New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Willy Grunch, from animation video "The Water Source" whose unexpected viral rise to fame led to the creation of the crowdfunding site willygrunch.com
"People worldwide have spoken, and we're listening. It's time to free Willy Grunch and give him back to the world," said MOONDOG Animation Studio COO, Jean-Marc Khayat.
Today, MOONDOG Animation Studio, South Carolina's premier animation studio, is celebrating the launch of willygrunch.com, a crowdfunding website created to answer the international demand for more episodes of the animated series, "Willy Grunch."
With a guitar on his back, Willy Grunch is a carefree, philosophizing poet who stumbles through life. However, for the past 3 years, he has been locked away in MOONDOG Animation Studio's YouTube vault. That is until March 15th, 2016 when a Russian Facebook user stole Willy Grunch and released the episode "The Water Source." The result has been an international sensation with well over 7 million views and hundreds of thousands of shares.
MOONDOG Animation Studio released the short film series called "Willy Grunch" in 2012 after a wildly successful Kickstarter campaign. It was based on a
Swiss comic book series created by Alain Auderset.
"People worldwide have spoken, and we're listening. It's time to free Willy Grunch and give him back to the world," said MOONDOG Animation Studio COO, Jean-Marc Khayat.
Willy Grunch now has his own fan base, in addition to all the Kickstarter supporters from the first fundraising campaign, so Moondog Animation Studio decided to go into round two by building their own crowdfunding website, willygrunch.com, to fund more episodes of the series. "We are reaching out to the fans, old and new, to push Willy Grunch to the next level," said CEO, Bryan Ransom.
"This viral explosion and worldwide demand for 'Willy Grunch' further validates the world-class nature of MOONDOG Animation Studio," said Mayor
Linda Page of Mount Pleasant, SC, "We look forward to Willy's return as the newest citizen of Mount Pleasant."
About MOONDOG Animation Studio
MOONDOG Animation Studio is a World-Class Animated Feature Film studio based in Mount Pleasant, part of the Charleston, South Carolina region. MOONDOG's mission is to create content that influences our culture, not only in the United States, but also around the world. Through deep stories, strong characters and beautiful animation, we're inspired to tell stories with the power to change the world around us.
Contact:
Kelly Fowler, Executive Synergizer | kellyfowler(at)Moondoganimation(dot)com | (843) 709-5639
About the Town of Mount Pleasant, Office of Business Development
The Town of Mount Pleasant, SC is situated strategically along the Charleston, SC Harbor and has been recognized as One of the Best Cities for Startups by Business Week. The mission of the Town of Mount Pleasant Office of Business Development is to advance the Town's quality of life by fostering an economic environment that is vibrant, favorable to job creation, and promotes the general prosperity of the community. For more information on the Town of Mount Pleasant, visit us online at https://www.tompsc.com, view our videos on the Media Channel, subscribe to our news with Notify Me, like us on Facebook, follow us @MtPleasantBiz and download our Apps "Experience Mount Pleasant" and "ConnectMP."
