What makes doing this all worthwhile for me is the charity auction I just started on Ebay.
Last year we raised $500.00 to fight against Multiple Sclerosis!
Last year we raised $500.00 to fight against Multiple Sclerosis!
All proceeds of this book will be donated to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society (http://www.nationalmssociety.org) in an effort to fund cutting-edge research, drive change through advocacy, facilitate professional education, and provide programs and services to help people with MS and their families move their lives forward.
This book is signed by every Disney Artist in the book and also comes with a collectible t-shirt and a set of pins.
See the Torch Tiger auction here: Torch Tiger Auction
Also, here's our backdrop at Comic Con! July 22!
Also, here's our backdrop at Comic Con! July 22!
2 comments:
I realize this is a self-published book, as well as the fact you want to promote it as an 'elite' book by limiting the print run so the eBay charity auction makes more money, but I feel as if you're shafting true Disney fans. I'm 18 and not allowed to drive much further than an hour from home. Comic-Con is 30 hours from where I live. I'll be watching it on the G4 network, and looking forward to all the announcements, but there's no way for me to get there. Yet, this book is one of the number one items of Comic-Con I'm looking forward to. And when "Who is Rocket Johnson?" came out, I scoured the net, hoping someone might put up a copy for sale.
While the eBay auction is wonderful, and you're supporting a good cause, I'm heading off to college this fall - I can't afford a $200+ book.
A similar endeavor to yours was the "Totoro Forest Project" - in which animators around the world submitted art for a compilation book that sold to raise money to protect the forest that inspired "My Neighbor Totoro." Those books were sold online for $40 a piece. That seems like a much more fair method. If sold online, anyone anywhere has a chance to get the book.
When your book is limited to 1,300 copies and sold at one location, it severely limits many people's chances at getting the book.
And, the Totoro Book is still rare, despite an online sale. Even better, they're doing a second run in the near future.
Yet, "Who is Rocket Johnson?" cannot be found on any online auction site, and when I ask at forums, no one has a copy.
For a long-time Disney animation fan such as myself who buys the art-of books, loves to learn about the backgrounds of Disney artists, and always attends the premiere of each new Disney Animated Feature - this exclusivity is disappointing. I do not have the resources to buy the book. If this is a labor of love, should it not also be a project for your fans? Just because I don't live in California or have $500 to spare doesn't mean I'm not a diehard fan. It just means I'm living in the wrong state.
Please consider a second print run for "Who is Rocket Johnson?", and making that run available online so that EVERYONE gets an opportunity to get the book. Also, consider the same for "What is Torch Tiger?"
You have huge fans and followers outside of California; please don't leave us in the dark!
Thank you,
Neal Patten
Hey Neal -
Thanks for your comment and thanks for being such a big fan! I understand why you may be frustrated but I would love to explain our thinking in making this book. The reason we keep it at a small print run and sell it only at Comic Con are because of two reasons.
One, making animated films is our passion. Our day goes into telling the best story we can possibly tell in an Animated Film. We're working really, really hard at that. We aren't in the publishing or comics industry - we're in the film industry. That's the one thing we don't want to lose sight of or divert our attention away from. If we wanted to make this something bigger than someone in our group would have to divert their attention away from that and take orders, ship books, manage accounts, etc.
Why not hire someone to do that or just work with a publisher?
That leads to the second reason - Well, we already work for a large corporation. With self publishing it's complete - creative - control, we answer to no one but ourselves. However, in doing so we have to pay for printing, advertising, and a place to sell it at out of our own pockets. It's expensive....
So, we choose one place that we can afford to sell the most books that we have the most fun making in our spare time.
If you're unable to go to Comic Con we do have a couple of book dealers that have reserved a small amount of copies to sell online and will ship them for us after Comic Con they are:
Stuart Ng Books
www.stuartng.com
Lbyrinth Books
http://animationroadshow.blogspot.com/
Nucleus Gallery
http://www.gallerynucleus.com/
Again, thanks for your comment and for being a fan!
- Rocket Johnson
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