A Brony Tale | |
---|---|
Directed by | Brent Hodge |
Written by | Brent Hodge |
Produced by | Brent Hodge Carolyn Wells Lauren Bercovitch Morgan Spurlock |
Starring | Ashleigh Ball Bryan Mischke Andrea Libman Nicole Oliver Donald Rhoades Andy Stein Jordan Downs Kelvin Williams |
Cinematography | Brent Hodge |
Edited by | Nicholas T. Shepard |
Music by | Chris Kelly Cayne McKenzie |
Production company | Hodgee Films |
Distributed by | Warrior Poets Virgil Films Abramorama |
Release dates |
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Running time | 78 minutes |
Countries | United States Canada New Zealand |
Language | English |
Budget | $100,000 [1] |
A Brony Tale (originally titled Brony) is a 2014 Canadian-American documentary film directed by Brent Hodge. The film explores the brony phenomenon, the adult fan base of the children's animated show My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic that arose shortly after its premiere in 2010. The film is structured around the journey of Ashleigh Ball, one of the principal voice actresses for the show, including her initial reactions to learning of this older fanbase, and her travel as a Guest of Honor to one of the first fan conventions BronyCon held in New York City in 2012. Hodge, a close friend of and previous collaborator with Ball, was curious as she was as to this phenomenon and opted to film her travel and appearance at the convention for the documentary.
Hodge's film gained interest of film producer and publisher Morgan Spurlock who helped to promote wider distribution of the documentary. Initially slated to be shown for Vancouver-area film festivals, the film was highlighted at the 2014 Tribeca Film Festival in New York City, and received critical praise. The film received a wider theater release starting in July 2014, and is currently available on DVD, Blu-ray, Digital Download and On Demand. The film's Blu-ray was sold for the first time at the 2014 New York Comic Con.
The film also screened in 290 theaters across Mexico in late 2014. [2]
Ashleigh Ball, one of the lead voice actresses in Hasbro's My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic , begins to notice that she is receiving fan mail for her work on the show, but is perplexed over the fact that most of it is coming from teenagers and adults. These fans, who call themselves "bronies" and are mostly male, take the show's themes and messages of personal responsibility and friendship to heart. Ball accepts an invitation to attend the Winter 2012 BronyCon, a then-semiannual fan convention held in New York City, as a guest of honor and takes the opportunity to meet the fans.
Footage of Ball's interviews and travels is intercut with segments focusing on different fans of the show, including: a burly motorcycle mechanic and former college football player, a United States Army veteran who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, the producer of an Internet radio network, and a husband-and-wife team of psychologists who became interested in the show after learning about it from their son. Andrea Libman and Nicole Oliver, two other members of the voice cast, make brief appearances. The film also includes footage and interviews from the Canterlot Gardens fan convention held during mid-2012 near Cleveland, as well as footage from live performances of Ball's band, Hey Ocean! [3]
While focusing on Ball's trip to BronyCon, the film also briefly features fellow My Little Pony voice cast members Nicole Oliver and Andrea Libman. [4]
Director Brent Hodge said that he funded the film himself, and felt it was easy to film as he personally knew Ashleigh Ball. He decided to film as a "fly on the wall" at the meetups so as to not interfere with the goings on and to see the brony world as it really is. [5] During a panel at BronyCon 2013, Hodge went into detail on the film, and showed a trailer to the audience, and revealed that the idea had come about when Ball was asked to do the convention. [6]
In an interview with Everfree News, Hodge went into detail on the film, explaining that it was an outsider view on the brony community that had evolved from simply a documentary on Ball and her voice career. [7]
The film was originally planned to be part of the local Vancouver DOXA Documentary Film Festival on May 11, 2014, where it was selected to close out the show. [8] To Hodge's surprise, the film was selected as one of five special documentary screenings for the 2014 Tribeca Film Festival [9] and was named one of the top 10 movies to see at Tribeca by Indiewire. [10] The film premiere screening at Tribeca was sold out within hours, and its screening there has brought more attention to the film, according to Hodge. [11]
The film was picked up in April 2014 by an independent film distribution company, Morgan Spurlock Presents, a collaboration between Spurlock's Warrior Poets, Virgil Films, and Abramorama. A Brony Tale is the first film distributed under this label.
Along with the Tribeca premiere and prior to the selected theatrical release, the film had film festival screenings in Vancouver, British Columbia, Seattle, Washington, Wellington, New Zealand, Auckland, New Zealand, and has screenings scheduled in Mexico City, Mexico, Monterrey, Mexico and Guadalajara, Mexico via the brony convention FluttyCon 2014 and The Brony Chef.
The film was released on July 8, 2014 in at least twenty different theater markets within North America and was released for home media via Video-On-Demand and DVD/Blu-ray and cable. [12]
The film has received positive reviews. It currently holds an 80% score with an average rating of 6.7/10 based on reviews from 9 critics on aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes. [13] Christopher Campbell of Movies.com praised Brent Hodge's directing, noting how Hodge "situates the phenomenon inside an identifiable world rather than setting it aside like it's some kind of otherness." Campbell went on to say in his review, "They're compared to the jazz crowd of the 1920s and to the Beatniks and, most assuredly, to the hippies . . . Hodge comes closer to making those of us who can't possibly get it at least start to comprehend what is really going on here and why. If we all joined them in not necessarily watching and playing with and dressing up as My Little Pony but at least in following its message and influence, then the planet would be a much better place." [14]
John Lucas of Straight.com said, "Brent Hodge's documentary about fans of My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic suggests that there is no such thing as a typical "brony"; the subjects here include a sensitive Iraq War veteran and a burly motorcycle mechanic...A connecting thread is provided by Vancouver-based voice actor Ashleigh Ball... by the end Ball is touched by the realization that she's an integral part of something much larger than a kiddie show." [15]
Marina Antunes of Row Three called the film "the best documentary I've seen on the subject", and went on to applaud the film, saying that the film "has the advantage of a filmmaker who understands storytelling and Hodge does an excellent job not only of capturing the energy and passion of the fans but packaging that up in a documentary that is both entertaining and informative." [16]
IGN gave the film a score of 9.1, praising the portrayal of the fandom, interviews, the scientific study of bronies, and subject of gender roles. However, criticism was voiced regarding the lack of staff from the show, and the story about a military brony having no conclusion. [17]
The film was screened as an "Official Selection" at the 2014 Tribeca Film Festival, the 2014 New Zealand Documentary Edge Festival, the 2014 Seattle International Film Festival, the 2014 DOXA Documentary Festival, the 2014 SouthSide Film Festival and the 2014 Las Vegas Film Festival.
The film won "Best Documentary" at the Las Vegas Film Festival and has been nominated for 4 Leo Awards, at the 2015 Leo Awards, in "Best Documentary Feature", "Best Direction in a Documentary Feature", "Best Sound in a Documentary Feature" and "Best Music in a Documentary Feature". The film won the 2015 Leo Award for "Best Sound in a Documentary Feature".
A fandom is a subculture composed of fans characterized by a feeling of camaraderie with others who share a common interest. Fans typically are interested in even minor details of the objects of their fandom and spend a significant portion of their time and energy involved with their interest, often as a part of a social network with particular practices, differentiating fandom-affiliated people from those with only a casual interest.
Tara Lyn Strong is a Canadian and American actress. She is known for her voice work in animation, websites, and video games. Strong's voice roles include animated series such as The New Batman Adventures, Teen Titans, Teen Titans Go!, Rugrats, The Powerpuff Girls, The Fairly OddParents, The Proud Family, Xiaolin Showdown, Ben 10, Chowder, Wow! Wow! Wubbzy!, My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, Unikitty!, and DC Super Hero Girls. She has also voiced characters in the video games Mortal Kombat X, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Jak and Daxter, Final Fantasy X, Final Fantasy X-2, Blue Dragon, and Batman: Arkham. Strong has earned Annie Award and Daytime Emmy nominations and won an award from the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences.
John Sherwood de Lancie, Jr. is an American actor, best known for his role as Q in various Star Trek series, beginning with Star Trek: The Next Generation in 1987 and leading up to the third season of Star Trek: Picard in 2023.
My Little Pony (MLP) is a toy line and media franchise developed by American toy company Hasbro. The first toys were developed by Bonnie Zacherle, Charles Muenchinger, and Steve D'Aguanno, and were produced in 1981. The ponies feature colorful bodies, manes and a unique symbol on one or both sides of their flanks. Such symbols are referred to in the three most recent incarnations as "cutie marks". My Little Pony has been revamped several times with new and more modern looks to continue its appeal to the market, with each new look called a "generation" by the show's collectors and fans. The franchise is mainly targeted at young girls, although in the 2010s, it gained a cult following by an unintended audience of adult, mostly male fans.
Morgan Valentine Spurlock was an American documentary filmmaker, writer, and television producer. He directed 23 films and was the producer of nearly 70 films throughout his career. Spurlock received acclaim for directing the documentary Super Size Me (2004), which was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature Film. He produced What Would Jesus Buy? (2007) and directed Where in the World Is Osama bin Laden? (2008), POM Wonderful Presents: The Greatest Movie Ever Sold (2011), Comic-Con Episode IV: A Fan's Hope (2011), and One Direction: This Is Us (2013).
Nicole Lyn Oliver is a Canadian actress. She is best known for her roles as Princess Celestia and Cheerilee in My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic and Zoe Trent in Littlest Pet Shop.
Andrea Libman is a Canadian actress. She is known for providing voice acting in various animated shows, such as voicing the characters of Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy in the Discovery Family series My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic and its spinoffs. She has also appeared in Little Women, Andre, and a guest role on The X-Files.
Ashleigh Adele Ball is a Canadian voice actress known for voicing characters in several toyetic movies and television series, notably the Barbie film series, Bratz, Johnny Test, Littlest Pet Shop, My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic and The Deep. She is the subject of the documentary A Brony Tale directed by Brent Hodge, which follows her through her first interactions with the brony community at BronyCon 2012. She is also a singer and performs with the pop rock band Hey Ocean!
My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic is an American animated television series based on Hasbro's My Little Pony franchise. The series follows a studious pony named Twilight Sparkle, her dragon assistant Spike and her friends, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash (Ball) and Pinkie Pie (Libman). They go on adventures and help others around Equestria, solving problems with their friendships.
BronyCon was an annual fan convention held on the East Coast of the United States for fans of My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, among them adult and teenage bronies. Eleven events were held, with the final one in August 2019 drawing in 10,215 attendees. Though originally planned to run through 2025, it was announced at the closing ceremonies of the 2018 convention that 2019 would be the final year, tying in with the final season of the show.
Hey Ocean! is a Canadian indie alternative rock and synthpop band formed in 2004 in Vancouver. As of 2024, they have released four studio albums and four EPs.
My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic is an animated children's television series produced by Hasbro that ran from 2010 to 2019 as part of the My Little Pony toy franchise. The series tied in with the 2010 relaunch of dolls, play sets and original programming for the American children's cable channel The Hub. Lauren Faust was selected as the creative developer and executive producer for the show based on her previous experience with other animated children's shows such as The Powerpuff Girls and Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends on Cartoon Network. Under Hasbro's guidance, Faust developed the show to appeal to the target demographic of young girls, but created characters and settings that challenged formerly stereotypical norms of "girly" images, adding adventure and humorous elements to keep parents interested.
Bronies: The Extremely Unexpected Adult Fans of My Little Pony is a 2012 documentary film centering on bronies, the adult fans of the 2010 animated television series My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic. The film, funded through crowd-sourcing via Kickstarter, was originally envisioned to follow voice actor and executive producer John de Lancie to the 2012 Summer BronyCon in New Jersey. The project raised much more than anticipated, allowing it to grow in scope to bring on Lauren Faust, Friendship Is Magic's original creator, and Tara Strong, a principal voice actress on the show, as executive producers and to include additional convention footage from European conventions.
Brent Hodge is a Canadian-New Zealander documentary filmmaker and entrepreneur. He is best known for his documentaries I Am Chris Farley, A Brony Tale, The Pistol Shrimps, Freaks and Geeks: The Documentary, Chris Farley: Anything for a Laugh, Who Let the Dogs Out and Pharma Bro. He has been nominated for six Leo Awards for his documentary movies Winning America, What Happens Next? and A Brony Tale, winning one for A Brony Tale in 2015. He was nominated for two Shorty Awards under the "director" category in 2014 and 2015 for his work on The Beetle Roadtrip Sessions and A Brony Tale. Hodge also won a Canadian Screen Award in 2014 for directing The Beetle Roadtrip Sessions with Grant Lawrence.
Chris Kelly is a Canadian podcast producer and film composer/musician based in Vancouver, British Columbia. He is also co-founder of the production company Kelly&Kelly.
Lauren Bercovitch is a Vancouver-based Canadian producer, whose most recent film, A Brony Tale, was released in North American theaters July 2014.
A brony is an adult fan of the My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic franchise.
Consider the Source is a 2015 Canadian-American web series directed by Brent Hodge and produced by Morgan Spurlock, produced through Spurlock's company Warrior Poets, Hodgee Films and Disney's Maker Studios. Consider the Source examines the everyday consumer products used by the public, such as gas or water, and the journeys that those products take to get from the factories and fields to store shelves and homes. The series was released on the YouTube channel SMARTish. After Maker Studios dissolved, the web series was removed from Disney's lineup.
My Little Pony: The Movie is a 2017 animated musical fantasy film based on the animated television series My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, which itself is part of the fourth incarnation of Hasbro's My Little Pony toyline and franchise. The film was directed by Jayson Thiessen, written by Meghan McCarthy, Michael Vogel, Joe Ballarini, and Rita Hsiao, and produced by Stephen Davis, Brian Goldner, Marcia Gwendolyn Jones, and Haven Alexander. The film stars the show's regular voice cast of Tara Strong, Ashleigh Ball, Andrea Libman, Tabitha St. Germain, Cathy Weseluck, Nicole Oliver, and Britt McKillip reprising their roles and the guest voices of Emily Blunt, Kristin Chenoweth, Liev Schreiber, Michael Peña, Sia, Taye Diggs, Uzo Aduba and Zoe Saldaña as new characters. The film follows the alicorn Twilight Sparkle, her five pony friends – collectively known as the "Mane 6" – and her dragon friend and assistant Spike on a quest to save their home of Equestria from an evil conqueror while gaining new friends along the way and testing their friendship and their patience.
Anime Revolution is a three-day anime convention held annually in August in Vancouver, BC. Initially held in the East Wing of the Vancouver Convention Centre, it has been held in the newer West Wing since 2017. While the name is similar, the convention has no connection to Anime Evolution.