You might not expect someone with the clout and back catalogue of Spike Lee to need the services of Kickstarter. But you would be wrong, according to Spike himself, who has launched a Zack Braff-style campaign to begin funding his next venture. He’s got the standard pitch video out in the world, and you can take a look below.
With a rough plot that involves human beings dealing with a blood addiction – though not, as the man who made She’s Gotta Have It, D****o The Right Thing, Malcolm X and The 25th Hour is quick to point out, a Blacula-level vamp affair – the untitled film is looking for $1.25 million so that Lee can make it his own way.
“With the current climate in The Hollywood Studio System it's not an encouraging look for Independent Filmmakers” he says on the site (yes, all the oddly placed capitals are his own). “I'm not hating, just stating the facts. Super Heroes, Comic Books, 3D Special EFX, Blowing up the Planet Nine Times and Fly through the Air while Transforming is not my Thang. To me it's not just that these Films are being made but it seems like these are the only films getting made. To The Studios it seems like every Film must be a Home run on a Global scale, a Tent Pole Enterprise, able to spin off Sequel after Sequel after Sequel after Sequel after Sequel after Sequel.”
While we can see this latest effort already provoking a backlash beyond that even faced by Braff, Lee already has one big supporter in his corner: Steven Soderbergh, who has chipped in $10,000. Giving at that level means Soderbergh will go to dinner with Lee and then get a courtside seat to the New York Knicks. There are cheaper rewards available if you feel like helping Lee out yourself…