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Open edition NFTs have gained popularity in recent months, in part due to their relatively affordable prices.
Late renowned martial artist and actor Bruce Lee has entered the world of Web3 as part of a partnership between the Bruce Lee Foundation and NFT-driven video platform Shibuya. The official Bruce Lee account on Twitter teased a live footage clip featuring the martial artist which transforms into animation as he speaks.
My last name is Lee. Bruce Lee. pic.twitter.com/hc678dzRgO
— Bruce Lee (@brucelee) April 11, 2023
Minting started on Wednesday at 11:00 am ET (3:00 pm UTC) and ends on Friday. According to the no-code NFT platform Manifold Studio, over 16,500 NFTs have been minted so far, with 18 hours of minting left as of this writing.
The NFT – titled “House of Lee: Genesis” – features hand-drawn artwork of the actor done by artist and Shibuya co-founder Emily “pplpleasr” Yang. It was designed with input from Shannon Lee, Bruce Lee’s daughter and the founder and president of the Bruce Lee Estate. The NFT is being marketed as “your ticket to the House of Lee,” with future utility yet to be announced. A Shibuya representative revealed that the mint is only the beginning of a long-term Web3 partnership with the Bruce Lee Estate but would not share details of future plans.
It is an open edition NFT, which means that an unlimited number can be bought for the duration of the mint period. One NFT can be purchased for 0.008 ETH (about $15). Open edition NFTs have gained popularity in recent months, in part due to their relatively affordable prices. Collectors have also been drawn to them because of the gamification techniques employed by creators, which allow collectors to buy or burn multiple editions of the same NFT for rewards.
Shibuya is known for producing original NFT video series in which holders can influence the production process. Their first project, an anime-inspired White Rabbit animated series, allowed NFT holders to choose the next part of the story at the end of each video segment. In the more recent “Dominion X: Level 2” series, created by actor Seth Green’s Stoopid Buddy Stoodios and music artist Steve Aoki, NFT holders had voting rights on the ending of each new weekly stop-motion animated segment.
It remains to be seen if this is the approach Shibuya will take with Bruce Lee content. The teaser clip, set to be shown on a New York City Times Square video billboard this week amid the NFT.NYC conference, is already evidence that the platform is working on Bruce Lee animation.
Shibuya, co-founded by Emily “pplpleasr” Yang and Maciej Kuciara raised $6.9 million in December as part of a seed round led by Andreessen Horowitz and Variant Fund with participation from angel investors including NBA star Kevin Durant, entertainer Paris Hilton, Alibaba co-founder Joe Tsai, and Aave founder and CEO Stani Kulechov.