FAQ

Thank you! Any film project of this size involves a ton of effort from a ton of people. We’re looking for help on all sorts of things, from getting connected with potential interviewees to production on the film itself. We may not be able to include everyone who volunteers, but we’ll at least add you to our list of contacts.

If you have skills or connections you’d like to contribute, you can email us at [email protected] and we’ll get right on back to you!

(Last updated: 5/26/2021)

The short answer is “no.” Films and books are two different mediums, and adaptations are always different.

There are things that books can do that a film cannot. Some parts of the Ernest / Jim Varney story don’t have any corresponding visual record, and those are the kinds of topics better suited to the written word.

On the other hand, there is a TON of footage of Ernest and Jim that we’re excited to get to share with an audience. And as Justin put it, “Something visual can form an even greater connection to an audience than a book can. I’m hoping the interviews really demonstrate the emotional connection that people had to Jim.”

(Last updated: 6/22/2021)

Feature-length (90 minutes) at minimum seems like a safe bet. We know this story has a lot of depth and things we’d like to cover, but to be honest, we’re not yet sure how long the film will be. And yes, this is another detail that will depend on how much money we raise.

We also haven’t solidified our distribution plans yet; instead choosing to focus on telling the story we want to tell the way we want to tell it. So, where the film ends up being shown may impact its running time as well.

(Last updated: 6/22/2021)

We do! You can find it here.

(Last updated: 8/30/2024)

We would love it if our documentary was seen in as many places as possible! But until the film is completed and picked up for distribution, we have no way of knowing which streaming services it might end up on.

(Last updated: 6/19/2023)

These are logistical questions that we have not even started thinking about yet. That being said, we would love to make the documentary accessible to as wide of an audience as possible!

(Last updated: 2/23/2023)

Not even close! True to its name, we used Kickstarter to—quite literally—kick-start the production of our documentary project. Now that the project is off the ground, we’re planning to continue fundraising throughout the production of the film. Every little bit helps!

(Last updated: 1/29/2023)

The IOBE documentary project is not a full-time job for any of the team. We aim to post updates as regularly as possible, but we also prioritize actual work on the film over talking about the work we’re doing on the film.

One of our backers on Kickstarter described our approach perfectly—read their comment here.

(Last updated: 1/29/2023)

The wait is over! We released the first trailer for the documentary on June 25, 2025. You can watch it here!

(Last updated: 7/1/2025)

We’d love to! But it will all depend on our future fundraising. The lists of “how many interview trips we want to take” and “how many interview trips we can afford to take” are two different lists. We’ll make the best film we can no matter what.

(Last updated: 8/30/2024)

We will not be running a second crowdfunding campaign for this documentary. The Ernest fan community already showed up to support us in 2021 — without them, we wouldn’t have gotten to this point!

Any future fundraising will come from other sources (e.g. individual donors, investors, film grants, etc.). And of course, anyone who missed the original Kickstarter campaign can still support us via our BackerKit store.

(Last updated: 8/30/2024)

As of right now, the Kickstarter campaign and our IOBE BackerKit Pre-order Store are the only places we plan to make physical copies of the film available.

Whether the film ends up for sale elsewhere in the future will depend on—you guessed it—how much money we raise, as well as where and how the film gets picked up for distribution.

(Last updated: 1/29/2023)

The “name in credits” perks were initially offered as a part of our Kickstarter reward tiers. BackerKit pre-orders for the “Latecomer Pledge Bundles” approximate some of these tiers (from the $500 level and up), and are the only way for new backers to have their names included in the credits.

Unfortunately, all other BackerKit pre-order backers will not have their names included in the documentary credits.

(Last updated: 5/30/2023)

Yes—the physical copies will have some extra / bonus features, while the digital copy will be the documentary film only.

(Last updated: 1/29/2023)

Our intention is for the content on the DVD and Blu-ray versions to be identical.

(Last updated: 2/9/2023)

Physical copies of the film were placed at the $100 tier of our Kickstarter campaign because it was a fundraising pledge, not a purchase. (Similarly, people don’t contribute to a public television pledge drive because they want to buy a PBS tote bag for $60.)

Since then, we’ve made individual physical copies of the documentary available in our IOBE BackerKit Pre-order Store for a more affordable price.

(Last updated: 1/29/2023)

Our plan is for the physical copies to be signed by the documentary team.

(Last updated: 1/29/2023)

Yes! If you missed our initial fundraising campaign, you can still pre-order many of the same items on our BackerKit Pre-order Store. We plan to keep this store open as long as possible, and all proceeds go directly towards the documentary production!

(Last updated: 1/29/2023)

Our main priority is being able to tell Jim and Ernest’s story in the most comprehensive and cost-effective way possible. Animation, on the other hand, is time-consuming and very expensive—even more so than live-action.

That being said, we’re not ruling out anything as we develop and produce this film! Animation was a part of the Ernest franchise aesthetic, and it could definitely help elevate the visual look of our documentary. As with many of our other challenges, it’ll all depend on how much money we raise.

(Last updated: 12/17/2021)

This is a documentary film, not a biopic, so all of Jim’s appearances in the archival / file footage will be played by… Jim Varney.

(Last updated: 6/22/2021)

“Ernest and the Dream Stone” is totally unrelated to our documentary project — though, like the documentary, the graphic novel has the blessing of the Varney and Cherry families. We’re psyched to see other folks keeping the Ernest energy going!

(Last updated: 9/16/2024)

Our team is grateful for the support and involvement of our entire roster of interviewees — and out of respect, we don’t share their contact information with anyone. Sorry!

(Last updated: 10/16/2024)

We sent out Kickstarter backer surveys via email in the Spring of 2022. If you didn’t receive your survey, you can follow this BackerKit link to enter your email and have it re-sent!

(Last updated: 6/19/2023)

You should be able to verify and update your order information by clicking your survey link from BackerKit.

If you need that link to be re-sent, you can enter your email here: https://beingernestfilm.backerkit.com/

(Last updated: 6/19/2023)

All backers at the “Submit a Fan Video!” level were sent an email with details on what to provide. If you have any questions about fan video submissions, you can send an email to [email protected]!

(Last updated: 04/24/2024)

The deadline for submitting is September 1, 2025.

(Last updated: 05/31/2025)

We are planning for the Q&A to take place close to the documentary release date / when it’s finished (or close to it). We will have more interesting things to say, and possibly more people onboard as potential Q&A guests at that point.

(Last updated: 1/29/2023)

The physical reward shipments are one of our top (non-filmmaking) priorities! Signed books and Ernest prints shipped in February 2023.

Next in the queue are the “Jim Varney is Ernest” posters and the “Art by Kevin-John” painted sketches. If you haven’t received yours, please confirm your most up-to-date mailing address by dropping us a line at [email protected]!

(Last updated: 5/31/2025)

Physical copies of the documentary will ship later, after the film is complete. As mentioned in the Kickstarter reward tiers: “some rewards will ship sooner than others”.

The delivery estimate we listed had to be the same across all tiers, so we went with the earliest date we thought we could ship any of the physical rewards. But certainly anything involving the documentary itself will be among the last of the rewards to ship.

(Last updated: 2/2/2023)

Digital rewards will be sent later on, as we move further along in production. They require the same kind of permission from their owner(s) that we need for the documentary itself.

(Last updated: 2/23/2023)

You should be able to review your information by clicking your original BackerKit survey link.

If you need that link to be re-sent, you can enter your email here: https://beingernestfilm.backerkit.com/

(Last updated: 2/3/2023)

This may happen for several reasons, including:

• The addition of pre-order items on BackerKit that weren’t included in your Kickstarter pledge (DVDs, etc.)
• Certain regions charge a tax on shipping costs. This is something that was not taken into account on Kickstarter, as we did not have the mailing addresses of our backers until after surveys were complete.

Please feel free to contact us with any specific questions about BackerKit charges!

(Last updated: 2/23/2023)