Hey guys! I've been doing tons of research on crowdfunding over the past few months, and it really seems like Indiegogo and Seed&Spark are the best options for indie filmmakers, in my opinion. The problem is, I'm honestly stumped on which to go with. I love aspects about both. Does anyone have any thoughts on which is better? Specifically for my position, I am crowdfunding for my senior thesis short at around $2,500. Thanks for any input you have!
Financing / Crowdfunding : Indiegogo vs Seed&Spark by Tyler C. Peterson
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Just my opinion but I prefer Indiegogo film. They have a flexible funding option. And there are no up front charges. And their head film strategist John Trigonis ( who I met at a crowdfunding Panel at Tribeca last year) is very supportive and really wants to see you meet your goals. He even wrote a book on the topic which I think is in print.
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We're honestly quite on the fence about crowd funding campaigns. To most people, they only seem to work if you have the right talent with enough social media reach to reach thousands of people. For most people trying to undertake a crowdfund on their own with limited resources and (to put it blunt) unknown actors, crowdfunding, from what we've seen, never lends itself to much more than family/friends chipping in a bit. Working with production companies on sourcing several films however we have to say IndieGoGo was always the preferred option.
Chiming in here –– successful crowdfunding is not so much contingent on having the right talent and a strong social media following (though the latter is beneficial for today's filmmakers) as it is running a campaign that is just as interesting as the film we're making. And that takes work –– and there are very few filmmakers who want to put in that work. It's easy to play the "limited resources" card, but as long as we have time and creativity, we can raise enough funds to push a film project forward with little to no trouble whatsoever. But you are right, it starts with friends and family, and having worked with $5,000 short student filmmakers to $5M+ blockbuster campaigns, that's a common denominator. The hard part is getting beyond that, but that's where the story of the film, your story as filmmaker, the incentives (perks/rewards), and yes, that social media following and genuinely building an audience for your film comes into play. Glad Indiegogo's the preferred option.
I have used both kickstarter and indiegogo for film projects, and met success every time. One thing that made me switch to indiegogo, was the fact I could use their 'in demand' option. If you hit your target goal on time, you can still accept donations, after your campaign official ends. One project got another 20%, after deadline!! Granted, I had a feeling we were asking for just little enough, to hit the goal easy, and go over. It paid off.
Just go ahead and use one, doesn't matter which, and if it fails use the other one next. There's really no rules that say you can only use one and then stick with it. I've used kickstarter several times but for the latest tried Indiegogo. Just go for it.
We tried Indiegogo a while ago to raise the last finishing funds for a rom com feature. We put a lot of work into it. The only people who responded to our 'campaign' were friends and family who probably would have made a contribution anyway - and we lost a percentage of each contribution.