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Let's make herstory! Support the 1st animated feature film about a drag queen super-shero!

Our Indiegogo crowdsourcing campaign may be over, but we still need your help to bring Maxxie to the silver screen!

Donations made between the Indiegogo campaign and the theatrical premiere are tracked and aggregated so that even if you make multiple donations, we'll honor the sum total perk level.

 

U.S. Donors: Good news! Donations made through Film Independent are tax deductible! That's right -- Film Independent is a 501c3 non-profit, which means that you'll be able to write off the donation on your taxes. Plus, you'll double your impact when you request an employer match.

LET’S MAKE HERSTORY!

THE FILM

With your support, we are producing a landmark film. Maxxie LaWow will be the first animated film to feature a drag superhero (and #dragvillain!) with a prominent LGBTQ+ and BIPOC cast of characters.

The One-Liner for TV Guide

"When drag queens start disappearing, a shy young barista must summon his inner super-shero to rescue them from an evil cosmetics exec bent on harvesting their magical anti-aging tears."

OMG, Tell Me More!

Shy young barista, Simon, works at the Pink Unicorn Cafe with his childhood best friend, Jae. On his 21st birthday, Simon finds a magic wig that turns him into the titular drag super-shero, Maxxie LaWow.

Meanwhile, drag villain Dyna Bolical has discovered that drag queen tears are the secret to eternal youth. She's been kidnapping queens and forcing them to watch the saddest movie ever made to drain them of their magical tears to create a test batch of her new cosmetics line. Now she's going after Maxxie and her super-powered tears to take her cosmetics company global and become filthy rich…

WE CAN ALL RELATE

Maxxie LaWow is a coming of age film with heart. As RuPaul says, "Drag reveals who you are." When that magic wig transforms Simon into Maxxie LaWow, he's confident, strong, brash -- everything he's not as Simon. Yet Maxxie is everything that Simon has the potential to be.

Photos of Select Cast

THE CAST

Maxxie LaWow features a "deliciously queer" cast with storied voiceover artists such as Laraine Newman and Erika Ishii, and Grammy-nominated vocalist Angie Fisher. In addition, featured RuPaul's Drag Race queens include All Stars Season 7 winner, Jinkx Monsoon, and runner up, Monét X Change, plus cast favorites BenDeLaCreme, Rosé, and Heidi N Closet. Check out our entire cast!

Photos of Core Production Team

CORE PRODUCTION TEAM

“Maxxie LaWow: Drag Super-shero" features an LGBTQ+ creative team with roots in the drag scenes of San Francisco and Los Angeles. Maxxie LaWow is an original story created, directed, and produced by Anthony Hand with a script by Michael Phillis, and animated by Chubby Beagle Productions. Creative direction by Johnny Burgess, and music by Dave Volpe and Electropoint.

Creator, Director, Producer: Anthony Hand is a product designer and former entrepreneur in Silicon Valley where he puts his storytelling skills to use on a daily basis. Anthony has seen every season of RuPaul’s Drag Race since Season 1, frequents local and national theater and cabaret, and is a recovering comic book geek. Anthony is also President of the Board for the Silicon Valley Gay Men’s Chorus. Seattle drag legend Dina Martina is his spirit totem.

Writer: Michael Phillis is an award-winning writer, director, actor, educator, and drag queen. His film directorial debut, MINI SUPREME, was an Opening Night Selection at Palm Springs ShortFest and an Official Selection for Frameline, Outfest, and dozens of LGBTQ film festivals worldwide. He is the co-creator and director of BALONEY, San Francisco’s popular gay all-male revue, now in its fifth year in residence at SF Oasis. His drag persona Patty From HR has been terrorizing stages, screens, and Zoom meetings since 2018.

Animation: Chubby Beagle Productions was founded by Karen and Bill in 2018. Before forming their studio, Karen and Bill worked for ten years in animation for Bento Box, Warner Bros., USC, Google, and more. They have now turned their attention to building their studio that supports and encourages all artists to tell their own unique stories. Bill and Karen are both avid fans of RuPaul and are inspired by all of his productions. In their off time, you can also find Bill and Karen playing video games, planting in the garden, and playing volleyball -- badly.

Creative Direction: Johnny Burgess is an Illustrator/Animator residing in the SF Bay Area. An avid fan of drag, he has illustrated such San Francisco drag icons as D'Arcy Drollinger, Peaches Christ, and Heklina, among many others. You can see more of his work at Art of Johnny Burgess.

Music: Dave Volpe is a Los Angeles based composer for film, media, and the concert hall. He has scored a number of feature films as well as countless short films, media, and television. Dave is also an accomplished choral arranger and composer. He has had arrangements commissioned by a host of LGBTQ+ choruses including the Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles, The San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus, and the Turtle Creek Chorale (Dallas).

Music: Electropoint (a.k.a. Roman Molino Dunn) is a Billboard-charting music producer and award-winning film composer. He has scored films and TV shows. He has worked with major and indie labels and Grammy-winning artists alike. Electropoint has produced songs and recorded for celebrities from RuPaul's Drag Race including Eureka O'Hara, Phi Phi O'Hara, Honey Davenport, Latrice Royale, Kasha Davis, Bob The Drag Queen, Pandora Boxx, Alexis Live, Manila Luzon, Jackie Cox, LaLa Ri, Lady Bunny, Tammie Brown, and Mimi Imfurst.

Associate Producer: D’Arcy Drollinger is an actor, writer, director, choreographer and producer. His first feature film, Shit and Champagne, debuts in 2021, in which Drollinger, wrote, directed and starred. D’Arcy is the owner and Artistic Director of OASIS, San Francisco’s internationally acclaimed nightclub / cabaret. Voted Best of the Bay in multiple categories including: Best Nightclub, Best Drag Show, and Best Cabaret Venue.

Production Consultant: Joanne Butcher was a Global Marketing Consultant for YouTube, running their UK movie rental unit and collaborating with engineers and curatorial teams all round the world. She has worked extensively with 100’s of filmmakers from the US, UK, Brazil, Cuba, the Caribbean and Latin America. Joanne is now a business coach working one on one with filmmakers to raise the money they need to make their films.

Maxxie LaWow standing against a pink wall

YOUR SUPPORT

Your support is critical to helping us get off the ground running. By contributing, you not only help us lay the important creative groundwork for the film, but you also demonstrate to Hollywood that a film about LGBTQ+ characters is worth producing, and that there is an audience for great LGBTQ+ content. That gets noticed.

With your generous donation, we are able to continue production and hire amazingly talented folks for the core animation work, for the score, for the sound design, to design a movie poster, and so much more.

Dyna Bolical posing on stage

WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS

Maxxie LaWow is being animated in the 2D style. This process takes time as most frames are manually drawn by artists and is expensive. It's also beautiful! Our current timeline will make Maxxie LaWow available for film festivals starting in January 2024, with theatrical distribution potentially as early as Summer/Fall 2024. Donate to this campaign, and you’ll receive regular updates on timing, sneak previews, and more!

You've seen the 2 min Adventure Reel. You'll definitely want to know what’s going on with the characters from future storylines: that were-unicorn, the DJ Demon, and the biker faerie gang. Please donate generously and tell your friends!

3 Pixie motorcycle gang members on bikes

“HOW CAN I HELP?”

The more people who donate, the more we can do with this movie, and the more Hollywood will take notice. So please --

  • Share this campaign all over social media
  • Write a blog post
  • Mention us in your YouTube videos, and
  • Ask your friends to also support us.

And follow us on all the socials!

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!

We wouldn’t be able to do this without you -- literally! So for that, we thank you in advance for your generous support.

CELEBRATE DRAG

CELEBRATE QUEER VOICES

While we’re waiting for Maxxie LaWow to hit cinemas and streaming services near you, please remember to support your local drag artists. And tip generously! Your local drag artists are still recovering from covid quarantine and are currently under attack by the GOP and religious right.

💖💖💖💖💖💖

Celebrate drag. Celebrate Queer voices.