Animation Apprentice Founder Alex Williams Talks About His Indie Film Project

My Haunted House

Alex Williams is an animator, cartoonist and the founder of Animation Apprentice. He is also working on an independent film project, My Haunted House, which is currently in development, aiming for a 2016 release. We asked him to tell us about the project, and what still needs to be done to bring it to the big screen.

What is My Haunted House?

Alex: My Haunted House is a feature film for theatrical release at Halloween in 2016. It’s a story about a boy, a perfectly normal 12 year old kid who just happens to live in a haunted house. His family are ghouls and ghosts – he’s the only one who’s normal. It’s a story about wanting to fit – and wishing your family were different, more normal like the other children. So, hopefully, a pretty universal story, really.

We’re co-producing with Denmark and we are in the process of putting the final budget together and locking down the finance structure. It’s hard work but it’s thrilling to be working on our own feature film.

Film work by Alex Williams

Can you explain the process of getting a feature film made?

Alex: The key problem of course is raising finance. You can’t just go to the bank and get a loan, you will need investors and partners, few of whom will likely take more than say 20% of the risk. So you have to pitch; to do that you need a great idea, ideally a high-concept “What if?” idea that will get your project noticed.

BFI - funds for film-makers

In the UK there is limited finance for new feature films, though BFI does offer some support via the National Lottery. But it is also possible to involve other European partners, and through them find foreign co-production financing. I highly recommend the Cartoon Movie forum in Lyon; it’s a kind of “Dragon’s Den” for animated films and it takes place in March every year.

Cartoon Movie

The deadline for submission of ideas to Cartoon Movie is in November. I brought “My Haunted House” to the market at Cartoon Movie "in concept" and we had a wonderful response; lots of interest in the pitch - which we are currently building on. Our goal is now to go back to Cartoon Movie "in development" and see if we can raise the money to get it made. The budget is around £5 million, which is not a small amount of money to raise.

Design by Monika Dzikowicz

Will students from Animation Apprentice be able to work on the film?

Alex: Absolutely! One of the main reasons I want to make the film is so that I can work with some of the talented graduates from Animation Apprentice. After all, I know their work intimately and I know how I can get the best work from them.


When can we buy tickets?

Alex: Hopefully, if all goes to plan, the film will be out in theatres in time for Hallowe'en in October 2016.

To sign up for our November classroom at Animation Apprentice, follow this link. For more information on finding work and surviving in the animation and visual effects business, read our post on how to find a job in the animation industry, and check out our post about what not to do at a job interview. Also see our post on starting your own small animation business, learn how to create an invoice, and see how we are helping our students find work through our film co-operative Nano Films. Download the free Escape Studios Careers in VFX Handbook. Take a look at how awn.com can help you find a job, and read our piece about how to survive as a freelance animator. Also, find out what Cinesite look for in a student's demo reel, and read our post on setting up your own animation business. Also see our post about freelancers and taxes. If you have questions about our course, email us at info@animationapprentice.org.