Uncle Bertie's Botanarium

By Duncan Sarkies

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This campaign was successful and closed on 11/05/2012 at 9:23 PM.

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About

Uncle Bertie's Botanarium

Project 2012-03-28 23:43:08 +1300

Salutations
Greetings seafarers, city slickers, country types, historians, botanists and lovers of the ridiculous.

What we are trying to do
Help us to make our dream of Uncle Bertie's Botanarium Episode I: Cheese Dreams in the Gravy Isles come true. We are planning, come hell or high water, to make Episode I of a radio podcast, scripted by Duncan Sarkies and featuring the music of Lawrence Arabia and performances by Jemaine Clement and Nigel Collins. The podcast also features sound design by Nic McGowan and illustrations by Stephen Templer.

We need your help
We will be recording the podcast in May and we are determined to do a really good job of it. This Pledge Me campaign is an important way you can help us to raise the minimum funds we need, and you will get something cool in return.  

[International Pledgers ... please add $5 to the rewards up to and including The Super-Duper Supreme reward OR $15 to the Art, Literature or Music packages to cover additional postage costs.  Thanking you in advance]

A little bit about the story - Episode 1: Cheese Dreams in the Gravy Isles
Mr Banks is a famous aristocratic idle botanist who is a lord in the ugly squalor of Damprot-Upon-Tyne, the jewel of the Gravy Isles. A varicose vein cheese dream leads him to the secret botanarium of Bank’s Uncle Bertie. Uncle Bertie was a laughing stock amongst botanists due to his belief in the existence of ‘Heaven's Clover’, a plant on the other side of the Boiling Ocean rumoured to offer a lifetime of pleasure. He disappeared in search of the plant, never to be seen again.

Mr Banks announces that he will set sail to the Boiling Ocean and beyond, to restore his family name and to rid the world of pleasure. He selects a crew of untrustworthy seafarers, botanists and dandys. As the sailors leave the port for pastures unknown and probable certain death they sing a moving farewell dirge, I Left My Heart in the Gravy Isles.

A little about us
Lawrence Arabia is a splendid musician. In 2010 he won the APRA Silver Scroll with Apple Pie Bed.  He has written many other songs worth crowing about: Talk About The Good Times, The Beautiful Young Crew and Auckland CBD. He has toured with Crowded House, Feist and Okkervil River and will soon be jetting to the UK to promote his forthcoming album The Sparrow.

Duncan Sarkies is a writer who is mostly known for working with brother Robert on Scarfies and their highly anticipated film Two Little Boys. He has written two episodes for the Flight of the Conchords and his novel Two Little Boys has been warmly received in New Zealand and the UK.

Stephen Templer is an illustrator, artist and amateur shaman. He has illustrated for Fatcat and Fishface on their short animated film The Wreck of the Diddley and designed props for The Hobbit. His artwork can be seen all over the country and is always in hot demand. See his website to get an idea of his style. Also, we've displayed some of his artwork below.

Our other collaborators are a superb bunch. Jemaine Clement is extremely well known for his HBO TV Series Flight of the Conchords, Nigel Collins has toured extensively with the Flight of the Conchords, the Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra and much-loved theatre show Wheeler's Luck. Nic McGowan has produced radio plays, albums by many prominent Wellington bands and created sound designs for film and theatre. He is a perfectionist; he can often be found in the wee small hours rustling trees and sloshing around on boats to capture soundscapes for his many projects.


Where we have been and where we are going

Uncle Bertie's Botanarium
is a project that we have been working on for three years and has so far resulted in a short film, and a rollicking ten episode synopsis that we will turn into more radio podcasts and a grapic novel. After that, who knows, but we do salivate a little at the prospect of eventually creating a feature film…


Some of the art you can purchase to help us

Below are some of Stephen Templer's artworks made specifically for Uncle Bertie's Botanarium. You can purchase an A3 limited edition of Discovery of the Botanarium in 'The Art Package' for $120. The other images you can get are a set of 8 postcards ($25), or as part of the 'Super-Duper Podcast Package' ($40).



Discovery of the Botanarium


Postcard images

Your own line, guaranteed

These are some of the lines on offer:

'Ow! Ow! Stop it! Please! Ow!'
'Nathaniel! Nathaniel!'
'I would like a delicious piece of gorgonzola and a pint of melted cat cheddar.'
'What a load of claptrap.'
'There is nothing beyond the Boiling Ocean. I know this as well as I know the world is flat.'
'This book is a nonsense. Burn the book! Burn the book!'
'Even calling it a weed is xenophobic to the extreme.'
'Speaking of shrivel, you should see inside my breetches.'
'You may be a woman Sheila, but you always have such interesting botanical points.'
'Ow! I love queuing. Ow!'
'Okey dokey, but remember to thrash him three times daily.'
'That's me your honour. I saw him on bended knee. Drool was coming out of his mouthal regions, and I saw him havin' his way with the chrysanthemum.'
'I don't like his widow's peak.'
'There's no such thing as Heavens Clover. That's just a sailor's fancy.'

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. Why do you need an illustrator for a radio podcast?
A. Stevie will influence what is created with his illustrations, and his illustrations will become a focal point in the project in the future. For the radio podcast Stevie will inspire the sound design with his illustrations. Think of him as like Terry Gilliam in Monty Python.

Q. Yeah, but Monty Python was a TV show. You could see it with your eyes.
A. Okay then. Think of him as like Andrew Ridgeley in Wham. Or that guy that never sang or played an instrument and just danced a lot in Frankie Goes To Hollywood.
Q. Okay.
A. That wasn’t a question.
Q. Or was it?




Comments

Updates 2

Blimey ... Another NEW REWARD

08/05/2012 at 12:37 AM

Just added the opportunity for you to have Duncan Sarkies come and give a motivational speech! Aimed at Advertising Agencies ... but if the hat fits grab it quick as only one of these on offer.

NEW REWARDS

03/05/2012 at 5:04 AM

We've added a new reward ... the chance to be an Executive Producer.  It comes with some pretty cool opportunities so check it out.

And only one chance to secure an evening with Lawrence Arabia, Duncan Sarkies and Stephen Templer - the ultimate 'reward'!

    Pledgers 158

    Helen Hayhurst
    11/05/2012 at 9:23pm
    Brigid Connor
    11/05/2012 at 9:09pm
    Lauren
    11/05/2012 at 8:52pm
    Jane Cameron
    11/05/2012 at 8:15pm
    Anonymous pledger
    11/05/2012 at 7:59pm
    Anonymous pledger
    11/05/2012 at 7:56pm
    Josh Forde
    11/05/2012 at 7:08pm
    Eventful Woman
    11/05/2012 at 6:09pm
    Rud Ward
    11/05/2012 at 4:06pm
    Alexandra Grace
    11/05/2012 at 3:43pm
    Marianne Elliott
    11/05/2012 at 2:35pm
    Chris House
    11/05/2012 at 2:28pm
    Yasmine El Orfi
    11/05/2012 at 2:27pm
    Aaron Hawkins
    11/05/2012 at 2:13pm
    Nancy Fithian
    11/05/2012 at 2:12pm
    Matthew Sole
    11/05/2012 at 2:05pm
    Anonymous pledger
    11/05/2012 at 2:05pm
    Megan Salole
    11/05/2012 at 1:57pm
    Sarah Forster
    11/05/2012 at 1:54pm
    Anonymous pledger
    11/05/2012 at 1:22pm
    Mhairead Connor
    11/05/2012 at 1:21pm
    Andy Chappell
    11/05/2012 at 1:07pm
    Brenda Leeuwenberg
    11/05/2012 at 12:31pm
    Paul Ward
    11/05/2012 at 12:30pm
    Anonymous pledger
    11/05/2012 at 12:28pm
    Hayden East
    11/05/2012 at 12:25pm
    Sue Rogers
    11/05/2012 at 11:54am
    Greg Pawsey
    11/05/2012 at 11:39am
    Mark Cubey
    11/05/2012 at 11:37am
    Margaret Austin
    11/05/2012 at 11:34am

    Followers

    Followers of Uncle Bertie's Botanarium

    Uncle Bertie's Botanarium

    Project 2012-03-28 23:43:08 +1300

    Salutations
    Greetings seafarers, city slickers, country types, historians, botanists and lovers of the ridiculous.

    What we are trying to do
    Help us to make our dream of Uncle Bertie's Botanarium Episode I: Cheese Dreams in the Gravy Isles come true. We are planning, come hell or high water, to make Episode I of a radio podcast, scripted by Duncan Sarkies and featuring the music of Lawrence Arabia and performances by Jemaine Clement and Nigel Collins. The podcast also features sound design by Nic McGowan and illustrations by Stephen Templer.

    We need your help
    We will be recording the podcast in May and we are determined to do a really good job of it. This Pledge Me campaign is an important way you can help us to raise the minimum funds we need, and you will get something cool in return.  

    [International Pledgers ... please add $5 to the rewards up to and including The Super-Duper Supreme reward OR $15 to the Art, Literature or Music packages to cover additional postage costs.  Thanking you in advance]

    A little bit about the story - Episode 1: Cheese Dreams in the Gravy Isles
    Mr Banks is a famous aristocratic idle botanist who is a lord in the ugly squalor of Damprot-Upon-Tyne, the jewel of the Gravy Isles. A varicose vein cheese dream leads him to the secret botanarium of Bank’s Uncle Bertie. Uncle Bertie was a laughing stock amongst botanists due to his belief in the existence of ‘Heaven's Clover’, a plant on the other side of the Boiling Ocean rumoured to offer a lifetime of pleasure. He disappeared in search of the plant, never to be seen again.

    Mr Banks announces that he will set sail to the Boiling Ocean and beyond, to restore his family name and to rid the world of pleasure. He selects a crew of untrustworthy seafarers, botanists and dandys. As the sailors leave the port for pastures unknown and probable certain death they sing a moving farewell dirge, I Left My Heart in the Gravy Isles.

    A little about us
    Lawrence Arabia is a splendid musician. In 2010 he won the APRA Silver Scroll with Apple Pie Bed.  He has written many other songs worth crowing about: Talk About The Good Times, The Beautiful Young Crew and Auckland CBD. He has toured with Crowded House, Feist and Okkervil River and will soon be jetting to the UK to promote his forthcoming album The Sparrow.

    Duncan Sarkies is a writer who is mostly known for working with brother Robert on Scarfies and their highly anticipated film Two Little Boys. He has written two episodes for the Flight of the Conchords and his novel Two Little Boys has been warmly received in New Zealand and the UK.

    Stephen Templer is an illustrator, artist and amateur shaman. He has illustrated for Fatcat and Fishface on their short animated film The Wreck of the Diddley and designed props for The Hobbit. His artwork can be seen all over the country and is always in hot demand. See his website to get an idea of his style. Also, we've displayed some of his artwork below.

    Our other collaborators are a superb bunch. Jemaine Clement is extremely well known for his HBO TV Series Flight of the Conchords, Nigel Collins has toured extensively with the Flight of the Conchords, the Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra and much-loved theatre show Wheeler's Luck. Nic McGowan has produced radio plays, albums by many prominent Wellington bands and created sound designs for film and theatre. He is a perfectionist; he can often be found in the wee small hours rustling trees and sloshing around on boats to capture soundscapes for his many projects.


    Where we have been and where we are going

    Uncle Bertie's Botanarium
    is a project that we have been working on for three years and has so far resulted in a short film, and a rollicking ten episode synopsis that we will turn into more radio podcasts and a grapic novel. After that, who knows, but we do salivate a little at the prospect of eventually creating a feature film…


    Some of the art you can purchase to help us

    Below are some of Stephen Templer's artworks made specifically for Uncle Bertie's Botanarium. You can purchase an A3 limited edition of Discovery of the Botanarium in 'The Art Package' for $120. The other images you can get are a set of 8 postcards ($25), or as part of the 'Super-Duper Podcast Package' ($40).



    Discovery of the Botanarium


    Postcard images

    Your own line, guaranteed

    These are some of the lines on offer:

    'Ow! Ow! Stop it! Please! Ow!'
    'Nathaniel! Nathaniel!'
    'I would like a delicious piece of gorgonzola and a pint of melted cat cheddar.'
    'What a load of claptrap.'
    'There is nothing beyond the Boiling Ocean. I know this as well as I know the world is flat.'
    'This book is a nonsense. Burn the book! Burn the book!'
    'Even calling it a weed is xenophobic to the extreme.'
    'Speaking of shrivel, you should see inside my breetches.'
    'You may be a woman Sheila, but you always have such interesting botanical points.'
    'Ow! I love queuing. Ow!'
    'Okey dokey, but remember to thrash him three times daily.'
    'That's me your honour. I saw him on bended knee. Drool was coming out of his mouthal regions, and I saw him havin' his way with the chrysanthemum.'
    'I don't like his widow's peak.'
    'There's no such thing as Heavens Clover. That's just a sailor's fancy.'

    Frequently Asked Questions

    Q. Why do you need an illustrator for a radio podcast?
    A. Stevie will influence what is created with his illustrations, and his illustrations will become a focal point in the project in the future. For the radio podcast Stevie will inspire the sound design with his illustrations. Think of him as like Terry Gilliam in Monty Python.

    Q. Yeah, but Monty Python was a TV show. You could see it with your eyes.
    A. Okay then. Think of him as like Andrew Ridgeley in Wham. Or that guy that never sang or played an instrument and just danced a lot in Frankie Goes To Hollywood.
    Q. Okay.
    A. That wasn’t a question.
    Q. Or was it?




    Comments

    Blimey ... Another NEW REWARD

    08/05/2012 at 12:37 AM

    Just added the opportunity for you to have Duncan Sarkies come and give a motivational speech! Aimed at Advertising Agencies ... but if the hat fits grab it quick as only one of these on offer.

    NEW REWARDS

    03/05/2012 at 5:04 AM

    We've added a new reward ... the chance to be an Executive Producer.  It comes with some pretty cool opportunities so check it out.

    And only one chance to secure an evening with Lawrence Arabia, Duncan Sarkies and Stephen Templer - the ultimate 'reward'!
      Helen Hayhurst
      11/05/2012 at 9:23pm
      Brigid Connor
      11/05/2012 at 9:09pm
      Lauren
      11/05/2012 at 8:52pm
      Jane Cameron
      11/05/2012 at 8:15pm
      Anonymous pledger
      11/05/2012 at 7:59pm
      Anonymous pledger
      11/05/2012 at 7:56pm
      Josh Forde
      11/05/2012 at 7:08pm
      Eventful Woman
      11/05/2012 at 6:09pm
      Rud Ward
      11/05/2012 at 4:06pm
      Alexandra Grace
      11/05/2012 at 3:43pm
      Marianne Elliott
      11/05/2012 at 2:35pm
      Chris House
      11/05/2012 at 2:28pm
      Yasmine El Orfi
      11/05/2012 at 2:27pm
      Aaron Hawkins
      11/05/2012 at 2:13pm
      Nancy Fithian
      11/05/2012 at 2:12pm
      Matthew Sole
      11/05/2012 at 2:05pm
      Anonymous pledger
      11/05/2012 at 2:05pm
      Megan Salole
      11/05/2012 at 1:57pm
      Sarah Forster
      11/05/2012 at 1:54pm
      Anonymous pledger
      11/05/2012 at 1:22pm
      Mhairead Connor
      11/05/2012 at 1:21pm
      Andy Chappell
      11/05/2012 at 1:07pm
      Brenda Leeuwenberg
      11/05/2012 at 12:31pm
      Paul Ward
      11/05/2012 at 12:30pm
      Anonymous pledger
      11/05/2012 at 12:28pm
      Hayden East
      11/05/2012 at 12:25pm
      Sue Rogers
      11/05/2012 at 11:54am
      Greg Pawsey
      11/05/2012 at 11:39am
      Mark Cubey
      11/05/2012 at 11:37am
      Margaret Austin
      11/05/2012 at 11:34am

      Followers of Uncle Bertie's Botanarium

      This campaign was successful and got its funding on 11/05/2012 at 9:23 PM.