Santa Fe, NM (March 31, 2012) - Life after Hollywood? Games! This is the conclusion reached by Igor Choromanski and Min Kang who until recently worked on visual effects and animation in such films as The Green Lantern, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and Ice Age 3. The couple, also known as IKARIA Animation Studios, has just launched a fundraising campaign on Kickstarter.com in the hope of turning their 2009 award-winning animated short into a mobile game. The artists see the effort as the first of many projects that will allow them to expand the studios offerings into the emerging forms of entertainment.
Inspired by the studios popular 2009 animated short, the game will feature a pair of android characters racing futuristic, renewable-energy-powered motorcycles on the skyways of a distant planet. The characters were first introduced to audiences in 2009-11 when the film was shown at over 25 festivals world wide winning 8 awards and major nominations.
Choromanski, who first dove into interactive programming in the mid 90s and later co-authored Flash Games Studio by Friends of Ed, sees mobile games as a viable market for smaller studios like IKARIA.
The App market is hard to break into, but, if successful, a team of 1-2 developers can run a sustainable business from just about anywhere on the planet. As IKARIA were both excited about the medium and feel we have much to offer by delivering higher quality visual experiences than currently available.
Choromanski contrasts the opportunities available in the app market with the uncertainties of the changing Hollywood studio structures. He believes that this climate favors the emergence of smaller independent ventures.
Just in the past year, nearly all the larger vfx and animation studios in LA opened facilities in Vancouver at the expense of their existing studios in the states. As films artists, we could continue to hopscotch around the globe following productions under ever increasing pressure to cut costs, or we could adapt to the larger trends and pursue our own creative visions. We chose the latter.
Asked about how their mobile game nstaCharge plays into the studios overall strategy, Kang reponds -
nstaCharge is our most fully developed intellectual property. We are fortunate in that the short film on which the game is based did so well on the festival circuit. This has lead to greater exposure for the studio and has given us the confidence to green light our own creative vision. We hope to carry this vision first into a mobile game and later into both PC and console games as well.
In a conscious decision to involve artists, gamers and the local community, the studio hopes to partially finance the game through Kickstarter.com, a popular fundraising site for creative projects. According to Choromanski, this approach is not only viable, but also fosters opportunities within the community.
With Kickstarter, it is now not only possible to seek project financing outside of the traditional sources, but to give back to the very community that supports you. People drawn to your project are already enthusiastic about what you are doing. They are the ones you will ask for help first.
Kang also believes that the alternative funding offered by sites like Kickstarter fills an important role in supporting smaller creative initiatives.
Feature films and large game franchises have clear paths for securing funding for their projects. When it comes to mobile gaming the investment scale is of little interest to private investors and banks. Kickstarter fulfills this need quite well. If an idea is noteworthy and well presented, the community will recognize its value and the entrepreneur will get a shot at making it a reality.
nstaCharges Kickstarter campaign was launched earlier today and can be found at: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1758096792/nstacharge
About Igor Choromanski
Choromanski is an award winning animator, director, programmer and writer. He has contributed to animation projects in all media, including major theatrical releases of Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and Cats and Dogs 2. Choromanski spent several years working for top creative boutiques in New York and Chicago and is a recipient of the 2008 Primetime Emmy nomination for his work on Ridley Scott’s The Company. Previous to that, he taught animation and interactivity at the College of Santa Fe. He graduated from Boston University with degrees in English and French Literature.
About Min Kang
Kang is a feature film and broadcast animator. She has worked on several major theatrical releases including Green Lantern, Ice Age 3, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, Cats and Dogs 2 and Mars Rovers in addition to countless commercials and visualization projects. A long time New Yorker, she now calls Santa Fe home and devotes part of her spare time to painting, her other passion. Min holds several degrees including a Master’s in Animation from New York’s Institute of Technology.
About IKARIA Animation Studios
Founded in 1997 and based in Santa Fe, IKARIA is an award-winning creative studio specializing in the development and production of animated and interactive content for all media including film, broadcast and games. Studio artists have been involved in projects for major international brands (Nike, Jeep, Target, etc), leading creative boutiques (Digital Kitchen, Vitamin) and feature film studios (Blue Sky, Sony Imageworks).
IKARIAs website: http://www.ikaria.tv
nstaCharge (Game) on Kickstarter.com: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1758096792/nstacharge
nstaCharge (Game) on Facebook.com: http://www.facebook.com/nstaCharge
nstaCharge (Short Film): http://www.ikaria.tv/portfolio/nstacharge.html
Contact
Igor Choromanski
Director
IKARIA Animation Studios, LLC
Santa Fe, NM
email: info@ikaria.tv
website: www.ikaria.tv