Aesop's (alternative) fable!

Have you ever wondered what Aesop's tale would have been like if, this time, it's a bike race, and the Tortoise drugs the Hare and leaves him as nutty as a fruitcake? Well think no more, as Little Dipper or Bust or Racing for the stars and then you get a puncture! is a runaway hysterical blast about injustice, revenge and moral depravity, in which winning a bike race by any means is the order of the day!  

Hello, I'm Gavin Irvine, the writer/director and producer of Little Dipper or Bust! I'm a multi-award winning Northern Irish filmmaker based in London with over thirty major awards to my name from national and international film festivals. Before being educated at the International Film School, Wales, where I was mentored by the extraordinary, flamboyant and controversial filmmakers, Ken Russell and Peter Greenaway, I was a musician, photographer and artist. I've shared the stage with Muse and other celebrated acts and gone on to compose the music for several of my films. Please check out my website for more details: http://www.gavinirvine.com

The seeds of Little Dipper or Bust! were sown in a comedy sketch I wrote in November, 2014. It was the first outing for the three main characters, Sol, William and Noel, and it was about William being mocked by Sol and Noel for buying a swanky new bike. Immediately, I thought this could be expanded into a grudge bike race, and thus, Aesop's fable sprung to mind. Fast forward to 2021, and I was looking for an idea to produce my second feature screenplay - my first, Spinners, winning the prestigious Northern Ireland Writers Award - and after reading the sketch again, I knew instantly this was my next project. Over a matter of six months I worked on the script, in between attending various film festivals, as my latest short comedy, Daddy's Note, was winning awards at every major European city and most recently in Hollywood. It was at these festivals that I met some of the amazing talent that I have now cast in the film, for instance; Sean Cronin (Mission Impossible, James Bond).

The plot

Once a respected champion cyclist, Sol, is now a washed-up gambler and drunk. He is coaxed out of retirement for a grudge race against his young up-start lodger, William, after he cheats to win a football match costing Sol ten grand to local heavy, Wyck Slaughter.

When Sol has to put his house, Little Dipper, up as collateral to cover the eye-watering bet that Wyck puts on his godson, William, to win, he and his best mate, Noel, recruit a motley crew of misfits to implement a dastardly plan to drug William and have his deceased mother appear as a singing angel during the race.

Sol’s relief and euphoria as champion is short lived, as Wyck and William set out to kill Noel and him when they discover their plan. But either one step ahead of the game or by sheer dumb luck, Sol miraculously finds an ace up his sleeve to save their bacon!

Filled with laughs and unbelievable sight gags, this delightfully outlandish British comedy makes cycling as spellbinding as an acrobat on a rubber ball with a leaky valve!

Meet the team

Aaron Barschak

Aaron styles himself as a "comedy terrorist" and fringe UK politician. In 2003, he attracted media attention by surreptitiously joining Prince William's 21st birthday party. He has had his own show at the Edinburgh Fringe, appeared on the James Whale Show, TalkSport radio, Chunky Mark's satirical cult YouTube blog, and acted in both music videos and short films. In 2021, he was nominated 'Best Comedy Actor' at the London Kino People's Film Festival for his role in 2:40 to London.

Sean Cronin

Destiny struck in the early nineties when Sean was badly bitten by the film bug, landing roles in James Bond - The World Is Not Enough, The Mummy, The Mummy Returns, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets,  and Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation. A tireless creative worker and  a man with boundless energy for his craft, Sean is without doubt one of the most convincing and sinister adversaries in modern day cinema.

Julia Krynke

Julia has starred in many noted British TV shows -  Ridley Road, Line of Duty, Spooks, The Street, Sick of it and Holby City - to name a few! She has also had lead roles in several award winning feature films - Distant Lights, Undocument, and Der Pfarrer und das Mädchen​ - and appeared in Avengers: Age of Ultron. Julia has won numerous awards for her work, including; Best Actor, the Audience Award and the Critics Award for the role of Gileta in the play, The Topsy-Turvy Princess, by Calderon de la Barca. 

Andrew Porter

Andrew is a Northern Irish actor. He has worked on countless BBC and RTE productions, including: Colmcile - An Naomi Dana, Blue Lights and The Walled City, and starred in award winning short and feature films, such as Scott and Sid , Bad Day for the Cut, and Titanic; Birth of a Legend. He has toured the US, UK and Ireland extensively in various theatre productions and has over twenty years experience treading the boards. 

Anthony Fletcher-Hodgson

After becoming a member of the National Youth Theatre, Anthony graduated from the Young Actors Theatre Islington in 2019 and has since gone on to perform at the Edinburgh and London Fringe Festivals. Dr James Rowlins, Festival Director of the London Rocks Film Festival, had this to say about one of Anthony's recent performances: 'Anthony Fletcher-Hodgson is a blockbuster comedy star in the making - a British Jim Carrey!'  High praise indeed!

Keeley-Jo Jupp

Keeley-Jo is a versatile British actress known for NightBus, Hard and soft and To Trend on Twitter. After graduating from East 15 Acting School, she has appeared in numerous plays and films, including, the hilarious multi-award winning short film, The Witch-Hunters are Coming.

Jassie Mortimer

After training at the Zagreb Youth Theatre, Jassie left her Croatian homeland for the bright lights of London. Immediately, she garnered outstanding praise for her performances on stage, television and film, landing roles in such noted films as, Eddie the Eagle, Last Christmas, The Boston Strangler, and  United 93, and the hugely popular British TV series, Black Mirror.  

Paul Eite

Paul is a model and YouTube blogger. This will be his first venture into the world of films and I didn't hesitate to hire him after viewing his brilliant audition tape.

Operation Little Dipper! 

30 grand in 40 days!

It almost sounds biblical... IT IS! If you can help us get the finances over the line, we promise that we'll deliver an entertaining, magical, and laugh-out-loud movie. Every pledge helps us to achieve our goals while keeping 100% creative control. Crowdfunding is the perfect way for us to make new friends, new contacts, and ultimately finance our film. Personally, I have already spent nine months of my life putting this project together and I'm prepared to devote whatever time it takes to finish it. 

So how can we make the film on 30 grand? 80% of our locations are free, as they're outdoors and mostly in London, and the rest will be sourced through family, friends, local businesses and AirBnB. We'll run a tight ship with a small crew shooting on a 4K Blackmagic Pocket Camera -  so we don't skip on the quality that goes up on screen. Our outdoor scenes will be shot guerrilla style, working fast and proficiently, and they will be well rehearsed beforehand. The cast and crew are fully committed to the project, and their time and generosity will be a major factor in overcoming the challenges that lie ahead.  

The music I (Gavin) will source from the many contacts that I have in the music world, and I will edit the film myself, which I have done for all my films. 

So where is your money going? In a nutshell; insurance, equipment, locations, food, transport, accommodation, costumes and props.

Under starters orders!

The cameras must roll before the 1st September, 2022. Why? Little Dipper, the house, is only available up until that date. It is one of our main locations and is free. Forty minutes of the film takes place here -  so we will have forty minutes of the film in the can by the 1st September. We have nearly everything in place to film there as pre-production started several months ago. In fact, we've had three rehearsals there already, which went extremely well. 

Potential saddle sores...

Ouch! If we fail to reach our intended financial target, but there are sufficient funds pledged, then we will push on and film everything at Little Dipper and whatever else we can achieve. This footage will then be edited, and on the back of that, we will try and raise more funds to complete the film. For instance, we can look for an advance on distribution.

Our aim is to premiere the film in London, September, 2023. Again, depending on finances, the production of the film may span over ten months from this August. During the winter months we will be very busy filming all our indoor scenes, and writing, recording and sourcing free music, plus storyboarding, planning and rehearsing. Then, come May, 2023, we will shoot the race, which is approximately thirty minutes on-screen time. 

We have four large set-ups to organise; three which occur during the race sequence and a football match. Three of these scenes require up to thirty extras and it will be planned with military precision. We already have in place two cycling teams and an all-weather astroturf football pitch to film on. Arron and myself are involved in Sunday league football, so we are extremely confident of putting two teams together, In fact, those of you that are reading this and know us from football, please contact us if you'd like to be an extra in the film. 

Of course, there is the unpredictable British weather to deal with, so we'll need to be flexible in our shooting schedule and that is one of the main positives of working with a small cast and crew. And then there's Covid. We will take every precaution necessary to ensure the safety of the cast and crew, so that production runs smoothly.

Track record!

In 2015, I crowdfunded for my film, 2:40 to London, and it received more money that the initial goal. The film was shot and finished over a period of nine months. It then went on to be officially selected for numerous British and European film festivals and won seven awards. The project was a complete success. And so... 

The race is on!

We would now like to invite you to join us to get the film into production and make it go global - whether that's by directly backing it or by spreading the word through social media, or by telling your friends, family, neighbours, happy cyclists and work colleagues. Please take a look at our unique perks, there are some great ones on offer, and choose one which suits your pocket. So what to do now? Do as Wyck says...