He IS Big Bird
Fans of Jim Henson’s world of Muppetry know the name Caroll Spinney. Not everyone may recognize this name. His work, however, is recognizable by many generations around the globe! Caroll Spinney is the man who makes both Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch come to life! He has been doing this for 43 years and is 78 years old. He is one of the last original Muppeteers on Sesame Street, and he has no plans to retire. He does have other plans though. These plans involve making a documentary!
I AM BIG BIRD is a documentary that is in the works to tell the story of the man behind one of the world’s most well-known birds. It has been in development since 2009 by Copper Pot Pictures. It is being directed by Chad Walker and Dave LaMattina. It is being created with the full cooperation of the Sesame Workshop. There are a lot of things that are going for it and it IS going to be a great documentary for Muppet/Sesame Street fans around the globe when it is finished.
So here are a few cool things that will be featured in I AM BIG BIRD that I found on the website:
- Never-before-seen footage capturing unscripted moments of Caroll with giants like Jim Henson, Frank Oz and Jerry Nelson
- Caroll’s short films, in which he showcases his skill in animation, a talent that led to a job offer at Disney… which Caroll turned down
- Thousands of snapshots and hundreds of hours of videos that capture his undying love for his wife
- Paintings displaying his hidden passion for illustration
- Puppets that were lovingly crafted by Caroll’s mother over 70 years ago and that he still uses today
Currently, this project is raising funds to finish this documentary. They have created a Kickstarter fundraiser to help reach the $100,000 goal to finish I AM BIG BIRD. Donations can be as little as $1 or as big as you can imagine. Any donation will be appreciated. The fundraiser ends on August 14, 2012.
This is going to be a fantastic documentary and I cannot wait to see it! This trailer is absolutely beautiful and I predict that I AM BIG BIRD is going to be a favorite for Sesame Street fans of all ages. It will share the heart behind what has shared with us on Sesame Street for the last 40 plus years through Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch.
Please help support by, at the very least, sharing this post and other posts from their twitter handle (@Copper_Pot) and if you can, support monetarily as well!
Make it a GREAT day!
- Mr. DAPs
Mr. DAPs is the founder of DAPs Magic, the unofficial Disney fan club. He is the editor for DAPs Magic Disney News and posts regularly on DAPs Magic Geeks Corner. He is the co-host of Geeks Corner (www.thegeekscorner.com) and also has a photoblog mrdaps.com. He is a Disney expert and visits Disneyland regularly.
