Fursuiting from Minnesota to Moscow, and sentient beast fables – Newsdump (6/8/15)
by Patch O'Furr
Headlines, links and little stories to make your tail wag. Tips are always welcome.
Picked up a newspaper today and yes @MNFurs is front page top article in the variety section of @StarTribune pic.twitter.com/UM6GOH1srN
— Kurst in State of Yote (@hyperyote) June 4, 2015
“Call of the wild: Local Furries say they are misunderstood.”
A Minnesota newspaper has a standard-issue “meet the furries” article. The last Newsdump (5/28/15) reported that MNFurs have been growing with an active community, a registered nonprofit, and a new convention (Furry Migration.) Their activity caught the notice of their local newspaper, and reporters went to their picnic. The article includes these standard features: 1) All-fursuiter gallery 2) Apologetic sex denial 3) Weirdos aren’t so bad! We see it over and over, but it was very well received, and it’s OK if the news readers haven’t seen it before. There’s also a wedding, frisbee and hugs… The more of that, the better. MNfurs discuss the article on their forum.
International mascot Trip E. Collie goes to France.
An April Newsdump shared Trip’s surprising experience of seeing his fursuit photo advertising a large international festival in France. Trip went there to meet the organizers, and possibly sit down with them for a bowl of kibble. Good boy!
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Animation and books
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Mort(e), by Robert Repino, gets a great review about “Sentient beast” fables.
The novel Mort(e) looks like an original literary sci-fi kind of book that aims high. Rather than a “furry” universe, it’s better described as a talking-animal apocalypse story. Fred Patten’s review of the book posts tomorrow. It links to a review by acclaimed SF/fantasy novelist Paul DiFilippo. It’s well worth a read for familiarity with the classics that lead to furry fandom.
The sentient beast has long been a staple of fantasy fiction and its antecedents in myth and folktale. The modes range from tales such as Richard Adams’s Watership Down or Laline Paull’s recent The Bees, in which readers are lent the power to eavesdrop on the secret yet naturalistic lives of critters in the everyday world, to worlds populated by human-acting animals (think of the Duckburg of Carl Barks or the Grandville series by Bryan Talbot) and, of course, satire on the order of Orwell’s Animal Farm.
Pilot for the “unbelievably cute” True Tail series.
Shortly after Fred’s announcement about the series posted here, they released an animatic for their pilot episode. Reddit discusses.
Dawgtown: update for the indie 2D-animated movie that deserves a lot of notice!
There are very few movies like this being made. Influences include Ralph Bakshi, Don Bluth, and Watership Down. This blog’s tag for Dawgtown has many more updates, and a long interview with the movie’s director. I think it should raise high interest for Furry fans.
“Furries: The Movie” does not impress. (Tip: Troj.)
Non-furries using cheap costumes for failed “pseudo” furry projects is almost a genre. (Troj wrote GREAT feedback in the link). Here’s another one that looks like it belongs to a list of “fursploitation” (not the good kind?)
On Indiegogo, “Furries: the Movie” is asking for money to spread to festivals. (A lone laugh for: “The Only Mother’s Day-Christmas-Furry-Small Town-Western-Romance-Drama-Comedy Featurette Based on Reality Ever to be Made in Albuquerque, New Mexico! It’s a real Furry Tail of Dromancedy!”)
They posted on a Facebook furry group (Over 400 comments, must be a member to read.) The share message to me said: “The thread is juicy… Basically, the filmmakers are NOT furries, and admit that they DID NOT DO RESEARCH on furries. I just thought I’d get you a seat on the drama-train before it fills up.” There’s little good to say about the film maker’s reactions, so I won’t. You know what they say about first impressions.
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More fandom news
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Venezuela Fursuiting.
Last Newsdump shared a new (4 years old) movement of Furries in Peru. The article mentioned that Latin American furries are rare, but Chile is a special place for it. Brazil and Mexico have presence too. I love how this subculture crosses borders – anthropomorphic animals need no language to connect. Thought: Local wildlife can inspire awesome fursonas! Last time I was in the jungle down there, it was awesome to hang out with tapirs, coatis, and anteaters. (It was funny to be a pee target for howler monkeys… but they missed.) Do I spy a super huggable sloth in the video?
Moscow fursuiting.
Shared by VDX2K7, (blue haired raccoon in the vid.) He posts great content from Russia and Eastern Europe on the r/furry subreddit.
Another dance vid from “Rusfurry event team.”
Next week, look for an article I worked hard on and really enjoyed – “If there was a Museum of Furry, theatrical ‘Panto-Animals’ would be a prime exhibit.”
Oh, Roscoe! DiFilippo’s review of “Mort(e)” cites Mark Geston’s “Lords of the Starship” and “Out of the Mouth of the Dragon”. I have never seriously felt like committing suicide except when I read those novels. Talk about depressing! But undeniably very well-written. I am dithering over whether to recommend them or not; I wouldn’t want to be responsible for anyone’s committing suicide.
Oh, well. They ain’t furry, anyhow.
Thanks for the shout-out, Patch! Will be interesting to see what happens with that indie film. I did my best to provide thoughtful feedback and critiques based on what little we’d all seen of the project, and hopefully the filmmakers will be willing *and* able to take at least take some of that feedback and apply it!
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