About The Film

When will the film be released?

Nothing is set in stone yet, but we’re currently on target to wrap up production near the end of 2022, which means we’re looking at a release in early 2023. There will be a trailer ahead of the release which will let you know exactly when to look for it!

Where will the film be released?

You will be able to watch it on the Lackadaisy YouTube Channel.

Why have I not seen any updates? Are you still working on the film?

Yes, absolutely we are! And we share updates all the time. Right from the start, it’s been a mission of ours to be as transparent about the production process as possible. Perhaps you’re not looking in the right places?

• • Lackadaisy YouTube – Animation progress previews, the comic dubs promised in the Kickstarter, and regular livestreamed work sessions and Q&As.
  • The Little Daisy Cafe (Devlog) – Monthly updates on film production, backer rewards, merch and events.
  • Kickstarter Updates – Iron Circus posts more consolidated updates about important things.
  • Twitter (@LackadaisyFilm) – News, updates, previews and art. You can also follow the director @Fablepaint and the creator @LackadaisyCats for updates about everything Lackadaisy-related. @IronCircusComix also posts book and backer reward updates.
  • TikTok – Big collection of animation previews! 
  • Patreon – Lots of extra behind-the-scenes stuff for monthly supporters.
  • Discord – The Lackadaisy Discord community. The crew pops in frequently to chat and answer questions.
  • Lackadaisy.com – The official website. News, art and comics. This is also a hub for all other Lackadaisy social media spots.

Why is it taking so long?

That is the nature of animation. To put it mildly, it is laborious. It’s hard to overstate how much time and effort is required to piece together a film in which each frame is hand drawn, cleaned up and colored. Each background must be painted by hand too, each prop has to be designed and modeled, every scene requires lighting, effects, compositing and color correction. Music, voice recording and sound editing must be done and a credit sequence must be made. There was a whole host of work leading up to this including vetting and hiring artists, auditioning actors, writing, storyboards, revisions, creating style guides, character designs and scene layouts too…not to mention all of the constant communication and organization work it takes to coordinate a team on something like this. 

We’ve been continuously putting everything we’ve got into it since the moment the Kickstarter ended so that we can deliver something as good and good-looking as we can possibly manage So…please bear with us just a bit longer! 

What programs are you animating/filmmaking with?

The animators work primarily in Toon Boom Harmony. All of the 3d prop elements and layout models were made in Blender. We used Storyboard Pro for the storyboarding part of production, and we’re utilizing Adobe After Effects for compositing and effects.

Is the film a continuation of the comic or a prequel or something else?

Readers will recognize the setting and characters from the Lackadaisy comic, but the events in the film represent a standalone story within that world. You won’t need any prior familiarity with the comic in order to watch and understand the film.

How long is the film?

It’s roughly 25 minutes in length.

Is this an animated series or just a single film?

It’s a single film. With any luck, we’ll be able to expand on it and do more, though! We’d be thrilled to be able to make a whole series!

Who’s voicing these characters?

A cast of amazing voice actors we are ever grateful to have been able to work with! You can see the cast and crew list here on the Devlog.

How big is your team?

Pretty big! It’s in flux for the duration of production because some parts of the crew complete their work and then hand things off to the next team. Not everyone is active all at the same time. For instance, the work of the storyboard artists had to be wrapped up before the animation team could begin their work. All told, though, more than 100 people have had a part in the production so far.

Are you hiring?

We aren’t actively hiring at the moment. We do post calls for portfolio or animation reel submissions on social media when we are seeking to fill positions, though. Follow the director and the official Lackadaisy film account on Twitter for future updates.

How do you find voice actors? Are you casting?

Early in production, we issued casting calls for the various characters and listened to every single voice reel that came our way. Some of the casting calls were public and some of the calls only went out only to the voice acting community we had some prior connections with.

We are no longer casting for the Lackadaisy animated film, however. The voice recording on this specific project is already complete. If we need to cast additional parts for future animation projects, though, we’ll put the word out again. Keep an eye on our social media, if you’re interested!

Is this film for kids or adults?

It’s for teens and up. The film depicts some violence, the consumption of alcohol, and characters generally involved in shady gangster business. Nothing about it is what you might label gratuitous, though…except maybe Rocky’s compulsive rhyming.

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Kickstarter Fulfillment / Backer Rewards

I pledged to the Kickstarter. Where are my rewards?

We have been communicating about rewards and Kickstarter stretch goals as they become available. If you pledged to the Kickstarter but haven’t seen any emails, please check and make sure that:
1) You filled out the BackerKit survey
2) Emails from Iron Circus and/or Kickstarter are not landing in your spam folder

Here’s a breakdown of the rewards, stretch goal items and merch pre-orders and their status as of September, 2022:

• • Lackadaisy Essentials ebook – Done and available to backers for download.
  • Lackadaisy Volume 1 ebook – Done and available to backers for download.
  • Lackadaisy Volume 2 ebook – Pending. Tracy is finishing up the new layout and cover art.
  • Lackadaisy Essentials Hardcover Book – Pending. All of the layout work is done. The print file is compiled. We are literally just waiting for the printing part to happen, and we do apologize for the delay. The pandemic threw the print industry for a loop – multiple loops – and things have not gone as smoothly as they normally do with this sort of thing. We are actively trying to push it through the process as fast as we can at this point.
  • HD Digital Download of the Film – We’ll make this available once the film releases, of course!
  • Storyboards Digital Download – The storyboards and animatic are done. We can’t share this until the film is released, though, or it’d be one big spoiler.
  • Soundtrack Digital Download – The music for the film has been composed and recorded. We will release the soundtrack once the film releases too.
  • Devlog – It’s been up and running since production began at the Little Daisy Cafe!
  • Lackadaisy Comic Dubs – Done! We made a heckin ton of them. They’re all available on the YouTube Channel
  • Lackadaisy Emoji Set – Done and available for download from Gumroad
  • Lackadaisy Character Designs Pack – Done and also available for download from Gumroad
  • Shikishi Art Board Drawings – Done and delivered (save for a couple of requests that came in late – those are pending). See some of the art here and here.
  • Animated Cameo Characters – Designed and animated! Here’s a peek.
  • Custom Cameo Gravestone Markers – Done and painted into the background art. Here’s another peek.
  • Special Thanks for Backers – These will appear in the end credits of the film.
  • Bookplates – Done! These will be included with Lackadaisy Essentials hardcover book when it ships. You can see the art here.
  • Extra End Scene Featuring Mordecai – Yep. We made one! It’s in the film. Mordecai will never forgive us.
  • Online Premiere – We will make announcements about when this will happen leading up to release. Please keep an eye out for Kickstarter updates/emails or follow the film account on Twitter.
  • Shot Glass Sets – Done! We made these and fulfilled the orders that came in. Here’s how they turned out.
  • Film Poster – Done! They are available through Gumroad
  • Signed Film Posters – Shipping now! We had to mail them all over the country to get the cast and crew signatures, but they’ve all been signed now and have just gone out in the mail as of the end of October 2022. Here’s a look!
  • Enamel Pin Sets – Also shipping! The pin sets have arrived from the manufacturer! Iron Circus has begun shipping them as of late October 2022. See how they turned out!
  • Making-of Book – Pending. We have to finish making the film before we make the making of the film.
  • Lackadaisy T-Shirts – Done! Uh, we didn’t mention this in the Kickstarter, but we made one anyway. Find it here!

I pledged through PayPal (not Kickstarter) for the digital rewards. How do I get those rewards?

If you made a pledge this way, you should have received email correspondence from Iron Circus containing download links for the currently available rewards. Some rewards are not available yet. Here’s the status:

• • Lackadaisy Essentials ebook – available for download
  • Lackadaisy Volume 1 ebook – available for download
  • Lackadaisy Volume 2 ebook – pending (new book layout and cover art is in progress)
  • The script, soundtrack, storyboards and downloadable HD film will become available once the film has been released!

If you have not received an email about your PayPal backer digital rewards, please contact support@ironcircus.com

Who do I contact if I have an issue with something not addressed above?

If you’re having trouble with the BackerKit site, please contact BackerKit support directly.

Questions about custom art you pledged for:
lackadaisycats@gmail.com

Merchandise lost or damaged, or something else amiss relating to your rewards:
support@ironcircus.com

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Miscellany

Will the comic continue?

Yes. Tracy will resume comic updates as soon as possible – once the film is complete and the new book editions are all ready for print (almost there). Meanwhile, there are still new mini-comic and art updates published at Lackadaisy.com

What’s the status of the physical copies of the comic books? Do you have plans to re-release them in the future? 

Yes, there are plans to release brand new editions of Lackadaisy Volumes 1 and 2 through Iron Circus. We’re focused on wrapping up work on the film first, but we’ll share more concrete details about the books soon!

Will the Lackadaisy Essentials hardcover art book be available to people who missed the Kickstarter?

Yes! Once the Kickstarter backer book rewards have all been fulfilled, the art book will be available through Iron Circus Comics.

What year does the comic/film take place in? 

It takes place in 1927, in the midst of National Prohibition in the United States.

Why cats?

Well, the short answer is that they make natural gangsters. And they’re fun to draw and animate.

I want to make animations too. Where do I start?

It’s great to have ambition, but start small! If you’ve never produced, say, a 1-3 second animation before, that’s where you should begin. Even that will be an intense amount of work. Use that to familiarize yourself with the process and the production pipeline, to get accustomed to all of the software you’ll need, and to figure out whether or not it’s something you truly enjoy doing. You’ll need to have an understanding of those things before you involve a whole crew of artists and a sizable budget. It’s easy to get in way over your head and a lot of projects end up abandoned that way. You better your chances if you gradually work your way up toward making something bigger.

Use your portfolio of self-made animations to get involved in other animation projects too. This is how you make connections with other artists and gather the experience you’ll need to set out on your own, if that’s ultimately your goal.

Lastly, good luck to you! Go and do your thing! The more animation out there, the better!

What’s your next project after the Lackadaisy film is finished?

We’re not quite sure yet. We have some plans, but whether or not we can follow through on them depends on where the chips fall after the film release. We’d love to be in a position where we can produce more Lackadaisy animation!