It's a pleasure to be part of this project. And I am very glad that the story of "Roy" will be known to more people. Thanks Animation Obsessive for the chance of being featured in this article!
Wow, what an amazing story! Thanks for bringing it to us. I've become such a fan of Deaf Crocodile in the past year; they've introduced me (and the world) to so much incredible stuff that I never would have seen otherwise. Can't wait to see Roy in Space!
Thanks a ton -- glad you liked it! We're definitely Deaf Crocodile fans ourselves. It's been great contributing to some of their Soviet animation releases this year: we already enjoyed their work way before we'd interacted with them personally.
Always up for a “missing film thought lost” story - by the way, was the original film print 35mm or 16mm?
It’s a fascinating story with echoes of independent film makers going all out to make a film, almost recklessly, but also with nothing more than sheer enthusiasm and ambition, selling their homes, borrowing money, maxing out credit cards etc and then when the film fails to meet their expectations they can face angry creditors or other problems to add to the disappointment.
According to the Deaf Crocodile guys, the negative is 35 mm -- from what we've seen, it's definitely crisper than 16 mm tends to be. And no question that this is a classic kind of story we've read from the film world (and especially from video games, in recent years). These projects tend to end pretty tragically, so it's great that Roy has a chance for a happy ending after all this time. It was exciting to break the news on this one!
Kind of what happened with the Indo-Japanese Ramayana in some respects. Yugo Sako became an alcoholic, his financiers upset that the film struggled to make its money back plus various machinations from distributors and basic mismanagement since no one really knew how to market the film.
It’s great that it’s now starting to be appreciated and it’s influence acknowledged.
That's tragic to hear -- we didn't realize. Ramayana is a film we're still intending to explore but haven't yet found enough material on, despite emailing the folks involved in the re-release. Hopefully one day!
A book is in the works with Macmillan, I believe, written by Ryotaro Mihara, an Anime academic.
It’s something I’ve been pushing for, for ages, but detailed info was unavailable despite my close remote contact with Sako-San & Ram Mohan and here in the U.K. it would be next to impossible to get a publisher to run with it.
This piece really got me thinking about how some creations just... poof... vanish from collective memory, and it's genuinely insightful how you manage to unearth these lost bits of cultural data. I’m curious, what do you think made it so thoroughly disappear without even achieving that 'so bad it’s good' cult status, unlike other artistic disasters that somehow find their fanbase?
Just based on what we've heard from the folks involved, it's not entirely clear. Part of it was likely the director's passing after the movie came out -- no one else was as passionate about it as he was. There was also, most likely, the sheer lack of exposure it got in theaters, which made it difficult for anyone to know it existed.
Given that it only had a handful of poorly-attended screenings in a single city, it's possible that fewer than 1,000 people (or fewer than 500) have ever actually watched it. Add in the fact that it never reached home video, thanks to the lack of interest, and it gets pretty tricky to build a cult following! It's incredible that the negative survived, given everything -- projects this unknown often disappear completely.
Not even the 12 theaters that premiered Roy in Mexico City (which was a considerable amount of cinemas for that time) managed to help the movie in its initial run. It seems that was screened in other Mexican cities and apparently reached California as well, but I could not verify this for sure. I am sure there should have been scattered screenings of what we have no record of.
Haha, we're excited for people to see it! There's nothing else quite like it. Even its rotoscoping isn't much like stuff we've seen before: it's total chaos, full of errors and very dreamlike and slow. Can't wait for a trailer to drop so folks can see how it looks.
Thanks so much! It's been a few months in the making. And it really is a shame what happened -- the film's origin story is tragic, in a way that wasn't out of the norm for low-budget outsider movies from the '50s-'80s. We're glad that folks who really care have latched on to Roy.
Lost media stories like these are always fascinating, as well as works made by a ragtag group of creatives. Thank you again, Animation Obsessive, for giving these works a second life.
We were really happy to tell this one! Finding/preserving lost movies is important work and the Roy story was particularly wild. Can't wait for folks to see the film in motion -- we'll be sure to link the trailer when it pops up.
In the US, there is a tradition of "midnight movie" screenings held late at night, where strange, low-budget and often campy (坎普趣味) films are shown. There are also American TV shows and YouTube channels that cover these kinds of films. For example, Mystery Science Theater 3000 and Red Letter Media. Not everyone likes these films in the US, but there is a community of people who appreciate the ambition, bizarre qualities and sometimes unintentional comedy of midnight movies. A classic example is Plan 9 from Outer Space.
It's a pleasure to be part of this project. And I am very glad that the story of "Roy" will be known to more people. Thanks Animation Obsessive for the chance of being featured in this article!
Thanks for all your help! It was great talking -- you've done incredible work with Roy, and we're glad we could share some of your discoveries here.
I have pledged to the Crocodile Dance Kickstarter!! I REALLY hope they make it! <3
We've got our fingers crossed -- one of the projects we're most excited about right now, for sure!
Neat, cool history thank you!
Glad you enjoyed! Happy we could share the story.
Wow, what an amazing story! Thanks for bringing it to us. I've become such a fan of Deaf Crocodile in the past year; they've introduced me (and the world) to so much incredible stuff that I never would have seen otherwise. Can't wait to see Roy in Space!
Thanks a ton -- glad you liked it! We're definitely Deaf Crocodile fans ourselves. It's been great contributing to some of their Soviet animation releases this year: we already enjoyed their work way before we'd interacted with them personally.
Always up for a “missing film thought lost” story - by the way, was the original film print 35mm or 16mm?
It’s a fascinating story with echoes of independent film makers going all out to make a film, almost recklessly, but also with nothing more than sheer enthusiasm and ambition, selling their homes, borrowing money, maxing out credit cards etc and then when the film fails to meet their expectations they can face angry creditors or other problems to add to the disappointment.
According to the Deaf Crocodile guys, the negative is 35 mm -- from what we've seen, it's definitely crisper than 16 mm tends to be. And no question that this is a classic kind of story we've read from the film world (and especially from video games, in recent years). These projects tend to end pretty tragically, so it's great that Roy has a chance for a happy ending after all this time. It was exciting to break the news on this one!
Kind of what happened with the Indo-Japanese Ramayana in some respects. Yugo Sako became an alcoholic, his financiers upset that the film struggled to make its money back plus various machinations from distributors and basic mismanagement since no one really knew how to market the film.
It’s great that it’s now starting to be appreciated and it’s influence acknowledged.
That's tragic to hear -- we didn't realize. Ramayana is a film we're still intending to explore but haven't yet found enough material on, despite emailing the folks involved in the re-release. Hopefully one day!
A book is in the works with Macmillan, I believe, written by Ryotaro Mihara, an Anime academic.
It’s something I’ve been pushing for, for ages, but detailed info was unavailable despite my close remote contact with Sako-San & Ram Mohan and here in the U.K. it would be next to impossible to get a publisher to run with it.
Ah, fantastic news! Will keep an eye out for it.
This piece really got me thinking about how some creations just... poof... vanish from collective memory, and it's genuinely insightful how you manage to unearth these lost bits of cultural data. I’m curious, what do you think made it so thoroughly disappear without even achieving that 'so bad it’s good' cult status, unlike other artistic disasters that somehow find their fanbase?
Just based on what we've heard from the folks involved, it's not entirely clear. Part of it was likely the director's passing after the movie came out -- no one else was as passionate about it as he was. There was also, most likely, the sheer lack of exposure it got in theaters, which made it difficult for anyone to know it existed.
Given that it only had a handful of poorly-attended screenings in a single city, it's possible that fewer than 1,000 people (or fewer than 500) have ever actually watched it. Add in the fact that it never reached home video, thanks to the lack of interest, and it gets pretty tricky to build a cult following! It's incredible that the negative survived, given everything -- projects this unknown often disappear completely.
Not even the 12 theaters that premiered Roy in Mexico City (which was a considerable amount of cinemas for that time) managed to help the movie in its initial run. It seems that was screened in other Mexican cities and apparently reached California as well, but I could not verify this for sure. I am sure there should have been scattered screenings of what we have no record of.
I can’t wait for Roy in Space’s second, eventual release! It sounds so unique within the industry!
Also, I love rotoscope animation! Richard Linklater’s “Waking Life” and “Apollo 10 1/2: A Space Age Childhood” definitely sowed that love within me!
Haha, we're excited for people to see it! There's nothing else quite like it. Even its rotoscoping isn't much like stuff we've seen before: it's total chaos, full of errors and very dreamlike and slow. Can't wait for a trailer to drop so folks can see how it looks.
What a great story about Roy, and its rediscovery and revival. Very sad about the demise of the director…
Thanks so much! It's been a few months in the making. And it really is a shame what happened -- the film's origin story is tragic, in a way that wasn't out of the norm for low-budget outsider movies from the '50s-'80s. We're glad that folks who really care have latched on to Roy.
Great story of "Roy from Space". I'm a big Isabelle Aspin fan too!
Thanks so much! It was great talking to her and Brian -- seeing the work they're doing on Roy, it's something special.
Cool history thank you!
Glad you enjoyed! Thanks very much for the comment.
Lost media stories like these are always fascinating, as well as works made by a ragtag group of creatives. Thank you again, Animation Obsessive, for giving these works a second life.
We were really happy to tell this one! Finding/preserving lost movies is important work and the Roy story was particularly wild. Can't wait for folks to see the film in motion -- we'll be sure to link the trailer when it pops up.
说实话依然不能理解这种电影存在的意义，感觉只会成为《美人鱼的夏天》这种空有努力的作品。
In the US, there is a tradition of "midnight movie" screenings held late at night, where strange, low-budget and often campy (坎普趣味) films are shown. There are also American TV shows and YouTube channels that cover these kinds of films. For example, Mystery Science Theater 3000 and Red Letter Media. Not everyone likes these films in the US, but there is a community of people who appreciate the ambition, bizarre qualities and sometimes unintentional comedy of midnight movies. A classic example is Plan 9 from Outer Space.
中国确实完全没有这样的传统