The Little Trashmaid is a beloved popular webcomic... AND NOW WE WANT TO TURN IT INTO AN ANIMATED SERIES!
Created by s0s2 and with the support of Silly Studios, our goal is to create a bittersweet animated series for all ages!
Find out what a mermaid faces in the modern world and dive with Tidy into this ocean of… waste!
What is The Little Trashmaid?
The Little Trashmaid is a wildly popular and satirical webcomic created by German artist Stephanie Hermes (known online as s0s2).
The webcomic is a modern, environmentalist reimagining of the fairy tale The Little Mermaid, but with a cynical, sweet, and melancholic twist that draws the reader into a variety of environmental and other topics.
The protagonist is Tidy, a silly, naive, curious, and optimistic little mermaid who lives in the modern-day ocean. The problem? The ocean is completely overrun with garbage!
Tidy doesn't understand the dangers of pollution and, instead, sees human trash as "treasures," natural elements, or bizarre fashion accessories. Her relationship with trash is peculiar and harmful because she is unconsciously a victim of ocean pollution herself.
Fortunately, there are two boys, Ricky and Spencer, who do everything they can to warn her about the dangers of pollution and try to improve the environmental situation on their town beach.
The webcomic was born with the intention of raising awareness among readers about ocean pollution by s0s2, and, approximately seven years after the first chapter was created on various social media, it has continued to evolve.
After enormous viral success on Instagram and Twitter, the series found a home on Webtoon Canvas, establishing itself as one of the platform's most popular independent works, garnering millions of fans and views.
In December 2022, the project's first paperback volume, The Little Trashmaid - Volume 1, published by Silly Studios, was released for pre-order for the first time.
Year after year, the story has evolved to include two hardcover graphic novels and a paperback spin-off (all printed on top-recycling paper), leading the author to participate in various fairs in Italy, Germany and France.
Three other products are currently in development for 2026/2027: The Little Trashmaid - Volume 3, Diving Deeper 2, and Diving Deeper 3 (they are available for pre-order for this crowdfunding campaign).
And, starting today, The Little Trashmaid takes another step forward for its future that could lead it to evolve further: the production of an animated pilot episode.
Why an Animated Pilot?
We've been thinking for several years that The Little Trashmaid is ready to make the big leap into the world of animation with an animated series.
The concept of the project is simple, but profound. The comedy comes from the heart and is so silly that it would make anyone laugh. The environmental theme is tremendously modern and also aims to raise future generations' awareness to save the planet. And, what's more, the story we plan to create for the series could warm the hearts of many viewers.
But this desire to create an animated series doesn't come out of nowhere.
In 2022, Stephanie Hermes and Davide Valente (CEO of Silly Studios) began working steadily on the animated project bible, proposing it to various animation and production studios. Although there was constant interest in the project, it is not easy to get the "green light" for a project like this.
One day, a studio approached us with promises about the possibility of creating a The Little Trashmaid animated series. We were excited about this proposal and there would be the involvement of a very well-known screenwriter who has worked on several great projects. We signed a pre-contract that would guarantee us the production of the pilot by an animation studio and... Nothing more was done.
We were "blocked" by that contract for about 4 years, while we had to watch the studio, the animation studio and the screenwriter internally fight over monetary issues. And, to add to these issues, changes were made to the project that we weren't happy with: turning The Little Trashmaid into a 16+ series; changing the gender of a main character; focusing on love triangles instead of the environmental theme and the friendship between the characters.
We were so tired of this situation that we couldn't wait for the contract to expire.
But while all this was happening, we fought. With the creation of Silly Studios, we planted the first seeds of the future. We wanted to create something where we were 100% free both artistically and ethically. Comics, animations, video games, board games... We want to do this and more and the limit is only our imagination.
After so many years blocked by that pre-contract, we are now free to do what we want on our own terms.
For this reason, we organized the Backerkit to finance the animated pilot of The Little Trashmaid. Because this way, we can have complete control of the project and do what we want as best we can. The project has been ready for years to make the big leap with an animated series full of music, songs, new characters, funny stories and a deep plot.
This is the time to give 100% and we are sure we can create something special.
What about s0s2?
Stephanie Hermes is a freelance artist from Germany and the creator of The Little Trashmaid.
A comic about a young, naive mermaid who swims in today's littered seas and lives her life unsuspectingly, without understanding how bad the state of the oceans is.
The comic balances between humor and sadness, intending to raise awareness without preaching.
The Little Trashmaid combines the creator's love for art and nature and her concern for the environment.
What about Silly Studios?
Silly Studios is a young international publishing house and studio dedicated to creating original IP.
Founded in 2022 by Davide Valente and Marco Guazzieri, the company's ethical principles are based on respect for artists, free creativity, and the sustainability of its products.
Born out of pride and a sense of prominence, Silly Studios has a few fundamental rules that it strives to uphold:
1) Pay artists fair compensation within a reasonable timeframe. 2) Create unique and imaginative projects, not limiting itself to fixed narrative genres and always diversifying with its own style. 3) Produce projects that are sustainable over time and respectful of the environment.
For years, founder Davide Valente has seen colleagues and friends go unpaid by other publishing houses for their work. He himself, despite sales, has never received payments due to fraudulent and dishonest companies that aimed to exploit creatives. For this reason, he decided to create a different reality that respects the artists. Furthermore, thanks to the collaboration with s0s2, he managed to find a way to make ALL Silly Studios products sustainable, publishing them on top-recycling paper and frequently participating in campaigns to plant new trees around the world.
Over the past four years, Silly Studios has released a few projects with great potential, such as Simply Silly, Grey Crow, My Silly Gods, Pepper & Carrot, Loving Reaper, Musashiba & Kokojiro, and many others.
We're a bit silly, but full of dreams!
Where do the funds go?
As you well know, creating cartoons COSTS A LOT!
That's why we've set such a high minimum goal!
The funny thing is that about half of the funds will go to financing the project, the other half will go to producing all the rewards, paying the artists and those who worked on the comic, and, most importantly... PAYING TAXES! Here's a little pie chart that tries to explain where the budget will go:
And now we come to the part where we show you the pledges and what you could receive thanks to your support for our Backerkit campaign!
*IMPORTANT NOTE!* First, however, I'd like to leave a quick note about the pledges that only contain one volume. We've created pledges with a single volume of your choice from the three available because, in recent years, many of you have already owned Volume 1 or 2 of the regular series and Diving Deeper 1. This way, you can choose the volume you want individually and add the others via the "add-ons" section (without having to create a dozen different pledges considering all the possible variations). If you don't have any previously published volumes, I recommend opting for the higher pledges, which include all the volumes directly. Don't worry about choosing the language, because everything will be managed via a questionnaire that will be sent to you at the end of the campaign (where you can choose your preferred language from those listed).
Lvl. 10 - Silly Support For those of you who donate without expecting anything in return, this is the pledge for you! But allow yourself a HUGE HUG from the entire team!
Lvl. 15 - Silly Diving Deeper Get ONE physical softcover book of your choice from the Diving Deeper spin-off series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3) and a digital HD poster! (You can add other volumes via "add-ons".)
Lvl. 30 - Silly The Little Trashmaid Get ONE physical hardcover book of your choice from The Little Trashmaid main series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3) and a digital HD poster! (You can add other volumes via "add-ons".)
Lvl. 35 - Silly Complete Digital Collection (PDF) Get ALL the digital eBooks of The Little Trashmaid main series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3) and Diving Deeper spin-off series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3), plus a digital HD poster!
Lvl. 40 - Silly Complete Spin-off Collection Get ALL the physical softcover books from the Diving Deeper spin-off series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3), plus 3 digital HD posters! (You can add other volumes via "add-ons".)
Lvl. 60 - Silly Digital Gadget Collection (PDF) Get ALL the digital eBooks of The Little Trashmaid main series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3) and Diving Deeper spin-off series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3), plus ALL the digital HD rewards!
Lvl. 90 - Silly Complete Main Series Collection Get ALL physical hardcover books from The Little Trashmaid main series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3), plus ALL the digital HD rewards! (You can add other volumes via "add-ons".)
Lvl. 110 - Silly Associate Backer Get ALL the digital eBooks of The Little Trashmaid main series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3) and Diving Deeper spin-off series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3), plus ALL the digital HD rewards and the credits as "Co-Producer"!
Lvl. 130 - Silly Complete Collection Get ALL physical hardcover books from The Little Trashmaid main series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3) and the Diving Deeper spin-off series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3), plus ALL the digital HD rewards and the credits as "Co-Producer"!
Lvl. 150 - Silly Random Sketch Get ONE physical hardcover book of your choice from The Little Trashmaid main series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3), plus ALL the digital HD rewards, the credits as "Co-Producer" and a random hand-drawn drawing by s0s2 inside the volume! (You can add other volumes via "add-ons".)
Lvl. 200 - Silly Requested Sketch Get ONE physical hardcover book of your choice from The Little Trashmaid main series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3), plus ALL the digital HD rewards, the credits as "Co-Producer" and a requested hand-drawn drawing by s0s2 inside the volume! (You can add other volumes via "add-ons".)
Lvl. 250 - Silly Complete Collection Get ALL physical hardcover books from The Little Trashmaid main series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3) and the Diving Deeper spin-off series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3), plus the credits as "Co-Producer" and our complete silly gadgets digital and physical collection!
Lvl. 350 - 3 Silly Random Sketches Get ALL physical hardcover books of your choice from The Little Trashmaid main series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3), plus ALL the digital and physical rewards, the credits as "Co-Producer" and a random hand-drawn drawing by s0s2 inside all volumes!
Lvl. 450 - 3 Silly Requested Sketches Get ALL physical hardcover books of your choice from The Little Trashmaid main series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3), plus ALL the digital and physical rewards, the credits as "Co-Producer" and a requested hand-drawn drawing by s0s2 inside all the volumes!
Lvl. 600 - Silly Original Character Get ALL physical hardcover books from The Little Trashmaid main series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3) and the Diving Deeper spin-off series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3), plus the credits as "Co-Producer", our complete silly gadgets digital and physical collection and the creation of a character that will appear inside the episode!
Lvl. 1000 - Silly Associate Producer Get ALL physical hardcover books from The Little Trashmaid main series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3) and the Diving Deeper spin-off series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3), plus our complete silly gadgets digital and physical collection and the credits as "Associate Producer", with the script signed and early access!
Lvl. 3000 - Silly Sponsor Get the credits as "Silly Sponsor" and an appropriate and ironic cameo of your company!
Lvl. 4000 - Silly Small-Retailer Get ALL physical hardcover books from The Little Trashmaid main series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3) and the Diving Deeper spin-off series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3), 50 volumes each product with a discount for retailers!
Lvl. 7000 - Silly Mega-Retailer Get ALL physical hardcover books from The Little Trashmaid main series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3) and the Diving Deeper spin-off series (Vol. 1, 2, or 3), 100 volumes each product with a discount for retailers!
Lvl. 12000 - Silly Main Sponsor Get the credits as "Main Sponsor" and an appropriate and dedicated product placement cameo of your company!
Achievements
As I'm sure you've gathered from the main counter on the page, we're asking for €150,000 to fund the animated pilot.
This budget will be used entirely to fund all rewards (digital and physical) and the 10-minute pilot episode.
But, obviously, the higher we can go, the more content we can create. Because we intend to reinvest ALL the donations we receive. And, perhaps, we could even dream of financing an entire season, without having to hope for a broadcaster to buy the project and having complete creative freedom for the animated series.
Let me show you our goals:
€150,000 - ANIMATED PILOT! 10-minute pilot episode + All rewards (digital & physical) Once we reach this goal, we will begin work on the animated pilot for "The Little Trashmaid" series!
€300,000 - IMPROVEMENT ANIMATION QUALITY! Improved the technical aspects and animation quality of the pilot episode. Once we reach this goal, we will have enough funds to improve the quality of the pilot and animations!!
€500,000 - 10 ADDITIONAL MINUTES OF ANIMATION! 20-minute pilot in high-quality animation. Once we reach this goal, we will be able to produce a 20-minute pilot in high-quality animation!
€1,000,000 - 4-EPISODE MINISERIES! Miniseries of 4 episodes of 10 minutes each! Once we reach this goal, we will be able to produce a miniseries of 4 episodes of 10 minutes each in high-quality animation!
€1,500,000 - THE LITTLE TRASHMAID SONG ALBUM! Special album with all "The Little Trashmaid" songs. Once we reach this goal, we will create a special album with all "The Little Trashmaid" songs we create for the series!
€2,000,000 - 6-EPISODE ANIMATION SERIES! Season one with 6 animated episodes of 10 minutes each. Once we reach this goal, we will be able to produce 6 episodes of 10 minutes each in high-quality animation!
€3,000,000 - 8-EPISODE ANIMATION SERIES! Season one with 8 animated episodes of 10 minutes each. Once we reach this goal, we will be able to produce 8 episodes of 10 minutes each in high-quality animation!
€5,000,000 - FIRST ANIMATED SEASON! Season one with 8 animated episodes of 20 minutes each. Once we reach this goal, we will be able to produce the entire first season of 8 episodes of 20 minutes each in high-quality animation!
€7,000,000 - SPECIAL EPISODES! 2 extra special episodes of 20 minutes each. Once we reach this goal, we will be able to produce 2 extra special episodes of 20 minutes each in high-quality animation!
Add-ons
In this BackerKit campaign, you can find more Silly Studios projects to pick up (in addition to "The Little Trashmaid" related products).
Allow me to list all the Silly Studios products!
- The Little Trashmaid - Volume 1 (€25) The first volume of "The Little Trashmaid" main series, published by Silly Studios. Available in Universal Version.
- The Little Trashmaid - Volume 2 (€25) The second volume of "The Little Trashmaid" main series, published by Silly Studios. Available in Universal Version.
- The Little Trashmaid - Volume 3 (€25) The third volume of "The Little Trashmaid" main series, published by Silly Studios. Available in Universal Version.
- The Little Trashmaid - Diving Deeper 1 (€12) The first volume of "The Little Trashmaid" spin-off series, published by Silly Studios. 🇬🇧🇮🇹🇫🇷🇩🇪🇪🇸🇵🇹 Available in English, Italian, French, German, Spanish and Portuguese.
- The Little Trashmaid - Diving Deeper 2 (€12) The second volume of "The Little Trashmaid" spin-off series, published by Silly Studios. 🇬🇧🇮🇹🇫🇷🇩🇪🇪🇸🇵🇹 Available in English, Italian, French, German, Spanish and Portuguese.
- The Little Trashmaid - Diving Deeper 3 (€12) The third volume of "The Little Trashmaid" spin-off series, published by Silly Studios. 🇬🇧🇮🇹🇫🇷🇩🇪🇪🇸🇵🇹 Available in English, Italian, French, German, Spanish and Portuguese.
- Pepper & Carrot - Book 1: The Komona Contest (€15) The first volume of "Pepper & Carrot", published by Silly Studios. 🇬🇧🇮🇹 Available in English and Italian.
- Pepper & Carrot - Book 2: The Witches of Chaosah (€15) The second volume of "Pepper & Carrot", published by Silly Studios. 🇬🇧🇮🇹 Available in English and Italian.
- Pepper & Carrot - Book 3: The Queen of Qualicity (€15) The third volume of "Pepper & Carrot", published by Silly Studios. 🇬🇧🇮🇹 Available in English and Italian.
- Pepper & Carrot - Book 4: The Battle of Ah (€15) The fourth volume of "Pepper & Carrot", published by Silly Studios. 🇬🇧🇮🇹 Available in English and Italian.
- Pepper & Carrot - The Artbook (€15) The Artbook of "Pepper & Carrot", published by Silly Studios. 🇬🇧🇮🇹 Available in English and Italian.
- Grey Crow - Volume 1 (€12) The first volume of "Grey Crow", published by Silly Studios. 🇬🇧🇮🇹 Available in English and Italian.
- Grey Crow - Volume 2 (€12) The second volume of "Grey Crow", published by Silly Studios. 🇬🇧🇮🇹 Available in English and Italian.
- Hetzer & Friends - Volume 1 (€12) The first volume of "Hetzer & Friends", published by Silly Studios. 🇬🇧🇮🇹 Available in English and Italian.
- Hetzer & Friends - Volume 2 (€12) The second volume of "Hetzer & Friends", published by Silly Studios. 🇬🇧🇮🇹 Available in English and Italian.
- Hetzer & Friends - Spooky Booky (€5) The Halloween special of "Hetzer & Friends", published by Silly Studios. 🇬🇧🇮🇹 Available in English and Italian.
- Musashiba & Kokojiro (€15) The volume of "Musashiba & Kokojiro", published by Silly Studios. 🇬🇧🇮🇹 Available in English and Italian.
- My Silly Gods - Pandora's Box Arc (€15) The English volume of "My Silly Gods", published by Silly Studios. 🇬🇧🇮🇹 Available in English and Italian.
- My Silly Gods - Hades & Persephone Arc (€15) The English volume of "My Silly Gods", published by Silly Studios. 🇬🇧🇮🇹 Available in English and Italian.
- Loving Reaper - Volume 1 (30€) The first volume of "Loving Reaper", published by Silly Studios. 🇬🇧🇮🇹🇫🇷 Available in English, Italian and French.
- Loving Reaper - Volume 2 (35€) The second volume of "Loving Reaper", published by Silly Studios. 🇬🇧🇮🇹🇫🇷 Available in English, Italian and French.
- Rita Esaurita - Il programma della mia vita (€12) The Italian volume of "Rita Esaurita", published by Silly Studios. 🇮🇹 Available in Italian.
Technical Specifications
For the animation pilot:
Format: Animation Pilot. Target Duration: 7–11 minutes. Target Audience: General Audience / Family Friendly (All Ages). Genre: Comedy / Slice of Life / Environmental Awareness. Animation Style: 2D Digital Animation / Hand-drawn digital (Animazione 2D Digitale). Resolution: Ultra HD 4K. Aspect Ratio: 16:9. Frame Rate: 24 fps.
The Little Trashmaid - Volume 1, 2 & 3: Size: 16 x 24 cm.
Pages: 176 pages per volume.
Paper: Hardcover, high-quality, top-recycled paper to ensure the digital colors pop.
Language: Universal version.
The Little Trashmaid - Diving Deeper 1, 2 & 3: Size: 16 x 24 cm.
Pages: 64 pages per volume.
Paper: Softcover, high-quality, top-recycling paper to ensure the digital colors pop.
Language: English, Italian, French, Spanish, Portuguese and German versions.
Timeline, Process & Shipping
Animation requires time, care, and complex steps. Here are the key milestones we'll take together to bring Tidy and her world to life:
Months 1–2 |Fundraising Phase: Closing the BackerKit campaign.
Months 3–6 |Pre-Production Phase: Finalizing storyboards, final character designs for animation, and drafting scene layouts.
Months 7–9 | Production and Shipping of Physical Rewards: While the art team focuses on the drawings, we begin production of merchandise (pins, t-shirts, prints, paperbacks, etc.) using eco-sustainable materials. The goal is to have all the rewards by the end of 2026 or early 2027 and ship them after organizing the BackerKit Pledge Manager.
Months 10–14 | Main Animation Phase: The heart of the project. Frame-by-frame drawing, line cleanup, and background coloring.
Month 15–18 | Post-Production & Audio: Final editing, sound design, original soundtrack composition, and audio mixing.
Month 19 | Pilot Delivery: The animated pilot is released as a digital preview to backers.
Please note that shipping costs will be collected after the BackerKit campaign ends.
Once the Backerkit campaign is finished, you will receive an invitation to our Pledge Manager.
This allows us to provide you with the most accurate and fair shipping rates based on your specific location and the current market prices at the time of delivery.
Estimated Shipping Rates:
Italy: €5
Europe (EU/UK/Rest of Europe): It can vary from €5 to €15, depending on the country.
USA, Australia, Mexico & Canada: It can vary from €15 to €35, depending on the country.
Rest of the World: It can vary from €15 to €35, depending on the country.
To ensure peace of mind, we use fully tracked shipping for every single order worldwide.
We use reinforced, eco-friendly packaging designed to protect your books from corner dings and transit damage.
If you encounter any shipping issues, please contact us within the first five months of 2027 (from January) after shipping the volumes.
After that date, we will be unable to assist with the shipment.
24/7 Dedicated Support
We are here for you!
To ensure the best possible experience, we offer 24/7 customer assistance.
Whether you have questions about your pledge, need to update your address, or require help with tracking, our team is available around the clock to assist you.
Tree-nation
Given our desire to make the planet a better place for future generations, we're pleased to announce that we will plant a tree on Tree-Nation for every new backer.
We've already done this in the past with another of our products, which led us to plant 411 trees. We're committed to printing everything on top-recycling paper, but it's never enough, so we want to do more! We want to create our own Silly Forest and help the planet!
We're doing our best to make the world a greener place!
A "Silly" Thank You!
We want to extend a massive (and silly) thank you to everyone who supports this BackerKit!
Being able to produce the animation pilot of The Little Trashmaid is something extraordinary, and we want to continue dreaming with this project!
Latest from the Creator
Silly Studios
4 days ago
Tidy's beach - The Little Trashmaid Animated Pilot
WE'VE REACHED 3,000 FOLLOWERS ON THE PRE-LAUNCH PAGE!!!!!
And, as promised, here's a glimpse of the beach where Tidy regularly meets Ricky and Spencer!
Tidy Beach is a small stretch of sand that is quite littered with trash.
It is also the spot where Ricky crashed his car before meeting Tidy.
Day after day, Ricky and Spencer do their best to make that little patch of nature more "livable," even as the relevant authorities and the mayor of San Taras ignore them.
WE'VE REACHED 2,500 FOLLOWERS ON THE PRE-LAUNCH PAGE!!!!!
And, as promised, here's a glimpse of the new character of the series: Vicky Jun, aka Ricky's sister.
She's twenty years old and works in the cafe “The StarFish” on the seaside, where most of the customers are tourists.
She has a powerful character and quickly gets mad at Ricky when he causes trouble.
Vicky has a strong feeling of protection towards him since she is raising him by herself. She is passionate about punk rock music and has a beautiful voice.
Want to know more? Follow the project and support it on launch day (17th July)! As each milestone is reached, we'll share more information about the world of The Little Trashmaid!
Now on to the next goal: REACH 3000 FOLLOWERS ON THE PRE-LAUNCH PAGE!!!
WIP for a silly surprise! - The Little Trashmaid Animated Pilot
I'll leave you with a little spoiler about a little promo we're preparing for the campaign launch!
I really hope you love it!
PS. Remember to follow the pre-launch page and, if you can, support the campaign at launch!
PS. We're almost reaching 2,500 followers on the Backerkit pre-launch page! As soon as we reach that goal, we'll unlock... A NEW ANIMATED PILOT CHARACTER!!!!!
WE'VE REACHED 1,500 FOLLOWERS ON THE PRE-LAUNCH PAGE!!!!!
And, as promised, here's a glimpse of the city where Ricky and Spencer live: San Taras.
The city of San Taras is a small maritime city with severe waste disposal and pollution problems. A big river intersects the city, which is partly used to dispose of waste, carrying masses of garbage into the ocean.
Want to know more? Follow the project and support it on launch day! As each milestone is reached, we'll share more information about the world of The Little Trashmaid!
Now on to the next goal: REACH 2500 FOLLOWERS ON THE PRE-LAUNCH PAGE!!!
