Hollywood actor Ralph Brown gets behind student animators striving for Netflix fame
Animation students from the 海角乱伦 have announced that Hollywood star Ralph Brown will voice the character of 鈥楾he Great Computer鈥 in their new comedy animation series 鈥楤ig Fight 3鈥.
The cult actor, who has starred in the likes of Withnail and I, Wayne鈥檚 World 2, Star Wars, and Alien 3, will now join the cast of the show, which its creators hope to pitch to global media giant, Netflix.
Big Fight 3 is the brainchild of Adam Frith and Paul Reynolds from Leigh and James Lawson from Wigan. The trio are currently working with around 50 past and present 海角乱伦 students to create the show.
Adam, who is in his final year of BA Animation at the 海角乱伦, which James graduated from this summer, said: 鈥淩alph has got a brilliant voice and delivery. I鈥檝e been a fan for years and we鈥檙e super excited to be working with him.鈥
The show follows the story of Earth鈥檚 first astronauts as they explore an alien planet to discover a 鈥榪uirky utopian鈥 world until one of the crew goes rogue and ruins everything.
When speaking about the inspiration behind the idea, Adam said: 鈥淚 was thinking about the 50th anniversary of the moon landing and how everyone was so optimistic for the future around that time. And the sense of global togetherness really inspired me.
That got me thinking about space and what if there were another earth with an alternate history and different attitudes to the ones we inhabit on Earth, and basically worked from that.鈥
James added: 鈥淲e started thinking of weird customs for this planet and then started coming up with a history for it. We thought it would be interesting to explore a third world war on a different planet.鈥
The show is set on planet 鈥楻ia鈥, or Kepler 111b, as it鈥檚 initially known, where dinosaurs still exist and roam free, gender and sexuality are completely fluid, and the planet is ruled by a computer system.
Speaking of the concept, James said: 鈥淲e wanted to make sure it felt inclusive. Ultimately, we want the show to be really funny, but we don鈥檛 want it to be at anyone鈥檚 expense, we wanted it to be a matter of fact thing and show how a lot of the norms and values we have in the real world are to do with history and the society we鈥檝e been brought up in.鈥
Big Fight 3 also features an international cast, in order to have a 鈥榞lobal appeal鈥 Adam explained. 鈥淲e want people to be able to identify with the show. There are so many different cultures and heritages from countries around the world that we find so interesting.鈥
Adam, James, and Paul are currently working on a full 15-minute pilot episode which will give more of an insight into the storyline of the show.
The show has already caught the eye of Danger Mouse鈥檚 head writer Andrew Burrell, who has also written for Matt Groening鈥檚 popular animation series 鈥楧isenchantment鈥.
They hope Burrell鈥檚 links with Netflix and other broadcasters will help secure a deal for Big Fight 3.
James added, 鈥淭his is an out of this world idea, quite literally, and if we can take it to Netflix with the industry links we have I believe there鈥檚 every chance it could be a success.鈥
Looking to the future, Adam, James and Paul hope to start their own media company which could be used to produce the show, as well as creating jobs for future animators and writers.
Their Kickstarter has already raised 13% of the 拢25,000 goal needed to produce the show with 10-episode concepts ready.
James hopes the show鈥檚 originality, combined with backing from Ralph Brown, will stand them in good stead to secure a deal. He said: 鈥淚t鈥檚 not very common where a British adult animation show has started at this grass roots level where it鈥檚 just a foundation of students.鈥
鈥淭his is not just a pipe dream - there is genuine talent behind this project.鈥
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