way to the pub I bumped into these handsome zombies. They were stumbling passed my studio in Arnhem. One of them was kind enough to help me with some research on apples, for the Apple Tree movie. Thanks, Zomb!
I was cycling from my cabin in the woods to my studio in town when I noticed this little church, ‘hidden away from city static’ as it says in the poem. Using the camera om my cell phone I shot this short impression. This will be my Apple Tree church! It’s already featuring in the book illustrations.
Now you can go and have a walk through the Apple Tree set! It’s beautiful. Here’s the exact location.
The miniature sets will be extended using so called matte paintings. In the good old days this was done by placing a pane of glass between the camera and the partly built set, for instance the ground floor of a sky scraper. An artist would then come in and paint the missing part of the building on the glass. These guys could paint very well and very fast! The result was a shot of a full sized sky scraper with actors coming in and out of the front door. There was no telling what was painted and what was real.
I have always liked the matte paintings that didn’t quite work. The ones that were too unrealistic or painted poorly. Fot Under The Apple Tree I want use lots of matte paintings. Not on glass, for today the computer serves as glass windows. Or an apple for that matter.
So I am looking for a digital painter who can extend the shots that come out of the stop motion camera. If you are a fine artist and you’re interested in working on this film, please contact us! It doesn’t matter where you come from, we’ll be collaborating over the internet.
There will be more jobs later on in the production process.
A book? Yes, the Apple Tree poem is going to be published as a beautiful little book, containing the entire story in hilarious rhyme, lightened with illustrations that will guarantee the weirdest dreams. And buying this little gem will help fund the movie! But more on that later.
I have started work on the book illustrations. Trying to loosen the muscles after so much writing. I haven’t decided on the style yet and I want to improve on composition. Right now it looks too much like storyboards.
I have recorded the drawing process as you can see here. On top of that I have installed a live camera (in the right column of this website) that will show the creative process real time. This is going to be particularly interesting when we start building sets and animating the movie. It’s possible to look over my shoulder and get the feel of… well, time passing by, really. Animation is not like drag racing but it’s not a drag either. It’s a slow but magical process! Shazam! yet another frame of film finished today!
In time I will offer some of the illustrations for sale. You will get the original drawing, with a personal, signed letter, delivered on your doorstep. The proceeds will help finance the movie of course.
More of that soon. For now it’s back to the drawing board.
Last saturday I had the pleasure to present my work at DTO, Arnhem Holland, and promote Under The Apple Tree. I got lots of positive reactions from the audience, and great offers that will help me getting this show on the road. A big thanks to all who attended, and a huge thanks to Edwin and Wendo!
To give this horrifying tale the quality of a bedtime story I decided to write it as a poem. A great read for you and your little ones, sweet dreams guaranteed. But I will most likely use it for voice-over and dialogue as well.
I’m still in the process of writing it. It’s rather difficult to do this in proper English, but I’ll make sure to check it with my British friends. I am convinced it’s going to add so much more artistry and humor to the film. So I stopped storyboarding and started rewriting the whole thing. Here’s a quick taste of the dramatic opening of the film, the title sequence. The prelude:
Snap! What on earth was that?
A sound of things that break.
Snap! in two, cold and wet.
Oh quickly, be awake!The smell of rotting and decay.
Whats lurking in the dark?
Is it death approaching? Nay,
dead things cannot walk.Adieu poor apple, snapped in two,
worms gnawing at your heart.
Life is over, til earth and soil
will grow you from the start.
Accompanying these grave words, I plan to do a rather funny scene of two worms, struggling in an apple, before it suddenly rots away. Here are a couple of panels from the storyboard.
Web developer Nieta – who happens to be my partner in crime as well as the love of my life – and myself, expanded our apple tree team with two talented partners in crime. Arne, a social media editor and another Erik, head of a graphic design company. Both of them very interested in film, stop motion, crowd funding techniques and cider. I get such a buzz when people that can really do stuff share our enthusiasm for the project and jump aboard. This is going to be great!
But for the next two weeks there’s not going to be any progress on the Apple Tree movie. That’s because I am in India. I was invited by the International Children’s Film Festival India to promote my short film Pecker. Of course I will promote Under The Apple Tree as well. The title sounds great when you pronounce it with an Indian accent.
Working on the storyboards I discovered that I needed more understanding of the set design. I was drawing everything in the wrong place. A fucked up mis en scène, pardon my French. Wouldn’t it be nice to stroll around my miniature set with a directors viewfinder? Yes! So I quickly built a 3D representation of the miniature set in the computer. That’s where the Blender software comes in handy. Previz!
