In the world of Hollywood movies, things always come down to the wire — a race to the finish line; escaping the clutches of an evil protagonist; or a desperately needed infusion of cash to save the family farm.
In the case to raise support for the movie “Mayberry Man,” there was no such down-to-the-wire, barely making it finish.
That’s because fans and supporters of the movie blew away the producers’ goal of needing to raise $100,000 via Kickstarter campaign. By the time the donations were all tallied, the Kickstarter effort brought in $151,181 from 800 backers.
“Mayberry Man” is the movie being done by brothers Cort and Stark Howell and a host of others with connections to “The Andy Griffith Show.”
The basic plot of the movie is that an arrogant movie star comes jetting through a small Southern town, where he’s arrested for speeding. Once a judge gets the star in the courtroom, the judge realizes the movie star could learn a thing or two about what’s really important in life.
So, instead of sentencing the star to jail or a big fine, he orders the movie star to attend the annual Mayberry Days festival held in Mount Airy.
Stark Howell, whose father Hoke Howell played the character Dud Wash in “The Andy Griffith Show,” said the idea for the movie came to him a couple of years ago, when he made his first sojourn to Mount Airy for Mayberry Days in 2018.
“I’ve always been a fan of the show, but I was shocked to discover the spirit of Mayberry still exists today within the tight-knit Mayberry fan community,” Howell said of that visit. “It’s the perfect setting to tell a modern-day, family-friendly story that expresses the virtues of the fictitious town of Mayberry that we all fell in love with so many years ago.”
In addition to the Howell brothers, others who either appeared in the original run of “The Andy Griffith Show,” or those with some tie to the show, are involved in the project. Among those are Clint Howard, who played Leon; Maggie Peterson (Charlene Darling); Ronnie Schell (who played in two different roles); and Keith Thibodeaux (Johnny Paul Jason).
Karen Knotts, daughter of Don Knotts; Dixie Griffith, daughter of Andy Griffith; and George Lindsey Jr, son of George Lindsey, are involved in the project, as is Greg Schell, son of Ronnie Schell.
Early on, Cort Howell said they all decided to seek the independent film route, because that meant more freedom to craft the movie as they see fit, which includes making the film G-rated, a difficult sell in Hollywood when trying to raise capital for a project.
“Our goal is to make a quality film for the fans,” he said, rather than following a formula dictated by a studio.
But that route also meant turning toward Mayberry fans for support. While the two producers were able to line up other financial support for the movie, Cort Howell said he wanted to give Mayberry fans a chance to take part in the film, as well as gauge just how much support was out there.
That’s where the Kickstarter campaign came in, complete with a three-city launch party held Jan. 15. The first of the parties was in Mount Airy, at the Loaded Goat, while the others took place in Danville, Indiana — home of the Mayberry in the Midwest Festival — and in Burbank, California.
The launch parties started an effort to raise $100,000 for the project from Mayberry fans, with
Feb. 29 serving as the deadline day.
Clearly, Mayberry fans were ready to help, pledging far more than the campaign was seeking.
Although the official Kickstarter campaign has concluded, Cort Howell said fans wanting to participate still have the opportunity to do so, with a list of pledge levels that still will earn donors a variety of thank-you prizes. Those range from an invitation to a pre-release online screening of the movie along with a “thank you” in the credits, for a $20 pledge; all the way up to being listed as a co-executive producer and co-star, with an appearance in the movie for the donor and family and a host of other gifts for a $10,000 pledge.
“We understand that it takes time to get the word out and that some fans may have missed out on our main fundraising campaign,” Cort Howell said. “We don’t want anyone to miss out who truly supports this project.”
Those still wishing to support can visit https://www.supportmayberryman.com/rewards-lpz.
As for the movie itself, filming is set to begin in May shortly before Mayberry in the Midwest gets underway, then move to Mount Airy for the Mayberry Days Festival in September.
For more information, visit www.mayberryman.com.
Source: https://www.mtairynews.com
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