A few years ago we brought you a review of the fantastic Life After The Navigator, today we bring you excellent news about Lisa Downs‘ latest in the ‘Life After’ series, Life After The Neverending Story, which now has a Kickstarter launched to help with final costs of this superb production.
“The NeverEnding Story” is a classic fantasy film released in 1984, directed by Wolfgang Petersen. Based on the novel of the same name by Michael Ende, the movie weaves a captivating tale that seamlessly blends reality and fantasy. The story follows a young boy named Bastian who discovers a magical book that tells the epic tale of a young warrior named Atreyu (Noah Hathaway) on a quest to save the mystical land of Fantasia from an encroaching force known as “The Nothing.”
As Bastian (Barret Oliver) reads the book, he becomes increasingly drawn into the enchanting world of Fantasia, where he discovers the power of imagination and the importance of overcoming fears. The film features a mix of practical effects and groundbreaking special effects for its time, bringing to life a host of memorable characters such as Falkor the Luck Dragon and the Childlike Empress (Tami Stronach). With its timeless themes of courage, friendship, and the limitless power of imagination, “The NeverEnding Story” has become a beloved classic that continues to captivate audiences of all ages.
Lisa Downs, a filmmaker from the UK, has credited movies like The NeverEnding Story for shaping her childhood. Her love for nostalgia and filmmaking intertwined, leading to the creation of the “Life After Movies” documentary series. In 2019, the first documentary of the series, LIFE AFTER FLASH, was released, focusing on the iconic film Flash Gordon. The second documentary, LIFE AFTER THE NAVIGATOR, was released in 2020, celebrating the legacy of Randal Kleiser’s Flight of the Navigator. The documentaries explore the impact of these classic movies on the lives of the actors and crew involved, as well as their lasting influence on popular culture.
Now, the third documentary in the series is soon to be released, but the very independent nature of it has led to Lisa asking for some final support to help to get through this last push.
Lisa has told us, “Essentially, the documentary is done! Yes, strange for a Kickstarter campaign I know, but it also means THERE IS NO RISK. The documentary will happen. It is happening, and the plan is to release early next year – also meaning you don’t need to go through years of uncertainty or trying to get through to someone on a Facebook page asking for updates.“
She has also said, “We spent time with both Noah Hathaway (“Atreyu”) and Tami Stronach (“the Childlike Empress”) in the USA, as well as with other cast members including Alan Oppenheimer, Deep Roy, and Chris Eastman.“
Hitting the target of this campaign will mean the world to someone who has spent 4 years doing anything she can to get this project to the finish line better and sooner!
As always, 10% will go to fees including Kickstarter and credit card fees. Also, any postage accumulated will contribute to the final total.
Then, funds will go towards:
- Legals including clearance lawyer and insurance
- Archive licensing
- AACS BluRay Licence
- BluRay authoring, master & production
- VHS production
- BBFC Rating
- Accounting
- Film Festivals
- German subtitles on the BluRay release
Here at Blazing Minds, we can’t wait to see Life After The Neverending Story as we know from Lisa’s previous work in the series that she has a real passion for what she does and that shows in the production of the finished documentaries.
We will keep you updated with any news about the Life After The Neverending Story as and when we have it, in the meantime if you would like to be a backer of the project then check out the Kickstarter page.
Lisa has also said, “We do have some hugely exciting Life After documentaries coming up! We are in production already for LIFE AFTER GOODFELLAS and LIFE AFTER GREASE…. AND we are going back to the 80s after that for not one, not two, but THREE hugely iconic 80s films. I mean HUGE.“
So you now know that there are even more fascinating and interesting projects coming along.
Don’t forget to check out our review of Life After The Navigator.
Karen Woodham is the founder and owner of the Blazing Minds. She is also a Cinema reviewer and works with RealD 3D reviewing the latest 3D releases and IMAX, she has also had several articles published in various publications including the first edition of SFW Magazine. In 2015 she became an Award Winning Blogger and also has her website listed as one of the UK’s Top 10 Film Blogs.
