My name is Craig Staggs and I am the Creative Director and co-founder of Minnow Mountain. We are an award-winning animation studio best known for our work on the documentary feature Tower. I served as Animation Directer and Co-Producer of Tower along with my partner, Steph Swope. We've also created an independent animated digital series called Earp. We are very excited to introduce our latest project: Murder Lake.

Murder Lake is a bloody memory. A dark and lush nightmare with environments steeped in atmosphere. Elaborate and striking painted backgrounds are adorned with dazzling effects of light, dust, weather, and wind. We’ll build an authentic horror story universe that stands in contrast to the hijinks and eccentricities of the characters inhabiting it.

This campaign is specifically to fund the creation and outreach of our series pitch package.  Every great show has to start somewhere and we are currently in production on an exceptional project bible and killer trailer that serves as proof of value and concept for Murder Lake. Animation at this level is difficult, but your contribution, coupled with our talented and experienced team, allows us to build and share a strong series pitch package that is integral to selling the show.

I've pulled together a small but growing team to make Murder Lake a reality. As the team expands and strengthens, so does the project. This is an exciting part of the process and drives the success and personality of our series.

CASTING UPDATE:

We are thrilled to announce the addition of Lee Eddy to the Murder Lake cast. Lee is an award winning actor and producer and it's an honor to work with her. She'll play the voice of Radio- Letty's ever present, all knowing, disembodied sidekick.

We're proud to announce the addition of Josephine Christiane McAdam to the Murder Lake Cast. Josephine's character will be featured in the pilot episode and the series trailer. More details soon.

Please consider joining the team with a contribution today!

Your contribution helps us reach our next InDemand Goal of $13,666 to add a Series Treatment that covers all the episodes of Murder Lake to our pre-production pitch package. Strengthening the collection of assets that is the foundation for production of our pilot episode.

Here is a breakdown of the funding levels and the phases of production they unlock:

"The Caretaker" Limited Edition Poster

As the creators and producers of Murder Lake, it's our job to breathe life into this dysfunctional love letter to occult mystery series like True Detective and X-Files. Here are just a handful of the projects that have inspired us and to which we aspire.

YOUR CONTRIBUTION WILL MAKE A DIFFERENCE FAR BEYOND THIS CAMPAIGN:

You can stick it to The Man.

Murder Lake is a hilariously seditious take on the mystery genre featuring a tough, capable, and independent female lead fighting a bloviating, style-over-substance, in-over-his-head bad guy. Kinda like America.

You can be the start of something big.

Tower, the animated documentary we co-produced, raised over $50,000 through Indiegogo. The film went on to theatrical distribution, national broadcast on PBS, and is now available on Amazon, Netflix, and iTunes.

We've also had the honor of working with ArtTV, a wildly imaginative web series inspiring kids to GO MAKE ART! This digital series raised over $53,000 here on Indiegogo and has a growing fan base.

You can help build a community.

Tower expanded on a rotoscope animation style pioneered by Richard Linklater with his features Waking Life and A Scanner Darkly. Murder Lake would be produced in Austin, building upon this strong foundation in the independent animation community.

Animation production employs actors, artists, videographers, sound designers, musicians, and many more hard working creative professionals.

The Minnow Mountain Sizzle Reel:

The Minnow Mountain About Video:

Let’s get serious.

Our approach is ambitous and experimental. With this approach there are big rewards but substancial risks. We anticipate these risks when possible but strive to be flexible and efficient enough to respond to the obstacles we couldn’t predict.

This veteran team is organized and capable.

Making a digital series can get complicated. We've run large teams in competitive environments and pride ourselves on an efficient approach to film production.

We are aware of the pitfalls of production and have lived through many of them. 

One step at a time. Our plan is to develop Murder Lake in stages, allowing us time to anticipate and solve possible production obstacles.

We have a plan B. And C. And D.

Don't Panic. Our elastic and aggressive production workflow is designed by experienced low-budget and independent filmmakers. We value momentum and we respond quickly to challenges.

Each stage of production results in a deliverable that allows us to gain feedback, recalibrate and strengthen our pitch and project before moving on to the next step. Adjustments to the production workflow and the creative content are organic and constant.

Craig could get hit by a bus.

Wait. What? Really. But all the planning, passion, and efficiency can't account for every eventuality. There is a chance that Murder Lake will fail or never get made. That's the straight dope. And also explains why Craig wears a helmet if he leaves the house.