ANNOUNCING!

The Puppetoon Movie 4K Restoration (Director's Cut)

CROWDFUNDER

Puppetoon Case
CONTRIBUTE :

Reward Categories:

All donor categories receive a Gift of The Puppetoon Movie 4K Restoration
(Director's Cut) Blu-ray and a Thank You PDF.
Higher level donations receive added gifts of The Puppetoon Movie Volume 3 and if available The Puppetoon Movie Volume 2. Please remember the primary function of this crowdfunder is to support the George Pal Puppetoon preservation so these films can be enjoyed for generations to come. Your generous contribution makes this effort possible for everyone.

From Producer-Director Arnold Leibovit of The Puppetoon Movie (1987, 2013), The Puppetoon Movie Volume 2 (2020), The Puppetoon Movie Volume 3 (2023), The Fantasy Film Worlds of George Pal (1985, 2000) and The Time Machine (2002 Dreamworks Pictures-Warner Bros. remake) See IMDB for Details.

Announcing! The Puppetoon Movie 4K Restoration (Director's Cut). Digitally scanned for the first time from the Original 35mm Color Negative. This historic NEW version will be a vast improvement over all prior releases and will be a must-have Collector's Edition for all George Pal, Animation Aficionados and Classic Cinema Fans!

The Puppetoon Movie is a salute to the revolutionary Academy Award®-winning stop-motion animated Puppetoons™ created by sci-fi fantasy film legend George Pal. In 1987, Producer-Writer-Director Arnold Leibovit, working with Mrs. George Pal, created this loving compilation of Pal's milestone short subjects starring Gumby, Pokey, and Arnie the Dinosaur hosting more than 10 of Pal's milestone shorts from 1934-1947 that have inspired animation and special effects filmmakers the world over. Oscar®-winner George Pal created this series of stunning stop-motion animated films called Puppetoons. Brilliant even by today's standards...these films are a marvel to behold that must be seen to be believed!

Your invaluable donations will make it possible to further preserve and restore the legacy of these timeless masterpieces! The Puppetoon Movie 4K Restoration (Director's Cut) is guaranteed to be another glorious and exciting visual feast for all ages.

CONTENTS & BACKGROUND

The Puppetoon Movie 4K Restoration (Director's Cut) will be the first time the feature has been scanned from the original 35mm Color Negative. New bonus Extras will be added - some not seen before! The prior 2013 Blu-ray version was only scanned in 1080p lower resolution from the 35mm interpositive. This resulted in a somewhat grainy less than optimum picture quality. That will be corrected with this new 4K upgrade.

The Puppetoon Movie features the Academy Award®-Winning Puppetoons of George Pal. Guest Appearances by Gumby and Pokey. With the talents of Paul Frees, Art Clokey, Dallas McKennon, Dick Beals, Victor Jory, Rex Ingram, Byron Kane, Sara Berner, Billy Bletcher. Artistic Contribution of Hundreds of Puppetoon Artists and Animators including Ray Harryhausen, Willis O’Brien, Gene Warren, Sr., Wah Chang, Duke Goldstone, Bob Baker, Erwin Broner, George E. Jordan, Reginald Massie, John S. Abbott, Winston C. Hoch, Jack Miller, Miles Pike, Herb Johnson, Willard Oberlin, Blanding Sloane, Stuart O'Brien, Isador Jimmy Stone and many others. New Animation Director: Gene Warren, Jr. New Sequence Animator: Peter Kleinow. Associate Producer: Fantasy II. New Music Composed by Walt Disney Composer Buddy Baker with Original Music by Louis Armstrong, Peggy Lee, George Kleinsinger, Paul Tripp, Sam Browne, Evelyn Dall, Joe Hajos, Debroy Somers, The Hawaiian Islanders plus Louis Levy, Jack Hylton, Bert Ambrose and The Charlie Barnet Orchestras. Recorded in Ultra-Stereo. Produced, Written and Directed by Arnold Leibovit.

In the annals of Hollywood, George Pal will always be remembered as a titan, a brilliant visionary who profoundly shaped the art of motion pictures. As an animator, Pal was a pioneer of stop-motion animation known as Puppetoons™, and a peer of Walt Disney. In the 1950s, as a producer and director of live-action films, he brought to the screen such classics as H.G. Wells' The War of the Worlds and The Time Machine. Pal's cinematic legacy can be seen in the works of George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, Gene Roddenberry, The Walt Disney Studios, Pixar, Tim Burton and dozens of others.

George Pal seated in The Time Machine

George Pal seated in The Time Machine

Buy Puppetoon 3 Blu-ray

THE NEED FOR FUNDING

Following the acclaimed The Puppetoon Movie (1987, 2013), The Puppetoon Movie Volume 2 (2020) and The Puppetoon Movie Volume 3 (2023), The Puppetoon Movie 4K Restoration (Director's Cut) is yet another ambitious effort requiring outside funding. Upon its successful completion, this historic digital upgrade will result in a more accurate visual representation of George Pal's landmark Puppetoons now and for future generations. Money raised in this campaign will go toward these necessary expenses:

4K Digital Restoration

First the original 35mm color negative is scanned in 4K with a Lasergraphics motion picture film scanning system which is considered one of the finest in the world. Once the negative is scanned & digitized, the stereo soundtrack is put in sync with picture. From here, the negative undergoes a thorough mastering process which includes careful scene-by-scene, frame-by-frame cleaning of dirt, debris, scratches and other artifacts. This is followed by color grading-correction, image stabilization, de-noising, digital format conversions and finally deliverables are created. This process can take a year or more to complete.

Once the restoration is done, the Blu-ray is authored along with the creation of original artwork and packaging. A glass master is made to replicate a 1000 Blu-rays at a time. Glass masters are more expensive but superior to use to maintain quality control. The final stage is employing expert graphic designers to produce the best quality printed color wrap cover, booklet and packaging for distribution and promotion. The Blu-ray is then marketed.

Mastering Costs

4K digitizing and scanning can be costly propositions that easily be $25,000. Restoration via cleaning, color grading, authoring, mastering, packaging and promotion can be upwards $150,000 for a feature film. The more contributions we receive the better chance of meeting the immediate goal of completing The Puppetoon Movie 4K Restoration (Director's Cut) in our ongoing mission to improve and preserve George Pal's timeless animation classics.

The Puppetoon Movie (1987)

The Puppetoon Movie (1987)

George Pal was born into a Hungarian theatrical family. His interest turned from the stage to architecture, then cartoon drawings, then film animation. A bit of the gypsy, Pal first set up an animation shop in Berlin, Germany, then Praque, Czechoslovakia then on to Paris, France, the Netherlands and finally the United States always staying one step ahead of the Nazi regime.

It was in Eindhoven, Holland where Pal was to first create some of the most dazzling cinematic visions in the form of entertaining commercial story films dubbed Puppetoons. His Puppetoons utilized thousands of meticulously crafted wooden puppets and Technicolor stop-motion photography to create three-dimensional animation, the likes of which the world had never seen before. Animated figures gracefully twirled, bent, marched, squashed, flew, sang and danced in fabled stories of music and fantasy. Paramount Pictures, impressed with Pal's animation, offered him a deal to create his Puppetoons in the United States and that lasted for almost a decade. From there Pal said he wanted to take off his short pants (short subjects) and put on his long pants - make features - which led to making some of the most iconic and influential science fiction and fantasy feature motion pictures of the era. Pal was called The Father of Science Fiction and Fantasy in Modern Film firmly cementing his lasting legacy in the record books of cinematic history.

George Pal receiving Academy Award for Puppetoons

George Pal receiving Academy Award for Puppetoons (1944)

George Pal replacement figure animation

Pal pioneered replacement figure animation, where up to 5,000 wooden puppets could be created for a single film, for which 12,000 frames had to be shot. This resulted in exceptionally fluid movement that few other techniques can compare. (Pictured The Philips Broadcast 1938)

Philips Broadcast of 1938 figure in action

The Philips Broadcast 1938 figures in action

About The Team

Arnold Leibovit
Arnold Leibovit
(Producer-Writer-Director)

Producer The Time Machine (2002) starring Guy Pearce and Jeremy Irons, Special Effects by ILM/Digital Domain/Stan Winston (Dreamworks/Warner Bros.); Producer-Writer-Director of The Fantasy Film Worlds of George Pal (1986) featuring Charlton Heston, Tony Curtis, Janet Leigh, Rod Taylor, Tony Randall, Barbara Eden, Russ Tamblyn, Ray Harryhausen, Ray Bradbury, Gene Roddenberry, Joe Dante, Robert Wise, Roy E. Disney, premiering at The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences; Producer-Writer-Director The Puppetoon Movie (1987) starring Gumby & Pokey, premiere at the first American Film Institute Film Festival; Assistant Editor The Funhouse (1981) Director Tobe Hooper (Universal Pictures); Associate Director-Editor Rascal Dazzle Our Gang Comedies (1980) with Jerry Lewis, George Spanky McFarland, Carl Alfalfa Switzer, Composer Nelson Riddle (King World Productions); Director Penny Lane (1975); Director Judgment: An Essay on War (1974); Director The Fatherland (1973) (Whitney Museum of Art New American Filmmakers Series); Production Executive Do Black Patent Leather Shoes Really Reflect Up? (1983); Broadway Musical Comedy (Mavin Productions); Director Neil Simon's Star Spangled Girl at the Neil Simon Comedy Festival (2005). Other: Producer The Time Machine Soundtrack (1987, Remaster 2022) with Composer Russell Garcia; Producer The Fantasy Film Music of George Pal (2004) MGM/Warner Bros. (1958-1975). Awards: George Pal Memorial Award The Saturn Academy of Science Fiction and Fantasy; CINE Golden Eagles; International Film & TV Festival; Award of Excellence Film Advisory Board, others; Producers Council Producers Guild of America.

Mrs. George Pal and Arnold Leibovit

Mrs. George Pal and Arnold Leibovit at The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences Premiere of The Fantasy Film Worlds of George Pal (1985)

Arnold Leibovit guest hosts with Ben Mankiewicz on Turner Classic Movies

Arnold Leibovit guest hosts with Ben Mankiewicz on Turner Classic Movies' 2-Day George Pal Tribute Oct 11 & Oct 12, 2017

Joey D'Anna
Joey D'Anna
(Digital Film Restoration, Color Grading, Editor)

Joey D’Anna is a professional colorist and online editor. He started his career in post over 15 years ago doing linear tape to tape online editing then continued into non-linear online, finishing and color grading. Joey is an experienced color grader doing broadcast promos for networks including Discovery, TLC, National Geographic, Smithsonian Channel, History Channel as well as long form documentaries and independent films.

Adhi Wijaya
Adhi Wijaya
(Digital Restoration, Videographer, Editor)

Adhi is a digital film restoration artist skilled in platforms such as Nucoda, Phoenix, DaVinci Resolve, Adobe Premiere/Photoshop and After Effects. Adhi also works on various film projects for the Indonesian Government.

Jair del Real Castillo
Jair del Real Castillo
(Digital Restoration)

Jair has more than 20 years experience in the field of digital restoration and has collaborated with many key studios both in Mexico and around the world. Jair works on a variety of restoration programs and brings both passion and professionalism to the work he does.

JoAnn Karen Nunes
JoAnn Nunes
(Graphic Designer)

JoAnn is an Art Director at the Reference Recordings® label and freelance graphic designer specializing in printed media and package design. Portfolio includes several Grammy® nominated albums.

Mark Lobo
Mark Lobo
(Graphic, Motion, Web Design & Development)

Mark has worked on digital media projects for decades with extensive knowledge in digital imaging, web design, video and motion graphics. Mark has provided solutions for digital media in various industries which has inspired him to hone his skills to further understand the interactive user experience.

Jerry Beck
Jerry Beck
(Consultant, Animation Historian, Author, Former President ASIFA)

Jerry has written numerous books on animation including The Animated Movie Guide, Looney Tunes: The Ultimate Visual Guide and The 50 Greatest Cartoons. He is also a consulting producer to Warner Bros. and Shout! Factory for their classic animation projects and curates animation retrospectives for the Annecy and Ottawa Animation Festivals, The Museum of Modern Art and The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. He is currently teaching Animation History at Woodbury University and Cal Arts. He is also the editor of two websites, Animation Scoop and Cartoon Research.

CONTRIBUTE :

Reward Categories:

All donor categories receive a Gift of The Puppetoon Movie 4K Restoration
(Director's Cut) Blu-ray and a Thank You PDF.
Higher level donations receive added gifts of The Puppetoon Movie Volume 3 and if available The Puppetoon Movie Volume 2. Please remember the primary function of this crowdfunder is to support the George Pal Puppetoon preservation so these films can be enjoyed for generations to come. Your generous contribution makes this effort possible for everyone.