Saturday 28 June 2008

Kaleidoscope Man - The Story

I am often asked what Kaleidoscope Man is about. So here is a brief outline of the story....

Jack awakes, encased in a coffin shaped pod, on a thin ledge in a giant cavern. The last thing he remembers was locking up and leaving his job as the head of a psychiatric care centre for people with mental difficulties.

Suddenly, the ledge shatters and Jack hurtles into the dark abyss below. Falling and falling, eventually he hits the ground, but instead of smashing violently against it, he falls right through it. To his absolute horror, he is blasted out into deep space. Jack had been in no giant cavern, but the belly of a colossal spaceship.

Jack stirs to find himself on the beach of a strange alien planet. As he struggles to take in the gravity of his situation, three of his patients have also escaped the ship. How on earth did they all get there?

Three different stories haunt them, each with the same three characters. Harriet: a loyal friend with a dark past. Samantha: a girl with a damned vision for mankind. Floyd: a misguided man, with delusions of being the next James Bond. Each story has a terrifying conclusion and each has a bizarre link to how they all got on board the spaceship. Jack realises that he must face up to the true horrors of their situation and find a way back to Earth where his beloved wife, Mandy, holds the key to what has really happened.

But they are alone and desperate, and stuck on an alien planet, millions of light years away from Earth, and the aliens are coming to get them…

Kaleidoscope Man is a story about redemption for our characters and their place in the world. An original heart-stopping thriller with dramatic twists and turns and a conclusion that will leave the audience inspired and elated. A roller coaster ride that explores the depths of our human emotions and how we must value our fragile place in this universe.

The Business Plan - Nearly Ready for Investors

Ken Tuohy (the Producer of Kaleidoscope Man) and I have prepared a shooting schedule and production budget. To make the film to the level we would like, we need to raise £2.3 million. We expect to get at least 25% of this through our UK Regional Screen Agency, Screen West Midlands, who have already invested considerably in the development of the film. The other £75% we hope to raise from Private Investors.

The Business plan will be finished around the middle of July and be ready to send out to Investors.

The plan has taken much longer than I originally hoped because we have set the company up utilizing the EIS (Enterprise Investment Scheme), which means investors, can get extremely good tax breaks, making their investment a lot less risky. This has been a very complicated and frustrating process due to the attention to detail required. Our Lawyers and Accountants have been fantastic though, dotting the I's and crossing the T's, and I'm very proud of the document. It's bright, colorful, exciting and really highlights the fantastic opportunity the film could bring - I really hope we can find some investors who are as excited about making the film as we are.

Friday 27 June 2008

Designing Kaleidoscope Man

A big part of making a movie like K-Man is in the planning. I knew from the outset that the film was going to be extremely visual and when writing the script there was a lot of exposition explaining some of the spectacular set peices, spaceships and locations. This made the story seem clunky and over complicated and I knew I needed to be able to show people exactly what I was after, quickly and powerfully.

My Nephew, Steve Cheshire was teaching at the local art college and told me to look at the work of one of his students, Matt Allsopp. When I saw Matt pictures my jaw hit the floor. This 18 year old was producing work to the quality of Ralph McQuarrie (the original concept artist on the Star Wars movies). So we met, he read the script and came up with about 5 images that he felt summed up Kaleidoscope Man.

Well, to say he hit the nail on the head was an understatment. The guy nailed it, absolutley and completely. At last I had a look for the film and over the next few months, Matt produced some 500 storyboards and concepts for the film. I've added a hand full of his early works and hope to produce an 'Art Of' booklet when the film comes out.

To find out more about Matt, visit him at: www.matthewallsopp.com

Monday 16 June 2008

A Bit of Back Story

For those who know me, you'll know that I've been banging on about this new movie of mine for years, and to date, you've only seen clips and trailers.

The truth is getting Kaleidoscope Man funded really has been a struggle. I did raise a significant amount of money a few years ago which went towards buying a large amount of high end HD kit to make the film with (and to help my existing corporate business).

However, I was promised a very large sum by a Canadian Investor who constantly assured me that the money was coming. Sadly, it never saw the light of day and as I'd spent a bit to much of my own money developing the project, it ended up sinking my company. Luckily, Screen West Midlands invested a significant amount into the project which enabled me to continue developing the script, produce some storyboards and to create the opening scene of the film.

Getting my fingers burnt made me sit back and think about things. When I was young I could afford to take risks, but now with a mortgage and a young family, I had to be stable. So I enlisted the help of a Producer friend of mine, Ken Tuohy. Ken has worked in the movie business for over thirty years, starting on the Beatles movies, Magical Mystery Tour and Let it be. He's worked with every movie star under the sun including John Wayne, Sean Connery, Liz Taylor and Rock Hudson. If anyone can help me get this film moving, he certainly will. Apart from anything else, he believes in the script and he believes in me, which is the best place to start. Ken has introduced me to the right Lawyers, Accountants, Casting Directors, PR people and Investors. It's just a matter of time before the money comes in, I'm sure of it.

Another guy who has been invaluable to the project is Writer/Director, Simon Bovey. Simon helped me turn the script into something that is now world class. It's exciting, inspiring and beautifully written.

Sunday 15 June 2008

Check Out the New Pilot for Kaleidoscope Man



This is the pilot I've been working on for the last three years with CGI Company, Screenburn Animation. The aim is to show investors the type of movie Kaleidoscope Man will be. A lot of time and money has gone into to it, and I'm delighted with it.

We've done a very professional business plan which will include a DVD with this pilot and the opening sequence of the film. The Lawyers are currently raking over the details of the plan and hopefully it should be ready to go out in early July. I can't wait!!!

Sunday night and back in the office again

Well I've done it. This is my first blogg. Very exciting....