* * * bitter films DVD FAQ is here * * *

frequently asked questions

1. Where can I see these movies? How can I own these movies? How can I find a copy of _____? Can I give you my money and then will you send me a copy of ____? I really liked _____ at the ____ film festival and want to get a copy of it. Can you send me one? And can I send you some money for it? What if you just sent me a copy of _____ for some of my money?

Bitter Films: Volume 1 is waiting for you in the Bitter Films Shop, a monstrous and definitive DVD compiling and restoring everything Don directed from 1995-2005. Everything will be OK (2006) is also now available as a DVD single with its own bunch of special features. I am so proud of you (2008) is coming soon. Be sure to regularly check the headlines for complete theatrical listings, upcoming TV broadcasts, DVD announcements, and related sad self-promotion. In theaters, Don's movies can be regularly found in film and animation festivals around the world.

2. Did you make that terrible commercial I just saw on TV? It sort of looked like you drew it, if you were maybe partially retarded.

No! Don has never had anything to do with the production of a television commercial and has publicly vowed many times that he never will. Unfortunately it seems to be the vogue right now for creatively bankrupt corporate types to rip off his work, which is why you may be noticing an abundance of vaguely familiar yet horrible looking squiggly stick things on TV peddling Pop Tarts and cell phones. It was weird and awkward at first but now it's getting irritating. From Don's journal: "i am often asked why i don't do commercials or ad campaigns or music videos and why i've turned down small fortunes from the corporate universe in favor of just carrying on with my own things. i like to take walks. i like hiking in the woods around here and climbing the foothills and exploring the coast. it clears my head. i find new things. it's something i'll probably always enjoy doing. so somebody comes along and says hey, i hear you like to take walks. how about i pay you to walk? you just have to walk around my house in circles for eight hours a day wearing a sandwich board that has a picture of my product on it. no, i'd rather just walk through the woods and explore my own places out there, thanks. but what difference does it make? as long as you're walking, why not make a lot of money from it at the same time? because money's not the reason i take walks. it doesn't really factor into it. i take walks because i enjoy doing it. it's something i'd do if i was rich and it's something i'd do if i were poor. i guess maybe someone might pay me to walk around in the woods someday but i'm gonna keep doing it anyway."

3a. I've seen bootleg copies of these films all over the internet. Why aren't they here? Am I not click hard enough?

We've never released any of Don's films online - videos of his work you may have found on YouTube or whereabouts are pirated copies that didn't originate from us. That's important to note, as these versions are often re-edited, retitled, or are miserable quality. You're likely not seeing them in their original form. As Don often says, he shoots on film for a reason and prefers people to discover his work as nature intended, in a proper theater, TV, or on a well-made DVD: "there are many ways to see films these days. they are not all good ideas. there is not a single film student anywhere in the world right now dreaming of making her first movie and premiering it on a fucking cell phone. if you've only seen a movie on the internet or via some strange miniature device, in many ways you haven't really seen it yet. youtube is great for home videos of your cat falling off the roof but it is not really the proper setting for "cinema." watching a compressed, blotchy video in a little window while checking your mail and visiting three other websites at work sort of downgrades it into a novelty. movies are meant to be seen in the dark, hopefully with an audience, and with your undivided attention - this last one is non-negotiable. "it's an inevitable thing to deal with and of couse we're not interested in harassing fans, i just hope people understand that what they're downloading is often the equivalent of drinking a glass of fine wine after it's been filtered through a sewer. it's not really the same wine after that"

Freeing animated short films from the murky dungeons of the Internet was a large part of the motivation for creating "the Animation Show": a theatrical tour and DVD series that strove to find new ways to preserve and exhibit these kind of films in their highest quality possible.

3b. Can I still share these films with attractive strangers and introduce them to your work on MyTubesGooglySpaceBook in a way that will not offend thee?

We understand the demand for seeing the shorts online and have allowed a few websites like Atomfilms to host some of Don's older films in reasonably high quality. Meanwhile, these are the main offender bootlegs that will always be first to be swiftly taken down and have your home invaded by copyright stormtroopers: 1. If the film is being sold outright, or is being used to promote a commercial website 2. If the film is re-edited or cut (ie, credits are missing, footage inserted of your home movies) 3. If the quality's so bad we can't help but remove it for pity's sake 4. If the film is uncredited, credited to somebody else, or renamed. 5. If the film is brand new. 6. If we're in a bad mood. It would also be kind of you to provide a direct link to bitterfilms.com so your friends can learn how to find the films properly, thanks.

4. What is "the Animation Show"?

"The Animation Show" is a somewhat-annual theatrical tour that brings animated short films into more movie theaters than any animation festival in history. It was created by Don and Mike Judge in 2003, and has since spawned a separate DVD series of additional shorts. Don officially quit working with the Show in 2008 after its first three seasons, but hopes to see it carry on successfully without him. Independent artists will always need your support!

5. Bitter Films used to offer a "gift system" through the mail where fans could support current productions in exchange for some pretty amazing one-of-a-kind stuff. In what ways could I still directly support your work? Does Don have enough to eat?

For now, really the best way to support Don and the new films is to simply purchase the DVDs or encourage others to do so. By selling this DVD exclusively, we're able to ensure that all the proceeds go straight into the new productions, and not into the pockets of corporate middlemen and third parties. The gift system was fun and everything will be ok was actually animated entirely on animation paper that was donated by fans. The support was very kind but quickly grew overwhelming and it grew difficult to keep up with everyone; for now the gift system has been retired.

6. How can I contact Don?

Click here for complete contact information.

7. Isn't there a better way to reach Don? How do I know you guys will even forward my e-mail to him? CAN I HAVE HIS HOME ADDRESS? I want to um... mail him something there. And rape and kill him. Where do I send naked pictures of myself? Don in love with me. He may not know me but we play little game for long time now. MY DWARVES IS MELTING!!/1 gangrene!!

no! you are all scary!!

8. I am interested in buying things from the Bitter Films Shop. Will Don sign them for me?

Sorry, Don is not directly involved with sales and moreover simply would not have the time to accomodate everybody. Don is not juke box. If you meet Don at a screening and ask nicely he will probably be more than happy to write his name on something. Unless he is spooked by a loud noise in which case he will slap the pen from your hands and bound from the area like a large deer.

8b. I have a question about an order I placed in the Shop. Where to turn and what to do?

Contact the Musictoday sales team directly with your order info and they will be happy to help: 877-MUSIC77 [877-687-4277]. [9am - 12am Monday Thru Thursdays, 9am - 8pm Fridays EST]. No, just kidding. Your order was thrown into the sea.

9. How can I get my hands on a drawing or original production artwork from a film? I like to collect things and place them in my nest of mud and spit.

Many animators and studios sell drawings and production cels from their films, sometimes making more money off such pieces than the films themselves. However, none of Don's original artwork or production cels and pieces will probably ever be put up for sale. Instead, years ago we began hosting a series of annual auctions of original production art and rare pieces to raise money for local Santa Barbara charities. We're always interested in doing this sort of thing again and hope have to time enough to restart the tradition someday. We also occasionally give away rare and interesting things in the online shop.

10. I am a film industry sort of person and want to give Don all of my money for drawing me pictures of dancing ice monkeys with cowboy hats. Who are his people?

Please contact Jeremy Platt at Spectacle Entertainment Group. Or you could contact us directly

11a. Is Bitter Films hiring? How can I get an internship there? I will do anything. I feed you good. I steal nothing.

Sorry, we are not currently seeking positions or interns and are currently handling everything okay on our own. We get this question at least once a week. Please do not send us your resumes. Thanks though.

11b. I am an actor man and would like to perform in one of your films. I do voices. I am very handsome. I strut and preen. I tumble around the room in many directions. Where do I audition?

Please do not send us your headshots. I do not understand why so many actors send an animation studio their headshots. Don will not try to draw you. Voice casting for the films is almost always taken care of locally and very quietly, and we almost never hold auditions, sorry.

Don says: most "traditional cartoons" now are produced by scanning pictures into a computer rather than photographing them, or they're all-digital to begin with. the process can be faster and less expensive, but many artists argue it takes a huge bite out of their visual quality. i seem to have graduated from film school right before the waves of digital production washed over the land, so have only ever been immersed in traditional film production. all the old student films were shot on 16mm and everything i do now is on 35mm. we only use computers for sound production, and only recently for editing. using a computer to animate a film seems like an unnecessary step to me and very intrusive to an organic process. there's a warmth and quirkiness to hand-drawn art on real paper with real light hitting a real camera lens that's difficult to simulate in a computer. and there are experimental effects that would be simply impossible for me to capture with a computer. there are inherent flaws and quirks in the old-fashioned process that i think are charming and extremely attractive to the brain in a strange way. people are always going to be more attracted to the little human flaws in things rather than to artificial perfection. we're attracted to uneven edges and blemishes because these quirks are what makes the art a little more like ourselves: we can relate to it because the art is a little flawed too. the 35mm animation camera we have now is the same that photographed some of the original peanuts cartoons. my elderly friend who fixed it up for me wondered aloud why these days snoopy has to have 3,000 shades of gray across his nose.

13. So how you make them pitchers move?

bye!

wikipedia
journal
front page