Not only the Box Tops, but the Box Tops reunion. I didn't even realize until recently that they recorded an album in the late 90s, and it's a fun listen. I'm also interested in mid-80s Chilton, when he was playing with René Coman and Doug Garrison. Great trio, and some of his best post-BS work.
There's only 5 days left on the Kickstarter and they are a little over halfway to their goal. If you're thinking about contributing, now is a good time! I bumped my original pledge from $100 to $200. I'd give more if I could, as I really want to see this film. Even if you can't give, be sure to visit the Kickstarter page and see the edited sequence for the Big Star Third album taken from the film. This might be the only chance you get to see it.
I am truly shocked that this project has stalled. I contributed on day one, but can’t afford to put in any more.
I know, it's sad. I still think lack of promotion is what is killing this project. What a terrible reason this is failing to take off.
I saw him a bunch of times in the mid 90s here in New Orleans. Those were such fun shows. I wish I could contribute to this, but I'm broke right now. Summer has been slooooow. I just shared the link on my Facebook, though, so hopefully it will help.
Good on ya! I got a decent check today (I’m a freelancer) so I finally contributed to the Kickstarter. Hopefully there will be a push in these last days.
Now showing that it's 81% funded with 34 hours to go... so they've made progress in the past week. Looks like they need just a little over $10,000 to hit the goal.
the real question is why this is being self-financed in the first place? Hitting up fans for 75 or 100 dollars is a really peculiar route for a doc that by rights should be very high profile. Especially since there is a huge appetite for music docs. I mean c'mon, a Stiv Bators doc just came out!! There's no logical reason why this shouldn't get finished, but the normal route would have been to finance it through pre-sales in territories around the world, and get an experienced producer or distributor to push it out into the doc festival circuit--get it into TIFF, Sundance etc, and then on to Netflix. Personally, I think there's something else at play here. My guess is that the filmmaker wants complete financial ownership of the project and doesn't want to work within the doc industry. Maybe it will work out, i hope it does....
Another bump and link to the Kickstarter... 16 hours and $8375 to go. Alex Chilton: Why Should I Care?
I am guessing he does want total ownership of this project, both financially and artistically. And that is completely understandable, as this has been his baby for many years now. When you go out and seek to get a film financed with a production company or distributor, you are often having to give up some (if not a lot) of the artistic ownership in the project. In the video the filmmaker uploaded on Kickstarter, it's clear he wants this film to be made a certain way... not using famous talking heads or "experts" who didn't really know Alex. Instead he is relying on interviews with people who actually worked with Alex and knew him. A larger company that invests in documentaries like these will often see these interviewees as "nobodies" who can't really help sell a project. They will want a few famous people to fill out the interviews, in order to help them sell the film (even if it adds nothing artistically to the project). It was this stance by the filmmaker that actually led me to make my Kickstarter pledge.
They were still a few thousand short when I checked about 4 hours before the Kickstarter campaign ended. I'm glad to see they actually made it! They posted a list of contributors-to-date earlier today. I recognized a few names, including Bertis Downs (R.E.M. manager) and Peter Jesperson (former Replacements manager).
I ended up kicking in $50 yesterday, despite the underwhelming rewards. Got my name on the list which was far better than the deck of cards will be.
I actually think the deck of cards will be awesome. I love how they tied it into Alex's astrology obsession. Plus that $50 gets you early access to see the documentary.
The last update on Kickstarter was pre-pandemic. At that time, the film was in the editing stage. Has there been any word on progress? I totally expect it to be delayed, like most projects this year.
I have no dog in this fight, but this is why I stopped contributing to Kickstarters and the like. A pandemic should not prevent someone from posting a paragraph on what's happening with your hard-earned money.
I just got an update. Backers have been given a link to stream a nearly-finished version of the documentary. Perfect thanksgiving watching, followed by the Zappa movie!
Well, that was a most welcome surprise, and a perfect way to spend Thanksgiving morning. I love it. I hope he has success with it, and also hope to one day have a copy I can keep forever. Good things are worth the wait.
From Dec. 31st, 2021: David Julian LeonardCreator December 31, 2021 Dear Friends, My sincere apologies for falling silent over the last year. I know during this last year or two we've all faced new difficulties throughout the world. Wave after wave of the pandemic caused a lot of things to shift. Major studios postponed production and release schedules for films. But I was still sure, before 2021 began, that this little film would be finished this year. The best laid plans of mice and men.... To be honest, I've faced a lot of tough stuff this year, not the least of which was the loss of my brother, my only sibling, just a month ago. I went to Albuquerque to help care for him during his illness, and I'll always be glad that I put everything else on hold to do that. He was an Alex fan and friend for sure, and he'd want me to finish this film. Which I will. On my way back to France from New Mexico, I went through Memphis for a week and while I was there, went in a movie theater for only the third time since the pandemic began, to see Todd Haynes' Velvet Underground documentary. It was terrific. It was an inspiration. I have to say, as I watched the credits roll and roll and roll at the end, hundreds of names; am I exaggeratting? No. I was reminded that what has already been created with this Alex film on such a small budget is pretty remarkable. Like maybe a little bit miraculous. So please stick with me and be patient. It's gonna happen. Maybe it's a really good time for music films right? New streaming services are being formed with shows like the Velvets film and the Beatles' Get Back among their core attractions. Kickstarter is great because it helps people follow their dreams. Thank you all for believing in mine. It's probably only because I knew Alex that I was foolish enough to launch this parade without having a proper budget. But that's the only way to get something like this started sometimes.
