Kickstarting Adam Beane Industries

As you all may know, I ran a successful Kickstarter project last year to fund my first tutorial video. In the process of producing the Kickstarter rewards, Adam Beane Industries, Inc. got its official start and is now closer than ever to releasing both the first tutorial video and Cx5 to everyone in the world. 

At the beginning of 2012 we wrote an update to the Kickstarter contributors letting them know that their samples of Cx5 and the tutorial video DVDs would be shipping on April 1st. Now, that's a long time to wait for awesome rewards. And it's a long time for us to have to wait to release them! 

Why has the Kickstarter project taken so much time, and when will Cx5 and the first tutorial video be available? Read on for an excerpt from the update to the Kickstarter backers.

Shortly into filming the video and trying to make lots of Cx5 it hit us that we weren’t just fulfilling the Kickstarter commitment, we were truly launching the startup business, Adam Beane Industries, Inc. And as a small startup we realized there wasn’t any way to just finish Kickstarter and then focus on production and marketing, etc. It all had to happen at the same time, along with regularly scheduled commissions - the current lifeblood of the business. 

These months have been spent both starting a business and producing our first products. 

I started this project believing it would be relatively straightforward to scale up production of Cx5 to get everyone samples. Until launching this project I had been producing Cx5 only for myself, in small batches, but had invested in some equipment for large scale production in the future. I hired Alexis to help with daily operations and and we began developing production strategies and sourcing large quantities of materials. We realized that we were farther from large scale production of Cx5 than I thought. In manufacturing Cx5 for all of the Kickstarter contributors we began working out real world production issues and developing the manufacturing processes that will carry us to retail sales of Cx5.

As for the video, we have come so far with it and are very proud of what we’ve shot and edited, all without the benefit of a professional crew. But again we realized that we couldn’t treat this as a one-off production for Kickstarter. This was the first in a series, and we had to make sure that it set the tone for all of them. It needed to be the most thorough introduction to Cx5, since we will be releasing many other videos that build on it. We decided we needed to bring in some professional production assistance and have hired a director and an editor to make sure we are getting it right.

What started as a project to fund my first video became the catalyst to truly begin focusing on how Adam Beane Industries will manufacture Cx5 and bring my sculpting techniques to artists and inventors, worldwide. We have more than a Kickstarter project. We have a mission for the business. And you will see the results of all our work on April 1st.

I've heard from so many of you that you're eager to get your hands on Cx5 and try it out, and I know the tutorial video is going to be the perfect guide. Both Cx5 and the tutorial video will be available publicly after the Kickstarter contributors have received their rewards. 

So stay tuned. It will all be ready this Spring. 

P.S. Check out our first newsletter of 2012 here.

The Golden God of Finland

Begin Transmission: 

I hope everyone who celebrates Thanksgiving had a wonderful day with family and friends! Today I have a number of updates and a fun announcement for you. 

First off, Kickstarter progress! 

We are still producing Cx5, filming and editing the video, and getting all the extras ready. For everyone who is eagerly awaiting their rewards, again I thank you for your patience. It's coming!

And for all of you who want to buy Cx5, here's where we're at: 

The Kickstarter process has taught us a lot about manufacturing large amounts of Cx5. We have been developing new production strategies and figuring out how to manufacture enough so that no one has to wait for Cx5 when we open our doors! We've been building an online store and soon you will be able to buy Cx5 worldwide. This is taking time, and we will let you know a release date when we are sure we're ready to rock and roll. We hope it can be before the year is up, but it may take longer. 

Now for the exciting part - the celebrity project we filmed for the Kickstarter tutorial video is out!

I was commissioned by NOKIA to sculpt talk show host Conan O'Brien as his alter ego, The Golden God of Finland. Today I present to you the sculpture currently gracing Conan's office; Conan riding his mighty steed the swan, the national bird of Finland, and proudly flying a Finnish flag. Check it out in the Gallery! This is the project that I'm using in the tutorial video to show the real world applications of Cx5. NOKIA asked me to make a quick video for Conan so he could see the sculpting process, and now you too can watch it here. These are just some of the shots that you'll get to see at length in the first sculpting tutorial video. Enjoy!

What have I been working on?

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Hey everybody, we've been very busy here at the studio!

Unfortunately, I'm not yet allowed to show what I've been working on...

On September 4th I completed a very cool project for a certain global company to present as a gift to a certain well-known celebrity. I filmed the entire process with the goal of showing real world applications of Cx5 and my tools and techniques on a tight deadline. The project went beautifully and the end result was a pretty unique piece of sculpture. The footage I got of the process has been a great addition to the first DVD.

I am under contract to keep the project secret until said celebrity chooses to unveil the piece, which everyone involved with the project expected would have happened by now. I apologize to everyone who is getting restless for some news. I would love to show you all some clips from the DVD, but you'll have to bear with me. (I'm having trouble being patient too.)

Again thank you all for your support and enthusiasm as we wrap up the Kickstarter project!

Progressing!

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Sculpting and filming has been going at full speed. I'm wrapping up the top secret project and shooting some of the detail work for the DVD tonight.

I want to thank everyone who has sent words of encouragement on Facebook, Kickstarter, here on the blog and everywhere else. It's been a busy few months and the workload doesn't show signs of easing up.

There's a lot to sculpt, a lot to film, and we're working into the nights here at the studio, music up and lights on!

Real World Production Schedule

Begin Transmission:

Hello everyone, I know you've been patiently waiting for an update on the videos and Cx5.

We've been running behind here at the studio for an exciting reason; I've been given the opportunity to sculpt one of the biggest pop culture icons of our time, and his sculpture is going to feature heavily in the first video. Sorry I can't share who just yet, it's top secret!

The estimated completion date for this new work is the beginning of July, and I am pushing back shooting a number of sections of the video to make room for this new contribution. Shooting of the new segments is well under way, and this particular sculpture lends itself to real world, detailed examples of some very unique properties of Cx5.

You should see copies of the DVD and samples of Cx5 arriving in August.

I want to genuinely thank you all for your patience as this process unfolds. I am working hard for you!