Wrapping up production now, will post more detailed info about arrival dates once we have that info!
Four Horsies and Tween Maddies are in production!
We have great news: after several rounds of refinement, the Four Horsies sets and the 4in Tween Maddies are in production. Below we will share a few images of some of the final samples that will be pretty much how they will look. For all of these figures Klim has been favoring translucent figures with paint deco over that. So ALL of them have some sort of translucency, even Clash. Hard to see in the Clash image but the final version has a translucent smoke gray body under the armor.
For your reference, in the images with the Four Horsies figures, the final version we are going with is on the right, and the previous version is on the left. VERY minor changes and updates between last version and final version but Klim is a perfectionist and wants to make sure these figures are as awesome as can be.
Also to note: all 4 Four Horsies figures have articulated jaws!
We also have many of the swag items for the Kickstarter in hand already, or in production now. Just received these proofs of our super cool Four Horsies button packs - four 1.25" buttons in a blister pack. These will be available in our web store alongside the Four Horsies figures once we've completed shipping to backers.
We are looking at a potential arrival date of after NYCC in October, will update this blog with more images and info when they are available.
Pics of Four Horsies factory paint samples from Licensing Expo; timeline on production & delivery
As you read in the past update, we received the factory paint samples before we left for the Licensing Expo. These are samples produced by the factory for Klim to examine, take notes on, make sure paint is right, functionality is right, and actually to mess around with until he breaks them. Sad, but that is part of the pre-production process. Klim will pass notes back to the factory and have them make the minor adjustments so that the figures are exactly as he wishes them to be.
You will see from the pics below that our clear figures are CRYSTAL clear and look super cool. The painted figures are also insanely awesome- all painted Four Horsies figures are actually cast in translucent plastic so that they retain elements of translucency on some parts. Gives an extra added level of detail and visual complexity.
You will also see in some of the pics that our glass cases at the Licensing Expo had lights inside them, which made taking pictures a little difficult, but definitely showed off the translucency!
One of the many highlights of this show was Seth Green stopping by to chat and take pics of the Four Horsies. He was stoked that we are making these figures!
As for production schedule, Klim will finalize his notes and tweaking next week- that means tweaks to both the figures and the moulds they come from. The packaging size/blister has been developed and the artwork will be designed next. Production of the actual figures will begin in about 2 weeks, and the production process takes 45 days. After that, the trip from the factory to our warehouse will be another 30 days. So we are looking at approx 3 months until we begin delivering rewards packages that contain the Four Horsies figures (September), assuming we have no delays in customs or in transit.
Four Horsies packaging mockups
We are super excited that we are nearing the end of the design / adjustment phase and moving into production. As such, we now have images of the mockups of the packaging for the Four Horsies boxed set, as well as the separate 4" Tween Maddie figure. Obviously... the boxes won't be plain white when you get them. They will be covered in colorful artwork. But here are the first images straight from the factory:
Four Horsies of the Pocalypse at Las Vegas Licensing Expo Booth W194
In early June, Bigshot Toyworks will be exhibiting at the Las Vegas Licensing Expo at Booth W194. We will be showing off some of our best client work, as well as our FUnicorn and Four Horsies of the 'Pocalypse brands, plus other brand new properties! Click here to read the full press release. If you're attending the Licensing Expo, we are now taking appointments: email projects@bigshottoyworks.com to arrange a time and day with us.
Four Horsies & Tween Maddie test shots
Four Horsies & Tween Maddie molds
Four Horsies of the Pocalypse Kickstarter is FUNDED!
We are very excited to announce that the Four Horsies of the Pocalypse campaign on Kickstarter has ended and has been overfunded! That means that we have extra money to put MANY additional figures into production!
We will be producing the 4" Four Horsies figures in original painted colorway (seen above), as well as Glow in the Dark and Clear.
We will be producing a limited number of the Four Horsies figures in a special Kickstarter Exclusive green/purple colorway, with extra/variant accessories and head shapes.
We will also be producing a 4" Tween Maddie figure in original (seen in center of above image), GID and clear colorways.
AND we hit our $100K mark so we will be creating four new 2" MicroMini MicroMaddies in four poses, in the same colorways: original (purple painted), GID and clear.
Stay tuned to this blog for updates on production, which will begin after Chinese New Year wraps.
New time-lapse Calamity artwork by Zork
Four Variant KS Exclusive Four Horsies figures unlocked at $80K
At our next Stretch Goal of $80K, two more Kickstarter Exclusive Variant figures will be unlocked: Clash with variant head and colorway, and Calamity with variant gas mask and colorway! Like the two earlier Ghost and Raven variants, these figures can be tacked onto any $100+ pledge by adding $20 per figure to the amount of your pledge. Add $80 to get all four figures! Or pick and choose your favorites! Click through to back the Kickstarter now.
Four Horsies Kickstarter FUNDED; Stretch Goals Unlocked: Exclusive Ghost & Raven figures unlocked!
STRETCH GOAL 1 UNLOCKED: FREE STICKERS AND BUTTONS
We want to give all of you a huge thank you and high fives for taking us past our first Stretch Goal mark of $70K! That means ALL backers at $100 or higher will receive a FREE button pack and a FREE sticker pack!
STRETCH GOAL 2 UNLOCKED: KS EXCLUSIVE RAVEN & GHOST ADD-ONS
We also have some very exciting news to tell you about the NEXT Stretch Goal. We really wanted to speed up the process of making the Kickstarter Exclusive figures available to our backers, and Klim is really excited about them, so he has already committed to creating these variant figures. That means we are DEFINITELY making these Ghost and Raven variants!
Just to reiterate: these variant head shapes might pop up later in other releases for cons and other events, but the Kickstarter Exclusive colorways you see here will ONLY be available to you. We will only make enough to satisfy the Add-Ons placed by backers during this Kickstarter campaign.
The KS Exclusive variant Raven and Ghost figures are available as Add-Ons to all backers who opted for at least 1 set of the Four Horsies figures, or the Maddie bust (and, of course to all backers who backed multiple sets and combos at or above $100).
Each Add-On Variant figure will be $20- all you do is increase your pledge by $20 if you want one of them, or $40 if you want both. These are available as Add-Ons NOW! Heck, you can buy 5 or 10 of each if you like! Up to you. We will keep track of who wants what via the surveys we send after the KS closes on February 18th.
STRETCH GOAL 3: KS EXCL CLASH & CALAMITY
Once we hit $80K, we will unlock the matching KS Exclusive variants of Clash and Calamity. Your Add-Ons for Ghost and Raven will help us get to $80K! And don't forget to share this Kickstarter with your friends on your networks like Twitter or Facebook, as those shares are incredibly helpful to raise awareness! You can see we are posting every day ourselves, but we only have a few networks at our fingertips, and each one of you controls another useful network!
Here's that link again: http://kck.st/1AK6xRg
FOLLOW ALONG WITH FOUR HORSIES DEVELOPMENT
As you have probably realized by now, the Four Horsies brand is developing and evolving right in front of your eyes. While we appreciate you following all of our official posts on Twitter and IG @the4horsies, and our Facebook, you will get additional insights into Klim's creative process by following him on IG @bigshotklim. He tends to post work in progress sketches and renders there, really exposing the creative process as he develops the characters and storyline. That's also where he will be posting images from Toy Fair, where we will exhibiting and showing off our wares and creative services Feb 14-17.
FOUR HORSIES of the POCALYPSE KICKSTARTER IS NOW LIVE!
Click here to back the Four Horsies Kickstarter, which is now live! You can pick up the Four Horsies figures in 4-piece sets in the colorway(s) of your choice - original (pictured above), Glow in the Dark, or Spirit World Clear - or pick up all three sets! In addition, we have many fun swag rewards like sticker packs, a Four Horsies mug, a cool new t-shirt, a laser-etched wood iPhone cases and skate decks, button packs, a NEW Headmistress Maddie resin bust and more! Click through to the Kickstarter to get your pledge in... before it's too late!
the4horsies on Instagram
We've just set up an Instagram account for the Four Horsies of the 'Pocalypse: @the4horsies (just like our Twitter) so we can keep all of you posted on the launch and progress of the next Kickstarter in the most efficient way possible! Next posts will show you some of the cool artwork we've been working on for this Kickstarter... including some of the new rewards and some new art by Podypanda of the Four Horsies characters!
Getting ready for the Four Horsies Kickstarter
As we await the release of the Little Maddie figures from customs inspection hell, we are busying ourselves with prepping all the different parts of the next Kickstarter! We are tossing around different rewards ideas- of course we will have MULTIPLE rewards tiers of the Four Horsies figures (with some Maddies sprinkled in as well, for people wanting to buy the full series)... but we are also discussing stickers, wall graphics, buttons, wallets, keychains, busts and much more! Klim is like a fountain of awesome new Four Horsies graphics- they just keep exploding out of his computer. Here is one of MANY new graphics. Will share more info as have it... look for the next KS to launch soon!
Little Maddie factory: packing and shipping finished products!
We're very excited to announce that our production run of Little Maddie figures is about to hit the water. We will post arrival dates here on this blog, as well as info about the next Four Horsies of the Pocalypse Kickstarter which we will launch as Little Maddie KS backers are receiving their rewards. Stay tuned! The end really is NEIGH!
Meet Maddie and the Four Horsies of the Pocalypse at NYCC Booth 208
If you're coming to New York Comic Con, make sure you stop by our booth (Booth 208 in the section of NYCC called "The Block"). We will be there all 4 days, displaying final packaged Little Maddie figures as well as protoypes of the rest of the Four Horsies figures to whet your appetite for the next Kickstarter!
Stop by, take pics, grab a Four Horsies postcard! You will be the first to know when we launch the next Kickstarter! NYCC is October 9 through 12 at the Javits Center on the far west side of Manhattan.
To see what else will be at the collective-style Tenacious Toys booth, click here:
We got some beautiful shots of the finished packaging for the Little Maddie figures... the figures are being produced, painted and packaged right now. We will be showing packaged samples at NYCC Booth 208 at the Tenacious Collective space and shipping figures to backers as soon as the Maddies arrive in our US warehouse.
Little Maddie final packaging
Four Horsies die-cut sticker sheet sets look AMAZING and are among the first rewards shipping to backers. Rewards packages containing Maddie figures will ship later, when those items arrive. Currently we are shipping orders containing only: stickers, mugs, t-shirts, and keychains.
