by Angie Fielder
Crowdfunding is definitely the social media flavour of the month as creative people connect with online audiences who want to help finance their dreams. On Kickstarter alone, nearly 3 million people have helped over 30,000 projects, generating more than $US300 million in pledges.
As producers of The Second Coming, a feature film that is currently seeking funds via crowdfunding site Pozible (www.pozible.com), we recognise the need, in this fast-becoming-saturated crowdfunding environment, to think outside the box when it comes to incentivising people to pledge. Particularly if we want to go beyond our personal network of family and friends. That’s the real challenge with crowdfunding – engaging people outside of your own contacts, outside of your existing support networks.This extension of our networks will not only help us to raise money for our film but it will also, very importantly, mean that we start building an audience for the film NOW. When people pledge money to support a film, it gives them a vested interest in it and its success. That kind of audience dedication is extremely valuable.
We launched on September 10, 2012 and in the first two weeks of our campaign we have raised $20,000 of our $75,000 target. There’s still a ways to go however and in order to incentivise people to continue to pledge we have just released new packages that specifically target aspiring filmmakers and actors.
To develop the packages we gave a lot of thought to what WE had wanted as young filmmakers starting out in the industry. And the answer was – having the opportunity to be involved, and observe, the production process. There’s only so much you can learn at film school – the real learning comes from being amidst of all the action on a real project. That’s why we’re offering aspiring filmmakers the chance to observe and join in the production of The Second Coming. Our new packages include the opportunity to come into the rehearsals and on set, to join us at key creative times during the production such as the edit, the grade and the sound mix where we will invite the pledgers to provide their own creative feedback on the film as well as the opportunity for direct consultation with the film’s key creative team.
We are also keen to explore how we can involve a global audience at various stages of post production – VFX, titles design, music – there are loads of possibilities that we are yet to mine.
Writer/director of The Second Coming, David Barker, is a huge fan of the crowdfunding model: “We are in the midst of a filmmaking revolution. It’s mind-blowing. Sites like Pozible are pipelines to a larger community that’s evolving in completely new ways. Imagine where this could lead to? A massive creative community, more intimately connected to each other and their stories. This is not about charity, or wanting something for nothing, it’s about growing a community where everyone gets rewarded for being part of a creative endeavour. ”
It’s not just about crowd funding, but also crowd collaborating.
Pledging on Pozible is open to anyone in any country – all you need is a credit card or PayPal account. To pledge to the project or find out more go to: www.pozible.com/thesecondcomingmovie
Important Links:
Pledge at www.pozible.com/thesecondcomingmovie
LIKE the Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/TheSecondComingMovie
JOIN the Facebook Group: www.facebook.com/groups/FansOfTheSecondComing
FOLLOW on Twitter: www.twitter.com/2ndComingMovie Hashtag: #2ndComingMovie
Subscribe/Follow on Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/channels/thesecondcomingmovie
Like/Subscribe on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/aquariusfilmsoz (choose The Second Coming playlist)
Film website: www.thesecondcoming.com.au
Director’s blog: http://thesecondcomingmovie.tumblr.com/
Director’s website: www.minisumo.com.au
Follow Aquarius Films on Twitter: www.twitter.com/AquariusFilmsOz
And Facebook: www.facebook.com/AquariusFilmsOz
Aquarius Films website: www.aquariusfilms.com.au
Angie Fielder, of Aquarius Films, is an award-winning Australian producer whose short films have screened in Sundance, Venice, Berlin and Telluride. Her first feature, Wish You Were Here, starring Joel Edgerton, opened Sundance 2012 and will release in cinemas in the US in early 2013.
