Thu Aug 20 '20 Announcement
over 5 years ago – Thu, Aug 20, 2020 at 10:02:48 AM

Hey, everyone!

We have SO MANY exciting updates for you!

First, one-third of all of our animation sequences are 100% completed!!  Thank you to Christa Carr, Jessica Honore, and Ariel Paxton for getting us to this milestone. 

Second, happy birthday to Enongo senior character designer and animation mentor, Dan Haskett!   Dan is a veteran animator, director, and character designer who has worked on so many beloved films and cartoons over his 50+ year career, including The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, The Simpsons, Toy Story, Sesame Street, Looney Tunes, Tom & Jerry, and much more.  We are thankful and honored to have the guidance and support of this living legend of animation history on our film.

Watch our behind-the-scenes tribute to Dan on Facebook to learn more about this exciting collaboration and his legacy (and show it and Dan some love!): 

https://www.facebook.com/enongomovie/videos/1692900000862018/UzpfSTc0NDczMDA2OToxMDE1ODU1MDU4MTMzMDA3MA/

Third, Sammus and fellow MC Akua Naru have launched an extremely exciting new project: "Support @FollowTheKeepers TODAY as we raise the first $50k of a $100k+ goal on @indiegogo to build the FIRST digital archive that visually-maps and documents five decades of womxn and girls in hip hop. Through a custom-designed geospatial map, transcribed interviews with womxn artists and innovators, and an extensive database of record and chart-data on womxn’s recorded works, theKEEPER Digital Archive will excavate a vast world of unearthed hip hop artistry through the eyes and ears of the womxn and girls who BUILT THE CULTURE. Period.

Will you show up for womxn and girls in Hip Hop? Start by getting them to their first milestone of $50k and pick up some perks in the process!”

Links:
https://igg.me/at/thekeeperarchive
followthekeepers.com

Also, congratulations to Enongo animator/story artist/designer Brooklyn Lee for landing a job at Netflix!  As Brooklyn was wrapping up her sequence, executives at Netflix took note of her beautiful work on our film, and offered Brooklyn a job as a story artist multiple forthcoming projects! We’re thrilled for the next step of her journey!

Additionally, we are officially a starring project on Indiegogo!  Thanks to your support and enthusiasm, the team at Indiegogo HQ wants to regularly celebrate our project and team for the foreseeable future!  Stay tuned for more updates!  

In the meantime, if you want to help and participate, show us photos of you with your Sammus swag and merch (showing t-shirts, enamel pins, signed CDs, etc.) to info(at)enongomovie.com with your social media handle and name, and they'll give you a shout-out!

Thank you for your amazing support, everyone!  More updates soon, but in the meantime, help keep this project alive by telling your friends and support us online!:

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/enongo-animation-fund

Official Website: www.EnongoMovie.com
Facebook: www.Facebook.com/EnongoMovie
Instagram: www.Instagram.com/EnongoMovie
Twitter: www.Twitter.com/EnongoMovie

#EnongoMovie

@EnongoMovie

Sun Jun 14 '20 Announcement
almost 6 years ago – Sun, Jun 14, 2020 at 08:27:25 AM

Hey, everyone!

We are thrilled and honored to announce our eighth and newest animator has joined the Enongo team: the talented Ruby Myles!

Ruby is a Columbus, Ohio-based illustrator, animator and visual development artist who studied at the Columbus College of Art and Design.  With a strong film and theatre background, she has been allowed the opportunity to work on a wide variety of projects and hone her skills. 

"Growing up as a singer myself, it was so incredibly easy to connect with Enongo.  To have that initial connection, as well as feel and understand the story of a woman who looks like myself, and thousands of other Black girls in the world, was enough to feel I HAD to take part in whatever way I could. I am so excited and honored to be a part of such a history-making project!"
– Ruby Myles

Life drawing by Ruby Myles.

Gesture drawing by Ruby Myles.

Sketches of African servals and giraffe by Ruby Myles.

Ruby will be animating with Shammah McVay on one of the film's most challenging and important sequences.  We are honored to have her expertise and enthusiasm on board this passion project!

More of Ruby's art here:

Instagram: @ruemarieart

Website: www.rubymyles.com

Animation and filmmaking are incredibly expensive, and every single dollar counts!  Help Ruby and the rest of the Enongo crew make this the best movie they can –– spread the word, invite your friends, and make it happen!:

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/enongo-animation-fund

Vimeo Campaign Trailer: https://vimeo.com/365043886

Official Website: www.EnongoMovie.com
Facebook: www.Facebook.com/EnongoMovie
Instagram: www.Instagram.com/EnongoMovie
Twitter: www.Twitter.com/EnongoMovie

#Enongo

@EnongoMovie

Thank you for your outstanding support, everyone!  Stay tuned for more updates.  In the meantime, let's make a movie!

Wed Jun 3 '20 Announcement
almost 6 years ago – Wed, Jun 03, 2020 at 07:01:40 PM

Hey, everyone,

Like so many of you, the Enongo team was heartbroken over the seemingly-endless tragedy in this country but encouraged by the tremendous, grassroots response against this racist police state.  During times like these, things can feel futile, but it's true that every single bit counts to make a difference.

Enongo/Sammus herself provided a few links to take direct action:

A list of bail funds that you can support and signal boost:

https://twitter.com/mariahniccole/status/1266936850167377920

An action plan from the Black Lives Matter movement to stay alert and participate:

https://m4bl.org/join-our-movement/

We are proud that the vast majority of our already-diverse production team (from animation and music to editorial and cinematography) is composed of Black folks and Black women.  Our goal from the very beginning of filming was to make our team as diverse and talented as possible.  If you are working on a project and want to give deserving talents a chance, check out some of these suggestions from @BlkWmnAnimator.  While they apply to animation, many of these tips can easily apply to other creative and technical fields, as well:

Our team is hard at work during quarantine with some big announcements in the next few weeks.  Stay tuned. 

Black Lives Matter. 

Fri Mar 20 '20 Announcement
about 6 years ago – Fri, Mar 20, 2020 at 10:39:11 AM

Hey, everyone!

There has been a lot of talk about cancellations, postponements, and other such scheduling chaos due to the wild science-fiction dystopia we're all experiencing together, so we wanted to let you all know:

YES, THIS MOVIE IS STILL HAPPENING!!

While our filming schedule is on temporary hiatus, every other facet of production is well underway, and in some cases, accelerating.  Our animators are animating, our composer is composing, and our editors editing just like before.  Barring the apocalypse, we are still on the path to getting this movie out at film festivals and early screenings in 2021.  See these previously-unreleased images from our rough animation sequences by our team below to get a taste of our progress: 

Artwork by Ariel Paxton.

Artwork by Anaiyah Tatiana.

Artwork by Shammah McVay.

Sammus performing at the Brooklyn Museum in March 2020.

By the way, happy birthday, Enongo!  

With the global coronavirus pandemic, countless musicians and other artists have lost tens of thousands of dollars.  All of Sammus' shows have been cancelled for the foreseeable future, which, like so many performers, has made a major deficit in her funds.

Enongo has said, "For my birthday I want YOU to buy all of the tunes you can on Bandcamp because TODAY and ONLY today until 12am PST, Bandcamp is waiving their revenue share policy, which means that all money used to purchase an album goes directly back to the artists. Help if you can! And if you can't, spread the word pretty please!"  If you can, please support hardworking artists impacted by this event ASAP!  

It's more important than ever before to uplift and support each other (ideally from afar and at least six feet apart from each other).  But buying merch and music, donating to crowdfunding campaigns, and even just giving a phone call to loved ones who might be lonely or going through hard times is absolutely vital.  

Thank you all for your incredible support, everyone!  We'll keep you posted on any further major updates (and maybe some surprises along the way).  In the meantime, let's make a movie!  (And wash your hands!)

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/enongo-animation-fund

Vimeo Campaign Trailer: https://vimeo.com/365043886

Official Website: www.EnongoMovie.com
Facebook: www.Facebook.com/EnongoMovie
Instagram: www.Instagram.com/EnongoMovie
Twitter: www.Twitter.com/EnongoMovie

#Enongo

@EnongoMovie

Tue Feb 11 '20 Announcement
about 6 years ago – Tue, Feb 11, 2020 at 01:04:24 PM