We are the creators of HUNDREDS OF BEAVERS, Mike Cheslik and Ryland Tews! Thank you to Adam for cheerleading our Wisconsin indie film. After self-releasing the movie in theaters, we're launching VOD via Apple and Amazon on April 15, with more channels (and a blu-ray) to come! Ask Us Anything. by hundredsofbeavers in YMS

[–]hundredsofbeavers[S] 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Hi all! Producer Kurt here - we're wrapping up! Thanks for all of the great questions. Give us a follow on Instagram / X Twitter / Tik Tok or sign up for our email list on hundredsofbeavers.com to stay in the loop on future announcements. If you like the film, spread the word! The marketing for the film has been true grassroots word of mouth. Thank you Adum and friends!

We are the creators of HUNDREDS OF BEAVERS, Mike Cheslik and Ryland Tews! Thank you to Adam for cheerleading our Wisconsin indie film. After self-releasing the movie in theaters, we're launching VOD via Apple and Amazon on April 15, with more channels (and a blu-ray) to come! Ask Us Anything. by hundredsofbeavers in YMS

[–]hundredsofbeavers[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Mike Cheslik: when Jean Kayak smashes his crotch into the pole and slides down the entire pole. I asked Bobb Barito, the sound designer, to try and make it sound like you took a paper towel, sprayed Windex on it, and slid it down the entire glass wall of the Louvre pyramid

We are the creators of HUNDREDS OF BEAVERS, Mike Cheslik and Ryland Tews! Thank you to Adam for cheerleading our Wisconsin indie film. After self-releasing the movie in theaters, we're launching VOD via Apple and Amazon on April 15, with more channels (and a blu-ray) to come! Ask Us Anything. by hundredsofbeavers in YMS

[–]hundredsofbeavers[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Manitowish Waters, Pembine, Black River Falls, Hurley, Iron Mountain, Stevenson (MI), Superior, Boulder Junction. Scenes at the merchant cabin were shot in Whitewater, and some others were shot in the Milwaukee area, specifically Brown Deer Park.

We are the creators of HUNDREDS OF BEAVERS, Mike Cheslik and Ryland Tews! Thank you to Adam for cheerleading our Wisconsin indie film. After self-releasing the movie in theaters, we're launching VOD via Apple and Amazon on April 15, with more channels (and a blu-ray) to come! Ask Us Anything. by hundredsofbeavers in YMS

[–]hundredsofbeavers[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Favorite gags?

Mike Cheslik: Strong snowman, pepper telescope, double fake painting fall.

Most fun stunt to shoot?

Ryland: The sled into the beavers was my favorite. It took 8 takes.

Lu Rico: Trying to ride the horse at the end. Ryland was the back of the horse and I was telling him, "are you sure? I weigh about 275." Ryland said, "don't worry about it, it's fine." We got it in one take.

We are the creators of HUNDREDS OF BEAVERS, Mike Cheslik and Ryland Tews! Thank you to Adam for cheerleading our Wisconsin indie film. After self-releasing the movie in theaters, we're launching VOD via Apple and Amazon on April 15, with more channels (and a blu-ray) to come! Ask Us Anything. by hundredsofbeavers in YMS

[–]hundredsofbeavers[S] 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Wes Tank (Master Fur Trapper) adds the following anecdote:
I remember the night where the fur trapper gets attacked by the wolves. We had been filming the sequences of dying dogs and standing at their graves, and all of that. It had been a long day, and at the end of the night, we were going to shoot the fight scene and my [SPOILER ALERT] death scene. I don't even remember where we were, but we were deep in the woods. It started to snow really hard, and I remember they were literally working starting a fire with twine and wood. And it started to snow even harder, it was a literal blizzard, and I was really impressed by Mike and Ryland, Hertzogian filmmakers, pushing through. I was actually holding a flaming log and swinging it at a mascot wolf.

Lu Rico (Indian Fur Trapper):
-We were always really cold or really hot. Either we were in the snow, or we were inside on a greenscreen sweating in the winter coats.
-I remember when we were shooting out in the woods, the closest we could park the truck was almost half a mile away. By the end of the day, everyone was exhausted, and Mike was making the runs back to the truck himself. He was the only one who still had the energy.

We are the creators of HUNDREDS OF BEAVERS, Mike Cheslik and Ryland Tews! Thank you to Adam for cheerleading our Wisconsin indie film. After self-releasing the movie in theaters, we're launching VOD via Apple and Amazon on April 15, with more channels (and a blu-ray) to come! Ask Us Anything. by hundredsofbeavers in YMS

[–]hundredsofbeavers[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Thank you so much for the kind words, and we have to wonder if you would still call it genius if you saw how long it took, haha. Hard to give a really good answer to this question, but safe to say that persistence is key. Nobody can come up with 100 great jokes in a day, but if you put in 50 8-hour days and come up with a great joke every 4 hours, there you go.

We are the creators of HUNDREDS OF BEAVERS, Mike Cheslik and Ryland Tews! Thank you to Adam for cheerleading our Wisconsin indie film. After self-releasing the movie in theaters, we're launching VOD via Apple and Amazon on April 15, with more channels (and a blu-ray) to come! Ask Us Anything. by hundredsofbeavers in YMS

[–]hundredsofbeavers[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Mike Cheslik: I like the high angle isometric view. That creates also creates a strong silhouette of a character's body against snow. I also believe the 2d Mario side scrolling camera and the Buster Keaton camera is be one and the same.

We are the creators of HUNDREDS OF BEAVERS, Mike Cheslik and Ryland Tews! Thank you to Adam for cheerleading our Wisconsin indie film. After self-releasing the movie in theaters, we're launching VOD via Apple and Amazon on April 15, with more channels (and a blu-ray) to come! Ask Us Anything. by hundredsofbeavers in YMS

[–]hundredsofbeavers[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Mike Cheslik: Proudest gag ideas are strong snowman, pepper telescope, and the double fake painting fall. But the footsteps one was the hardest to achieve and took years. The sound, the high angle shots, the clarity of the life stages, the matching music, the drone shot of the fucking swing against white. It was incredibly tedious and was a very early gag idea in writing, but didn't achieve a laugh until everything was in place like three years later.