Len & His Spitfire – Screening at CAOS

I had an amazing weekend in Calgary, where I attended the debut screening of Len & His Spitfire at the Calgary Animated Objects Society (CAOS) Festival of Animated Objects, Animovies Screening. It was well received by the audience, and during the Q&A session following the screening, I was able to explain a bit about the creation process.

When the question of how long the film took to complete came up, my timeline was by far the longest compared to the 3 and 4 months it took the filmmakers sitting beside me. Len & His Spitfire has been an absolute labour of love, which I started back in 2013. It took me a good year to do pre-production, researching the story using Len’s brother’s book, The Flying Duddridge’s of Hanley, writing the script and creating storyboards, digitally creating the puppets in photoshop using Len’s photography, printing, cutting out and assembling the puppets and sets; then production took another year to complete, shooting a couple weekends a month with a small crew of 3 to 4; and then I stepped away from the project for 5 years; picture edit took a year, and the sound edit took a good two years to complete, as I had to create the majority of the sounds myself (ie. when a puppet is walking on screen, the footsteps are actually me walking and holding a mic next to my feet).

So all together, Len & His Spitfire took me ten years to complete. That story got a round of applause from the audience, which was really inspiring. I don’t think I’ve ever felt as supported for creating my art, than in that moment. It was pretty special, and it really made it all worth it. I set out to make a film that my grandpa Len would be proud of, and I think I succeeded.

CAOS Festival of Animated Objects 2023

Q&A session after the screening

Shout out from the UofR Film Department’s IG

Len & His Spitfire Screenings

I’m excited to announce that my paper puppet film, based on my Grandfather’s time as a WWII Spitfire pilot, has been accepted into two Film Festivals. The first one is happening this Sunday, March 19th as part of the CAOS Festival of Animated Objects, Animovies screening. This is an amazing festival that happens in Calgary, and is a celebration of mask, puppetry, and animated objects. This will be the second time I’ve been accepted into this festival, the first was for my puppet film, A Gentleman’s Quarrel.

The second festival that Len & His has been accepted into is the DCISFF, Dawson City International Short Film Festival, April 6-9, 2023. I’m really excited for this film festival! As stated on their website, “Happening in Dawson City, Yukon… Among the most northern competitive film festivals in the world, the Dawson City International Short Film Festival has been showing short films of all genres every Easter weekend since 2000.”

Len & His Spitfire – COMPLETED!

EXTRA EXTRA, READ ALL ABOUT IT!!!!!

I’ve finished my prairie paper puppet film based on my Grandpa Len’s time as a spitfire pilot. It feels like forever ago that I started this project, and I’m absolutely ecstatic and also relieved to finally have it in the bag! It’s been a labour of love that I hope my grandpa Len would be proud of.

Next step is submitting it to film festivals for viewing.
I’ll be sure to let you know when it’s coming to a screen near you!

As a young child of the 1920’s, Len sustained serious injuries from a dynamite blast cap.  As a young adult, despite his disability, he enlisted in the fight against the Germans in World War II. Adventures and near deaths ensue, after he finds himself in the cockpit of a Spitfire.

Coming soon to an independent theatre near you!

Indiegogo Perks are in the Mail!

Your Len & His Spitfire Indiegogo Perks are on their way!

I spent the week putting the finishing touches on all the hand-made perks, and have shipped them off in the mail today.
Fingers crossed they arrive at their destinations before Christmas! 

Thank You Patrons of the Arts!

I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who contributed to the LEN & HIS SPITFIRE Indiegogo fundraising campaign. Just over $1,200 was raised, and will be going towards the post-production of the short prairie puppet film, LEN & HIS SPITFIRE, the true story of my grandfather’s time as a WWII Spitfire pilot.
Contributors will receive their perks by Christmas 2015, and the finished film will be available later on. – Thank you for your support!

Len & His Spitfire – TEASER from Noelle Duddridge on Vimeo.

Len & His Spitfire – PRODUCTION WRAPPED!!!

I am extremely ecstatic to announce that production of
Len & His Spitfire has officially WRAPPED!

   

And boy does it feel great 🙂

We shot at the Filmpool and utilized a few high-end pieces of gear, including their super cool jib! Sarah Huber was the very talented cinematographer, and Jared Gyeorick & Karen Elliott were the masters of puppeteering! It has been a wild ride these past 3 years, and I have a lot of very talented people to thank for getting the film to this point.
Len & His Spitfire will begin
Post-Production in the spring of 2016.

An epic 24 seconds of Len & His Spitfire footage will be released alongside the launch of the Post-Production Indiegogo Fundraiser Campaign, coming Fall 2015. Stay tuned to find out how you can support this great project, and be a part of Saskatchewan history!

HUGE THANK YOU TO THE SASKATCHEWAN ARTS BOARD FOR THEIR FINANCIAL SUPPORT, AND TO THE SASKATCHEWAN FILMPOOL COOPERATIVE FOR THEIR EQUIPMENT SUPPORT. 

Len & His Spitfire – IN PRODUCTION! ~ Part IV

Very bittersweet to be preparing for the last shoot weekend of Len & His Spitfire. It’s been a great ride getting to explore my grandpa Len’s experiences as a WWII Spitfire pilot. It’s been an even funner time transforming his photography into paper puppets!
The footage is turning out great, and I can’t wait to put it all together in the edit-suite.
I’ve been contemplating starting up an idiegogo campaign to help subsidize the post-production costs; specifically for things like music rights, hiring an actor for narration, paying for some professional color correction, and depending on how successful the campaign is there may even be some funds to pay for a professional sound mix. If I’ve learnt anything from the puppet medium, it’s that the soundscape of the final film really brings the puppets to life!
It has been an amazing journey thus far, and I have so many people to thank for all the hours they’ve poured into this project of mine. It has definitely been a labour of love; it takes a village to make a film, and I had the BEST village in the world working with me!

Huge THANK YOU to the Saskatchewan Arts Board for their financial support in the production phase of Len & His Spitfire.

Len & His Spitfire – IN PRODUCTION! ~ Part III

   Well folks, after a bit of a hiatus due to life happening, we’re back at it over the Easter long weekend! We had a great day of shooting on Good Friday and were able to wrap an entire scene, which has brought us to about 70% of the way through shooting.
I have some digital designing to do today and then my team will be fabricating with me tonight so that we’ll have a fresh new batch of puppets to shoot tomorrow!
Three more weekends of shooting over the next couple months and that should bring us nicely into post-production.
Stay tuned for more behind-the-scenes puppet photos from the upcoming shoots!
HAPPY EASTER!!!
    

Len & His Spitfire – IN PRODUCTION! ~ Part II

We’re about halfway through the production of my paper puppet film, Len & His Spitfire, and the footage is looking mighty fine! Production should wrap up in early 2015 if all goes according to plan.
I’d like to give a huge THANK YOU to all the puppeteers/fabricators that have helped out with the first part of shooting; this includes Sarah Huber, Jared Gyeorick, Karen Elliott, Kristine Dowler, Berny Hi, and Sunny Adams. These guys were absolutely great to have onset, and I couldn’t have done it without them. And also a huge thank you to the Saskatchewan Arts Board and the Saskatchewan Filmpool Cooperative for their financial support.

Len & His Spitfire ~ PRODUCTION ~ Part I

I am currently deep into production of my short prairie puppet film, Len & His Spitfire. I can happily say that my team and I have picked up some momentum and are gaining speed! I am learning a great deal as things progress, and am proud to be dedicating so much of my time & energy to a film that is a tribute to the memory of my grandfather. I’ve set extremely high standards for this project because the story means so much to me; & because I would want my grandfather to be proud of it and of me.