Animator and filmmaker Frank Abney has launched a Kickstarter campaign for his upcoming animated short film The Turners, an original western-inspired story about a retired outlaw couple forced to confront the past they thought they left behind.
The Turners follows Joe and Alberta Turner, a couple who believed they had long ago walked away from their outlaw past. But when unfinished business resurfaces decades later, they must saddle up for one final ride. Their journey forces them to confront the life they left behind while rediscovering the love they lost during the years they spent surviving it.
The film explores how the choices people make for the ones they love can ripple through their lives long after those decisions are made. The voice cast includes Yolonda Ross, Amin Joseph, Roy Wood Jr., Jaleel White, and Ashleigh Morghan.
Abney describes the project as a dramatic comedy that blends the emotional weight of classic westerns with stylized animation. Tonally, the film draws inspiration from projects like The Harder They Fall, True Grit, and Django Unchained, while the animation style takes cues from visually driven projects such as Arcane and Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio.
The story unfolds in a rugged frontier world populated by both humans and anthropomorphic characters, moving across dusty towns, expansive landscapes, and hidden outposts.
The film is produced by Nicholas Maye, with Jermaine Stegall, known for scoring films such as Coming 2 America and Praise This, composing the film’s music.
For Abney, the crowdfunding route is familiar territory. His previous animated short Canvas was also funded through Kickstarter before premiering on Netflix and winning the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Animated Short Film.
Over the course of nearly two decades, Abney has worked as an animator on several major studio films including Frozen, Coco, The Incredibles 2, Toy Story 4, Soul, and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. He also served as an executive producer on the Academy Award–winning short Hair Love.
Funding the Final Stage
The Kickstarter campaign is seeking $50,000 to help complete the short film. CLICK HERE TO DONATE
The project is being fiscally sponsored by Legends Animated, a nonprofit animation organization that supports independent creators through collaborative production models and animation worker cooperatives.
Because of that partnership, contributions made through the campaign are tax deductible depending on the value of any rewards received.
For Abney, returning to Kickstarter is about more than just funding.
“We’re in a place right now where original art and voices are threatened from every angle,” Abney shared. “Kickstarter allows creators to bring their ideas directly to the people who believe in them.”
With The Turners, Abney hopes the short film will serve as the foundation for a much larger animated world still waiting to be explored.