Here it is, after months of delays and teasing, the official announcement for the project that'll pretty much be taking up my entire year of 2026 - Stanley Crowe, the animated series!
THE PREMISE-
Stanley Crowe is a gentle, non-binary pumpkin fellow who was trapped in an abusive relationship with Paolo Parapanini, the ringmaster of a nocturnal circus. After finally mustering up the strength to flee, they had to give up everything: their possessions, their sense of security, even their voice, which was stolen by Paolo using dark magic. All they have left are a broken heart and the clothes on their back.
Fortunately, it's not long before Stanley meets, and falls in love with, a traveling jester named Menlo. As their relationship blossoms, Stanley will join Menlo on wild adventures in fantastical lands while coping with the wounds (physical and emotional) given to them by Paolo. Paolo, for his part, isn't ready to let Stanley go and will do everything in his power to get Stanley back.
This series will delve into some pretty heavy topics, such as the power dynamics involved with abusive relationships, processing trauma, narcissism, people who hide monstrous behavior behind artistic merit, finding love (both internal AND external) and gender dysphoria, all told from a queer-centric point of view.Â
Stanley Crowe will be animated traditionally with pencil-on-paper, real inks, watercolor backgrounds and other mixed-media elements. The goal for this year is an "Episode 0" of sorts: a 90-second (minimum) pitch which I'll be using to attract more funding and interest for for a full-fledged web series. This is a one-gal project: All the art & animation, inking, color, sound, music, EVERYTHING will be done entirely by me.
The plan is, every two weeks I'll be posting a public update with new progress on the cartoon, and a patrons-only update, which will include some animated pencil tests and various other exclusive WIPs. Folks who contribute will get extra goodies like their name in the credits and custom avatars. I all goes well, I'll be launching the fully-completed project in January of 2027, along with an Indiegogo campaign fund the first full-length episode.
This also means that my current project are all being placed on the back-burner for the time being. Specifically, Viktor's Pumpkin Spook is being temporarily shelved, but I WILL be coming back to it. Depending on how on-track I am with my schedule, I might dedicate the month of October to finishing it up.
I can't articulate how excited I am to bring Stanley, Menlo and Paolo to life. I'll admit it's awfully ambitious for a first big project, but I've always been the type to leap into the deep end and figure things out from there. Plus, I'm tired of waiting - These characters have lived in my head for over a decade now and I'm ready to let them loose. I'd really appreciate any support I can get to make this series a reality!Â
Thank you all, I hope you'll all join me for this crazy ride and help me tell this story that means so much to me!
Cheers, my lovelies!
~Fright