Swedish writer and director David Sandberg has a fanatical obsession with everything about the 1980’s. He cites the decade’s music, clothing, hairstyles, and especially its movies as driving influences in his work. Therefore, when Sandberg decided to make his own film, it was only appropriate to create a movie that expressed his love for the time period. After an incredibly successful Kickstarter campaign, Sandberg’s Kung Fury, an action comedy about a time-traveling-kung fu master-renegade cop who crosses paths with Norse gods during his quest to kill Hitler, will be released online, free for the public’s viewing.
In his own words, Sandberg describes the plot of Kung Fury as this:
During an unfortunate series of events a friend of Kung Fury is assasinated by the most dangerous kung fu master criminal of all time; Adolf Hitler, a.k.a Kung Führer. Kung Fury decides to travel back in time, to Nazi Germany, in order to kill Hitler and end the Nazi empire once and for all. Kung Fury is a visually spectacular action comedy that has it’s foundation in 80s cop movies.
The time travel narrative and Sandberg’s limited funds required a bit of visual effects magic. The film is set in Miami in the 1980’s. Since present-day Sweden looks nothing like sunny, neon-drenched Florida, most of the film involves green screen backdrops.
What started as a self-funded pet project has grown into a globally-supported effort. Sandberg has extensive experience in post-production, thanks to a career making commercials and music videos. Originally, he only had these talents, $5,000, and the support of his friends in Umeå, Sweden to help him bring Kung Fury from script to screen. Most of the 30-minute film was shot when the Swede decided to seek crowdfunding to finish the movie. Sandberg launched his Kickstarter on Christmas Day and aimed for $200,000, which would allow him to hire a team of 7 visual effects artists to work on the post-production for 6 months to complete the film. In only 5 days, the Kung Fury Kickstarter has raised over $350,000 in donations with 25 days to go.
Given the success of the funding effort, Sandberg has discussed his plans to expand the film’s length and exposure. Sandberg has expressed interest in turning the 30-minute movie into a full-length feature in the future. In the mean time, backers will receive a number of rewards, such as posters, Blu-Ray copies of the movie, t-shirts, and the film’s soundtrack. Without a doubt, people far and wide will know the tale of Kung Fury.
While the movie has been fully funded and then some, its crew would certain not bar you from donating if you so choose. After all, the Thor’s helmet and hammer reward is still unclaimed at this moment! Check out the film’s trailer and the link to the Kickstarter down below:
Via Kickstarter