Bringing a project to life from concept to realization is a daunting task. For all the hard work that is put into its creation, there are just as many obstacles to overcome. Sometimes, you just need a break and someone to believe in what you are doing. For creators of the whimsical short “Far-Fetched” Animator Ashley Nichols and Writer Dave Capdevielle, the belief came from Iron Circus founder Spike Trotman. They pitched their story and the ideas they had for crowdfunding and Spike supported their efforts.
Coming April 7th, Ashely and Dave’s Far-Fetched comes to Kickstarter with the support of Iron Circus and the expertise that Spike Trotman brings to that platform. In advance of this exciting project, we sat down with the creators of Far-Fetched to learn about their creative origins, what brought them together for this project and what fans can expect in their Kickstarter campaign. Leading off with animator Ashley Nichols.
The Start of an Animator
GVN: Thank you for sharing a bit of your day, Ashley. Since this is our first chance to catch up, let’s discuss your creative beginnings. When did you first become interested in art and animation, and whose work inspired you to pursue that path?
ASHLEY: Thank you so much for the interview!!! According to my parents, the literal moment I could hold a crayon I started drawing. My family had a bunch of bootleg Looney Tunes and Tom & Jerry VHS tapes that he put on for me all the time and once my Uncle saw how much I loved animation he went out of his way to get me every single 2D animated Disney movie he could find. If I had to pinpoint a direct main inspiration though, the shows Danny Phantom and Avatar: The Last Airbender were really the turning point for me as a tween to wanting to take animation seriously as a future career.
Animated Projects
GVN: You have worked on a number of animated projects including “Ollie and Scoops”, “Hazbin Hotel,” and one of my favorites “Animaniacs.” How did those opportunities come about what did you learn with each project that you have carried on till this day?
ASHLEY: I think the only reason I got the chance to work on any of those was because I started out by making a bunch of Steven Universe fan animations on YouTube, haha! I took all those fan works, turned them into a demo reel, and sent that off to everyone who was hiring. Once I got onto my first project, I met more and more people who recommended me to more and more projects!
Iron Circus Animation “Lackadaisy”
GVN: One of your recent projects was for Iron Circus Animation with Tracy Butler’s “Lackadaisy.” (As I mentioned to your creative partner Dave Capdevielle, a project I am close to as one of the contributors to its crowdfunding campaign). What was it about this project that drew your interest and expertise?
ASHLEY: Creator Tracy and Director Fable are literally two of the people whose works helped me LEARN how to draw back when I was a literal child. I’ve been following Lackadaisy since I first got access to Deviantart. I’ve always found how expressive and dynamic both their works are so inspiring and I never DREAMED I’d get to work with both of them one day. Lackadaisy is such an inspired show with such a clear vision… and also, I’m a furry so…
Partnering with Dave Capdevielle
GVN: I mentioned your work with Dave Capdevielle on your project “Far-Fetched.” You had previously worked with Dave on “Hazbin Hotel.” How did your paths intersect with you as an animator and Dave as a writer on that project and when did you discuss the possibility of a joint venture?
ASHLEY: Oh god it’s hard to remember exactly when we first talked, but we hit it off immediately and he became a regular guest on my podcast! Which is how we realized we had a really great dynamic together. We were hanging out in LA having dinner, and I had been really struggling to write what would become the proof of concept short for Far-Fetched. So, I asked him if he’d be willing to help out and everything snowballed from there!
Far-Fetched
GVN: For our fans, what is the premise for “Far-Fetched” and how much work was involved in bringing it initially to fruition in your 2021 short “Night of the Cute Feast”?
ASHLEY: I like to describe it as “Scooby-Doo meets Resident Evil, but for people who shop at Hot Topic.” It follows a walking quarter life crisis, Rue, and her Deviantart sparkle-dog Kira as they’re dragged into the band Sesamoid by her ego driven best friend Quinn. It’s a story about the chaotic process of transitioning to adulthood, told through a supernatural lens. There’s tons of monsters, mutants, and scientific war crimes (oh my). From the humble slice of life “Hell Puppy” it started out as, we’ve put a ton of work into it over the last few years and the story has developed A LOT in that time.
The Support of Spike Trotman
GVN: Your work for “Lackadaisy” brought you into contact with Iron Circus founder Spike Trotman who is supporting your project. By Spike’s own admission, that support is hard-earned. How did that support come about?
ASHLEY: We started to hit a wall with the Far-Fetched pilot money wise and realized we could not get this beast finished without financial help, but the prospect of running a crowdfunding campaign seemed impossibly daunting. We approached Spike with a pitch for what Far-Fetched is all about and what we had in mind for the Kickstarter. It was a massive relief when she immediately picked up the vibe, we were putting down (ha-ha) Spike really saw how much we had been working on this project and how determined we were to see it through.
The Kickstarter Campaign
GVN: You are bringing “Far-Fetched” to Kickstarter. What will fans find when they visit your campaign besides the opportunity to support a great project?
ASHLEY: Well since we’ve partnered with Iron Circus, a book is a given. We’re packing it full of every bit of production goodies we can like concept art going all the way back to 2006, character art, production stories, scrapped ideas, and possibly a look to the future of Far-Fetched! It will also include every single comic we’ve released so far and even revamped versions of some of the older comics. In addition, we’ll be offering stickers, behind the scenes footage, a pre-release live showing and Q&A, and tons more!
Discover the World of “Far-Fetched”
GVN: Thank you once again for spending a few moments with us, Ashley. Before I let you go, I want to give you one last opportunity to tell our fans about this campaign and any other projects you might want to share.
ASHLEY: And thank YOU! Far-Fetched is my dorky lil brainchild and it’s been a wild ride getting here. You can check out our Kickstarter page for links to every Far-Fetched thing out there and there’s tons of fun goodies on our site farfetched.show! You can find me basically anywhere under “Ashley Nichols Art” and I stream regularly to YouTube, so stop on by if you have any questions or just wanna say hi! Support Indie!
If you are a fan of new animation and support the creators who bring it to you, check out the Far-Fetched Kickstarter campaign here.
Senior Writer at GeekVibesNation – I am a 60 something child of the 70’s who admits to being a Star Trek/Star Wars/Comic Book junkie who once dove headfirst over a cliff (Ok, it was a small hill) to try to rescue his Fantastic Four comic from a watery grave. I am married to a lovely woman who is as crazy as I am and the proud parent of a 21-year-old young man with autism. My wife and son are my real heroes.
