Jason Rowoldt is an American brickfilmer. He is best known for having been the founder of the website Brickfilms.com, which he ran from December 2000 until mid 2003. He is also known to have coined the term 'brickfilm'.[1]
Founding of Brickfilms.com[]
Main article: Brickfilms.com
Jason Rowoldt was inspired to start brickfilming by witnessing Thomas Foote's brickfilming panel at BrickFest 2000 and later also by purchasing LEGO Studios upon its release in late 2000.[2] On December 16, 2000, Rowoldt launched the first major website for brickfilming, Brickfilms.com, to share his own films and to gather into one place links to the small number of other brickfilms he had found around the internet. The website soon grew to be the main hub for online brickfilming activity, with many more brickfilms being submitted to the film directory, and a growing community of brickfilmers posting on the message board. With brickfilming being an emerging phenomenon at the beginning of the 2000s, Rowoldt was interviewed about the hobby and his website for articles by outlets such as The New York Times, The Guardian, the BBC, and TV Guide, helping to bring much greater attention to the hobby.[3] During his time as owner of Brickfilms.com, Rowoldt hosted the Classical Movie Contest and the Historical Fiction Contest on the site.
In addition, the founding of Brickfilms.com is the first documented use of the term "brickfilm" to refer to films created with LEGO. Despite coining the term as the name of the website, Jason can be seen to have considered and encouraged the use of the term as the generic name for films created using construction block toys, to be used by all freely.
"But because I do not have, and none of us have, "official" endorsement from LEGO does not mean we cannto make and sell films using similar products. 80% or more of the sets I build involve other brands of plastic building bricks, which is why I call my films (and encourage you to) Brick Films."
- Jason Rowoldt; April 3, 2003
Rowoldt ran Brickfilms.com until mid-2003, when dwindling available time and interest led him to ask if anyone would be willing to buy it from him; an offer that was taken up by Joshua Leasure. Brickfilms.com remained highly active until 2008, when disagreements with new owners led the community members at the time to establish and move to Bricks in Motion. Brickfilms.com remained online with little activity for many years. In 2022, it was purchased by Brick à Brack, who intend to launch a new merger site in 2023. Upon announcement of the acquisition, Brick à Brack thanked Rowoldt for support.[4]
Filmography[]
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | The Chase[5] | |
| 2001 | Dancing on The Moon[6] | |
| 2001 | Vecna's Lens: Part I[7][8] | Also known as Dungeon Crawl: Part I |
| 2001 | Brickfilms Director's Project - Group 2 X | Co-production with Brian "Mr.B" Schimke, Conrad Slater and Russ Jensen[9] |
| 2002 | The Fencers[10] | |
| 2002 | Brickfilms Historical Fiction Contest Award Show | |
| 2002 | Kung Fu Fighting[11] | |
| 2002 | Alone[12] | Horror Animation Contest entry |
| 2003 | Secret Strategeries[13] | |
| 2003 | The Sol Chronicles Episode 1 Opening[14] |
References[]
- ↑ Rowoldt's LinkedIn profile recounting his time as the owner of Brickfilms.com
- ↑ Introduction forum thread archive
- ↑ An interview with Jason Rowoldt from 2002
- ↑ "Big announcement about Brickfilms.com!" on Brick à Brack
- ↑ Early Brickfilms directory archive
- ↑ Dancing on the Moon on Brickshelf
- ↑ Vecna's Lens Part 1 on Brickshelf
- ↑ Brickfilms directory listing Dungeon Crawl: Part I
- ↑ Director's Project page
- ↑ The Fencers on Brickshelf
- ↑ Kung Fu Fighting on Brickshelf
- ↑ Alone on Brickshelf
- ↑ Secret Strategeries release thread
- ↑ The Sol Chronicles Episode 1 Opening release thread