A shot from Idiots & Angels.

Call it “Crazy Week” or “The Imperfect Storm”. It seems like everything is happening at once. First of all, in my studio, I'm trying to finish a low-budget commercial for an accounting firm. Then I'm working on animation for John Leguizamo' new feature, “Fugly”. Plus, I'm right in the very critical last week of sending my new Rizzoli art book, “Independently Animated: Bill Plympton”, off to the printers in China.

A shot from Idiots & Angels.

So, it's the morning after the grand premiere of “Idiots and Angels” at the IFC Center. It was a wonderful evening, lots of old friends and a lot of new fans of Plymptoons.

I can't say it was a smashing success; even though we had good crowds for both evening shows we didn't have a sell-out, and that's the dream of every filmmaker: A nice fat “sold out” sign over the box office window.

A shot from Idiots & Angels

As the release date is getting closer, October 6^th, 2010, I find that more and more of my work time is allocated to publicity about Idiots and Angels. I've turned down commercial work, pushed aside my new short, Cop Dog, and delayed work on my two new feature films because I've absolutely got to score big in the cinemas with “I&A.” So in this final week, I've been calling all my contacts, anyone who has a blog, website, a newspaper, a newspaper column, a TV show – anyone who can help get the word out, they are now my best friends.

Bill Plympton's Team Idiots volunteer marketing force.

Monday night we had our first meeting with our hardcore student volunteers, who are hopefully blanketing NYC with posters and postcards, announcing the October 6^th opening of Idiots and Angels.

Now, whether posters and postcards all over the city will drive huge numbers to the theatre, that's a different and interesting question - We hope so, because without the money for a full-out publicity blitz, I'm forced to use more street guerilla tactics. Eager student volunteers seem to be the most efficient way.

Bill Plympton's Team Idiots volunteer marketing force.

Today's a big day—we've been scouting the local schools for volunteers to help spread the word about Idiots and Angels opening up in NYC on October 6^th. So through the talents and guidance of Alexia Anastasio, we've built a group of 15 or so eager volunteers called "Team Idiots". Their bold mission is to go around midtown and the lower Manhattan area putting up posters and placing stacks of our postcards, so hopefully everyone will be aware of our film opening. It's called guerilla marketing.

A shot from Idiots & Angels

Part of my campaign to build up the crowd enthusiasm for my Idiots & Angels premier in NYC is getting the animation students involved.

A shot from Idiots & Angels.

This week my goal is to compile a master contact list of friends, associates and acquaintances.  Since the film “Idiots & Angels” is opening on the 6^th of October at the famous IFC Center in NY and on October 29^th at the Laemmle Sunset in LA, I need a groundswell and a firestorm of publicity. I want to get packed audiences; I have to have big long lines of people eager to see my new animated feature stretching around the blocks.  I've sworn to do anything possible to pack the houses, as long as it's legal.

A shot from Idiots & Angels.

So now the craziness begins.  I've got 2 hard dates for Idiots & Angels:  Oct. 6^th at the IFC Center on 6^th Ave in NYC and Oct. 29^th at the Laemmle Sunset 5 in LA.  So like Patton I'm devising a 2-prong attack.  First, I'll invade NYC using low-cost but more personal forms of advertising:  Facebook, Twitter, blogs, Skype.  We can save a few bucks and then I'll turn my forces onto LA.

So I've decided to self distribute Idiots & Angels.  The biggest hurdle is finding a cinema in NYC.  There are a whole lot of films looking for cinemas and not a whole lot of cinemas, so the trick is the find one that suites my audience.  Animation fans.