Carl the Cat - (transmedia project)
- April Kay
- Apr 17, 2019
- 4 min read
Welcome to my transmedia campaign!
Carl the Cat is comedy/fantasy story set slightly in the future, where animals are talking, functioning beings in our society. My main character is a sardonic, know-it-all cartoon cat from New York named Carl.
Despite being pretty smart and inheriting a sweet rent-controlled apartment along with a sizeable fortune from his previous owner, he doesn’t have thumbs. In a city full of humans and animals, he’s still quite lonely. Eventually, he’ll find a human roommate named Daisy and Woody the pizza delivery guy, will be her love interest. (Hey, they make pretty good money in that town and always have a car!)
WordPress, Twitter and Facebook have been my main promotional options. I also used yahoo email, a fake news generator, Google Voice, and Craigslist to pull some of the smaller elements of my story together.
Providing backstory was a key goal. I also wanted to take advantage of being able to create deeper character development and have real interaction using these tools that a 6-8-minute webisode wouldn't lend itself to.
Every page links to others, so no matter where someone lands, there is more to discover.
Carl the Cat
Medium: Webisode
Genre: Comedy/Fantasy
Setting: The not-too-distant future in New York City
Logline: A recent college graduate and vlogger, desperate to find a roommate, moves in with a talking cat named Carl, but Carl's kind facade falls away to reveal the animal beneath.
Synopsis: In this world, humans coexist with animals who talk, work, and are productive members of society. There’s still a feeling of disdain between the classes, however, and some animals have embraced civilization more eagerly than others.
Daisy, a recent college graduate facing a mountain of debt, quickly realizes that finding that dream job in New York might prove more difficult than she’s imagined, despite her shiny new degree. Desperate, exhausted and hungry, she’s forced to overlook her prejudices and move in with Carl the cat.
Carl is willing to overlook his own prejudices because Daisy has thumbs. For him, this means no longer being limited to dry food. Carl is what you might call “slower to adapt.” He prefers to sleep seventeen hours a day, enjoys cleaning his “lower units” and hasn’t learned to be politically correct. Nor does he care to.
In an effort to do pay her part of the rent, Daisy starts a vlog called “Dining with Daisy.” Daisy is unaware that Carl is financially set for life due to his former lady owner dying and leaving him everything, including her rent-controlled apartment. He simply prefers living with a female who has thumbs.
In the middle of her first episode, Daisy has a minor breakdown, and desperate to film something…anything…she offers dating advice. Unfortunately, the problem she decides to discuss on camera was her sister Rose’s. Daisy isn’t so great at giving this type of advice, but Carl is. The opportunity arises for him to interject when Daisy incorrectly translates what a guy is saying versus how he is acting. Carl puts everything into perfective his brash, tough-love way.
The next day, the duo learn the video has gone viral. They’re ecstatic (well, after Daisy explains what that means to Carl – that they can order pizza) until Daisy receives an angry phone call from Rose.
In the second episode, things get a little hairier. The pizza delivery guy is super-hot and Carl’s ex shows up and thinks she can just walk right back in.
With webisodes being short, this is a transmedia campaign I created to interactively expand my three main characters across multiple platforms for Carl the Cat. Feel free to play!
1. Daisy's Roommate Ad on CraigsList: Daisy’s new Craigslist roommate link with phone number (expires in a New York minute/7 days): newyork.craigslist.org/mnh/sha/d/looking-to-share-your-home/6866983046.html
Looking to share your home (SoHo) hide this posting
cats are OK - purrr
Hi! I'm relocating from FL to NY and looking for a new place to live. I'm a good roommate. I'm a recent college graduate and vlogger. I love animals. I'm upbeat, tidy, love food and have a can-do attitude. If I'm honest, I'd rather be called a cat lady than a people person. Please get in touch if you have room to offer and aren't crazy. Phone: 7272220609
do NOT contact me with unsolicited services or offers
2. Google Phone: 727-222-0609
3. WordPress Blog - Carl the Cat
Life Coach. Quantum Physicist. New Yorker. Meat Eater. Advice Columnist. I can help you... maybe.
4. Facebook: Woodrow Stroak – NY Pizza Parlor
Woody’s posts memes and stories about the humors and horrors of being a pizza delivery guy in New York City.
5. Twitter: @CarlTheCat6
Carl has 30+ posts about life, pop culture, other cats, food, him thinking about getting a roommate, the advantages & disadvantages of a roommate, weird roommate ads he’s found, and finding a possible match.
6. Email: CarlTheCatNY@yahoo.com
You will receive this automated reply: (Spoilers ahead!)
"Me-ow!
Thanks for the email. I love that you have burning questions. My father - before he abandoned us - stressed that we should always ask WHY in life. Question everything. Too many simply don't do that. They refuse to think for themselves and accept anything. YOU are clearly not part of that herd.
I, too, also wonder about things. Why is there a "Flat Earth Society"? Where is the best place to bury a body? What's so irresistible about a laser? (I'm telling ya, it's like crack.) Who ya gonna
call? (Ghostbusters. Obviously.)
That said, I'm wondering how to advise you and will get back as with my best answer straightaway.
Until then, Ciao. -CTC Twitter: @CarlTheCat6
**Sketches by Alex Saviuk
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