I just provided this update on our GoFundMe page but wanted to share here as well:
"Hi Everyone!
Just checking in with another update this second week of October. As you can see, our campaign has stalled which is normal. So, a few things have prompted us to pivot in making and finishing the film.
First, we are going to go ahead and commit to this project as being in short form, between 30-40 minutes, instead of an hour or longer as we initially hoped we could raise enough money to do. Frank and myself will cover the rest of the cost of the production if no more funding comes in, and that’s okay, we knew all along this may happen, so we are prepared for it.
Second, we will narrow down the narrative to the most important story lines as possible as we obviously cannot afford to travel to all the people who reached out and offered to be on camera who had more ancillary stories from the general plot, and that’s okay too. Our hope is that in this short form we will still do really well at festivals and hopefully be seen by potential distributors who might commit finishing funds to us to return this back to a feature length production where we would then add in those story lines.
To that matter, we have decreased the goal of this campaign to 65k and we will leave it open for donations throughout the rest of production and post production as we can use those funds to compensate for our out of pocket expenses for finishing the film. We did reach out to a dozen companies in vet med and in the film industry, as well as have applied for multiple grants of which two may still get back with us. In the end, it is our responsibility to finish this project, so we will put up the money and do that as best we can until anything else financially changes.
In the end, I just wanted to let everyone know that this film is still being made and we expect it to be in a completed short form by mid-late spring for entry into festivals late spring to early summer. As one of our participants recently noted, you choose how you look at things, and we choose to still be making a difference with this film, so we will get it done no matter the obstacles.
Lastly, and as a bonus to this update, I have included a compilation of recent footage that we’ve shot so you can see that we are still chugging along!! I hope you enjoy it!! We are not sharing it with anyone else, only with those of you who have kept breathing life into this project by donating and sharing the word, so this is one way we can say thanks right now for all that you’ve done!!
Thank you all again thus far for all the help and support you have provided, and I will continue to keep you all posted. I hope everyone is safe, happy, and well! Please do continue to spread the word for us! Thanks!
--Marie and Frank"