Social media is where you find most puppet people. With the right hashtags, you can track them down like wildlife.
There was one performer who kept appearing on my feed. James Folker, He’d worked on incredible shows. His CV was stacked. He knew Le Chew. On paper, he was perfect.
I messaged him about a feature film I’d written. We met for coffee in town. I sent over the character designs and the script. He liked it. He was enthusiastic. I showed him Joe’s illustrations and he immediately started sketching ideas on the table, talking through mechanisms, materials, scale.
He’d worked on big Hollywood films and tiny student shorts. Talented. Serious. Genuinely up for collaborating.
Later it became clear he was struggling with his mental health. He started posting videos of himself spiralling. Crying. Dissociating. Going to dark places on camera. It was hard to watch — a grown man breaking down in public. I understood the impulse: visibility, honesty, removing stigma.
After that first coffee, I told Karl about him. I was excited — this thing finally felt real. Like it might actually happen.
Karl’s response was immediate:
“If he’s working on your project, I’m not.”
No explanation.
No concern.
No curiosity.
Just a line drawn in felt-tip.
Later on it turned out that Karl was against him for his shameless self promotion. I didn’t see anything wrong with it. Later on I found out that he uploaded my character design with a slight blur on. I didn’t mind. Karl went ballistic. Told me to get an NDA and everything.