How ‘Napoleon Dynamite’ Star Jon Heder Is Disrupting Hollywood With NFT Collectibles
Hollywood is going through massive, long-term disruptions, dramatically changing filmed entertainment as we’ve known it. Regardless of whether you are a consumer, producer or creative, you are experiencing an industry that is being turned upside down. And while the Internet was the flame that lit the fuse, today new emerging technologies such as Web3, blockchain and nonfungible tokens (NFTs) are causing turbulence in the entertainment industry and disrupting Hollywood’s underlying business model.
I recently joined a discussion about “The Disruption of Hollywood” on the UltraLight Podcast, hosted by Wes Sherwin. Our conversation focused on how digital technologies are changing the game in Hollywood. My co-panelists were actor, writer, producer, and animator Jon Heder (you’ll recognize him from his iconic “Napoleon Dynamite” role) and screenwriter, producer, professor, and entrepreneur, Justin T. Winter. The conversation was lively, enlightening and eye-opening.
A foray into the metaverse
Heder and Winter are involved in an animated series, “Order of the Tigons”. They are creating a collection of digital art collectibles based on the series that will make your journey to the Metaverse even more special. In fact, Heder created and designed Tigon, an animal hybrid, specifically for the Metaverse.
“. . . I thought it would be fun to pull back the popularity of a similar drawing I did that was made famous by a movie I was in a number of years ago,” Heder explained, referring to “Napoleon Dynamite.” (Many don’t realize he created the art seen in the film.)
At the heart of this endeavor, Heder created a collection of 7,777 unique digital art collectibles (2D NFT). Each one is completely unique and made from his original hand drawings. Winter, along with his cousins Brian and Matt, will produce the project for Verified Labs.
People who travel to the Metaverse to interact with these mythical creatures can “coin” their own Tigons. That means they can “adopt” and take home a Tigon in the Metaverse. The first 777 digital art collectibles were released on February 4, 2022, with the remaining 7,000 released on February 11, 2022. They can be purchased with cash or Theta Networks, TFUEL cryptocurrency at Theta Drop.
Why it’s disturbing
Don’t miss the underlying disruptive model here. The collection of NFTs is sold to collectors and consumers who want to own a digital collectible associated with the series, creating funding for the project itself. Different from crowdfunding, the money generated is based on the value of the Tigon NFTs as digital collectibles.
While the technologies we discuss in this podcast are still new, you will clearly get a glimpse of how they are changing the filmed entertainment industry and have the potential to fundamentally transform Hollywood’s business model in the future. No matter what industry you’re in, the technology trends that disrupt entertainment are often early signals for other industries. Take a listen and enjoy.
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