What is The Fitzroy?

The Fitzroy is an independent, live action, feature film; a black comedy set in a post-apocalyptic 1950’s Margate. The world is covered in a poisonous gas and the Fitzroy Hotel (a beached submarine) is the last place for a traditional holiday.

The hotel is sent into chaos when one of the guests murders the hotel’s owner. It is left to Bernard, The Fitzroy’s hapless bellboy, to keep the hotel from falling apart as he struggles to hide the murders from the other guests and the ever-suspicious authorities.

Sci-Fi, post-apocalyptic, comedy, period setting… all in one film? Are you crazy? So what are you doing here?

We are trying to raise enough money to make The Fitzroy. To do this we need to raise £60,000.

So you are crazy!

No, not at all. Well maybe a little. But we are all experienced, having worked in media for a long time, on commercials, music videos and short films. The film has been planned to the nth degree and we already have many of the key elements secured; location, heads of departments, music etc.

Who are you?

We are: Andrew Harmer (writer/director) and producing team James Heath and Liam Garvo (Dresden Pictures). There are some links at the bottom of the page to some of our previous work.

James Heath, Andrew Harmer and Liam Garvo

Is it going to be good?

We hope so. Film is our passion, and we’re working our hardest to make sure The Fitzroy is as good as it can be. Blood, sweat and tears. In fact, those are our nicknames.

Okay, fair enough. Where can I learn more about the project?

Please visit our website. There you can find a wealth of information, or for an ongoing look behind the scenes, check out our blog - its free, frank and... er... fabulous!? Or just ask us anything you want to know.

The Rewards

If I donate, what’s in it for me?

The feel-good factor of making dreams come true and supporting independent film. Also one of the awesome incentives to the right! But here's a bit more info on a few of them.

Animated Title Character: The films titles will be an animated cartoon and will explain how the world of The Fitzroy came to be.

Designed by Marko Anstice (he did the illustrations on our website), the titles will be populated by a cast of characters... and you can be one of them!

Simply send us a couple of photos of yourself (or a loved one, this would make a great gift) and we will turn you into a toon. You'll feature in the title sequence to the film and we'll send you a one-off illustrated print of your mini-me to frame and hang.

UPDATE: The animated character now includes 2x tickets to the premier AND the 'Funding Producer' reward, with a credit on IMDB.

Beach Survival Kit: Ever tried having a holiday in a post-apocalyptic world? It's not easy. Luckily the government have issued these 'Beach Survival Kits'. Each one is handmade by the director and personalised. If you are going on holiday, remember - stay safe!

Poster: An exclusive series of posters just for Kickstarter. These will be strictly limited to the number of backers who request this reward. Heck if we want one we have to put the money in too! There will be five to choose from, all signed and numbered by the artist. We’ll email you at the end of the campaign and clarify which one you would like. Grab a piece of cinema history - they will be incredibly rare!

Poster A: 'Radiation Blues' by Marko Anstice (A1 size)

Poster B: ‘Margate’ by Gary Haslam (A2 size)

Poster C: 'Face Certain Death' by Oliver Polanski (A1 size)

Poster D: 'Rover Knows' by Rowan Corlett (A1 size)

Poster E: 'The Fitzroy' by Jack Candy-Kemp (A1 size)

UPDATE: We've tweaked the pricing structure to make it more fair as we presume you won't want multiple downloads of the film and soundtrack!

One poster = £45

Two posters = £80

Three posters = £110

Four poster = £135

or you can be the envy of your neighbours and get the whole set for £150!

International P&P is £5 if you buy one or all five.

*NB We can’t change the ‘reward’ box on the right of the page so please ignore where it says ‘simply double or triple’. The above are the correct prices!

The Soundtrack: The Fitzroy is going to rock! Unlike most films, we are taking a slightly different approach. We have teamed up with the awesome Green Rock River Band, who will not only be composing an original score, but starring in the film as ‘the band’ - a ragtag touring band holed up in one of The Fitzroy's rooms. Their music will literally echo through the submarine.

Described as ‘doom folk’, The Green Rock River Band is definitely going to bring a unique sound to The Fitzroy.

NEW REWARD! Have GRRB play at your party.

Green Rock River Band will play at your next party, wedding, office shindig, Bar-Mitzvah, country fair, funeral… well maybe not the last one.

They’ll come play for you – which is a hell of a deal! Travel covered anywhere inside the M25, outside of that you will have to add transportation costs in.

To give you a taste, here is what went down when they played at our Fitzroy shindig.

Dates are flexible but give us a shout to see if they can do the night you want. Oh and you also get the 'Funding Producer' reward!

NEW REWARD! The Call Action / Call Wrap reward.

Ever wanted to feel the power of an egomaniac? Well now you can. Come down to set, a real Russian submarine! Be treated like a king, call action on the very first shot of The Fitzroy and have your day filmed so you can share your experience with your friends and family (if you want).

You also get your very own personalised directors chair signed by the entire cast. AND the ‘Premier Tickets’ package with Funding Producers credit on IMDB.

What more could you want?

You have to get yourself to the shoot, this will be around in April but we will give you as much warning to the exact date as possible.

What if I want more than one reward?

Awesome! Simply add the totals together (plus p&p) and we will email you at the end of the campaign to clarify which rewards you require.

What if I don’t want the incentive, I just want to support?

You are wonderful! Not a problem. Once you hit ‘Back this Project’ there is a button you can select if you don’t want a reward.

Other Important Questions

What happens if you don’t reach your target?

Kickstarter is an all or nothing model! If we don’t reach our target no-one gets charged and we don’t make the film. That’s why we need you… and your family and friends! So please, even if you can’t donate, help us by spreading the word on Twitter, Facebook or word of mouth.

Can you exceed the goal?

YES! This would truly be amazing. Exceeding our goal would allow us to make a better movie. Kickstarter allows projects to go over their targets. If we do go over our target, every penny will still go into making the project as good as possible.

Is my pledge amount publicly displayed?

Nope. Only you and the project creator will be able to see your pledge amount.

Can I increase my pledge once it’s been made?

YES! Once you donate to our campaign, you may want to change your reward to a different one, or increase your pledge amount. To do so, go to Kickstarter and sign in. If you go to our campaign page, the green “Back This Project” button has been replaced with a blue “Manage Your Donation” button. Click it and you can enter a new amount, or choose a new incentive.

Can I gift a Reward?

YES! Definitely. In fact we tried hard to create rewards that would make brilliant gifts. Christmas is coming up! Donate through all the normal processes of making a donation in your name. For billing purposes, this action must be in your name. After our deadline, we will send you a message. We will request things like your address from you at that time. Please reply with all the recipient’s information and let us know it’s a gift and we'll send you a gift certificate much like this one...

A few more shots of the 'Black Widow' submarine we would love to shoot on.

What is the money going to be used for? It's not just development money?

No not at all. If we raise our target we can shoot and deliver the completed film (with a little held over to enter the film into festivals).

You’re not going take all the money and fly away to Hawaii are you?

Every penny (minus the fees for Kickstarter’s involvement) will go directly into The Fitzroy’s budget - i.e. your money goes directly to the funding of this film. And trust me, we are making every penny stretch as far as we can. And no, we won’t skip off to Hawaii: 1) All we have ever wanted to do is make films and 2) We burn very easily.

I'm not in the UK. Can I still pledge?

Yes. You can pledge from anywhere in the world. All you need is a debit or credit card. It’s dead easy.

How do we contact you?

Through hello@thefitzroy.com or in the Kickstarter comments, or via our Twitter and Facebook pages.

If you have any questions or suggestions for rewards that you would like, please just leave us a comment.

Links