Toy Breakthrough
26 days ago
– Thu, Jun 25, 2026 at 06:58:26 AM
There is SO much over which I can exert no power to expedite aspects of this giant project, but recently Isaac sent me a video that makes me think some of our most frustrating problems have finally been addressed. You will see that video below and let me add that we also recently got our hands on what I am told is the very last piece of the production puzzle (an air dryer for curing outputs, I guess?). If what we are being told in this video continues to work out as it seems, we are very close to a final test phase and actual production. STAY TUNED.
As always, thank you for your patience. I have so little of it myself, therefore yours is critical for me to have any chance at retaining what little mental health is available to me at this time...
rl
Isaac Unboxes!
3 months ago
– Wed, Apr 29, 2026 at 10:28:16 AM
New Update with Kevin Treasure Trove
3 months ago
– Thu, Apr 23, 2026 at 10:12:01 AM
Hey there. Once again, I am reaching out to let you know that I'm yelling at the partners here and pointing at you guys and demanding that they give me some updates that I can share with you. I have ranted enough that I am sure I will be sent a video I can share very soon. Apparently, Isaac shot it already, so we should have it here soon.
It should be process from his efforts transferring Kevin's treasure trove of newly discovered VHS material into a safe digital archive and his highlighting bits from those discoveries.
Having this new material (which is, honestly, of varying quality and value) has, as we surmised, changed a big part of what we were doing, so Mark has rebuilt a new project, cracked open all the timelines in Premiere and has begun prioritizing b roll replacements with new stuff as is best in general. Making best use of this footage is a big task, but will be a fun one for him.
Isaac is finalizing and testing the latest round of moulds for the figures and has run what I hope will be the very last tests before we can run the actual, final figures. This has been WAY WAY WAY more expensive and frustrating than I could have imagined and has been challenging for us to match the high standards we have for all the variables - that includes material for moulds, for the media in the moulds, and the variability in approaches to manufacturing at scale, of which there are many. I do not pretend to understand any of it, but the end result should be impressive. And will have aged me by 25 years, which is scary because I am already old.
The same thing that happened with the movie happened to the book. Isaac and Mark are now sitting with new material that HAS to be included, so even though I wrote all the text ages ago as you know, the layout and the photos are pushed back to square one to implement the new stuff (which drives me crazy, but what are you going to do? It's too important not to use). Remember, however, that while the VHS trove is all interesting, much of it is not revelatory. We have to curate the best of it, particularly in the hopes that it hasn't been used elsewhere.
Anyway, I can only thank you for your patience, as I always do.
I wish I could be more patient myself, but I am sooooo not. I have absolutely been a pain in the ass for Mark recently with my intense nagging about the uncertainties. I am beyond desperate to announce an actual timeline for all the things. I NEED this to be done for my own sanity and only then will I be able to sit back and consider any satisfaction at all for this enormous project that has taken us so many years. When it's finally finished, I'll be in a rocking chair on a veranda, waiting for a nurse to come out with my warm blanket and bowl of applesauce.
rl
Many thanks!
5 months ago
– Tue, Mar 03, 2026 at 09:11:01 AM
You folks who have made such responses have made my day. I (Rand) don't fully grasp all the many factors needed for Isaac to be satisfied with his (and ultimately your) outputs, which I will admit I find very stressful. I'm so tuned to writing and filmmaking and we're at a great place with those (assuming we get Kevin's tapes soon...), that the slowdown with these more complicated, machine, material and technology heavy elements gives me heartburn. However, this positive feedback is amazing. MANY THANKS!
And stay tuned here for Isaac's next update (when he's at the next phase), because if I understand correctly, that one should be pretty tasty.
rl
I cornered Isaac and here is the detail I have struggled with
5 months ago
– Mon, Mar 02, 2026 at 05:27:57 PM
Rand here and I'm both happy and unhappy to share this update.
We are still behind, and the reasons are the same.
We're still waiting for that box of VHS tapes that Kevin found in his storage and we are not going to nag him any more than we already are. By "we" I mean Isaac, who has indeed been nagging him.
Whatever's on those tapes could change a fair bit of the material we've already shot and cut, so we just HAVE to see what's on them. This is the ongoing nightmare of making a documentary with unknown archives always just out of reach: you are loathe to call "Fine Cut!" and start outputting until you've exhausted every opportunity, and in this case, Kevin may well have found something amazing and surprising and so we're stuck until we see the tapes.
That box of tapes has also impacted our photo layouts for the book, which is no surprise, but that shouldn't take too long once we know what we've got. Isaac's chosen a bunch of stuff already and since we're using a Canadian printer, there won't be crazy long shipping times. No cargo crossing the Pacific for us. It's Quebec and Toronto.
We're also in discussions with some people who may have solutions for the shipping issues that have paralyzed so many business trying to move items cross-border, particularly to the U.S. Ideally, we will be able to minimize shipping costs for our backers and we've been working hard to find the best possible providers and solutions on both sides of the border.
And finally, the actions figures. Yes, there are only five different figures, but this has been a real challenge for Isaac and, not being an action figure guy, I never understand what's actually going on. Today, he's recorded a video in the shop to share the kinds of details that will get everyone up to speed. In short, he's been doing R&D on a few other projects to build the best production pipeline for TMNT stuff. We absolutely refuse to put out compromised product, particularly seeing as Kevin and Peter have graciously granted us permission to use their likenesses. I won't belabour your with details, but it seems like we've gone through so many periods where we had a process ready, went through months of waiting or development or tool building or machine fixing or new machine acquiring and then Isaac would set up a run and there would be some minute variable that he learned about only because it blew up a tool, or wouldn't cool fast enough or the material had some aspect to it that infringed on the quality therein. And that is not acceptable. As you watch this video, I want you to keep this in mind: money spent by our backers on TMNT goes ONLY to TMNT. More to the point, we've spent more setting up, testing and building capacity or researching to get this all right, and I'm not complaining, because that's just the way it is. BUT, when it works, as it is doing now, it works like a charm and the figs are great and, all being well, this is not just giving us these awesome rewards, but hopefully will allow us to move on to see what else we can do with Turtles, with the creators we love and a franchise we care about.
Thanks again for your patience and stay tuned for some long-awaited success videos from Isaac.
