Output details

Crowdfunding

Brief Description

Crowdfunding first went public in 2008, when it was first made public by being launched on the internet. Film-maker Franny Armstrong who, over several years, raised £1.5m through the web for her 2009 film about climate change, The Age of Stupid, is the acknowledged pioneer of crowdfunding.

Research Rationale

Crowdfunding works by selling something directly to the public. Using crowdfunding a producer can pre-sell credits in the film or other goods and services in an effort to pre-finance the production. As well as raising funds it served to emphasise the collective and participatory nature of the film project, involving others emotionally and politically as investors rather than just donators (affinity marketing). Spanner Films have published a ‘how to’ guide. After the success of Age of Stupid's funding strategy, crowd-funding has become an international phenomena: there are approximately 100 website platforms dedicated to crowdfunding. The most well-known of which, Kickstarter, helps raise funds for around 10,000 creative projects each year.

Strategies Undertaken

To invest in The Age of Stupid cost £500 in the pre-production phase and the investor receives 0.05% of the profits once a year for 10 years. In the post-production and distribution phase the investment cost £5000 and £10,000 while still receiving 0.05% of the profit. Armstrong raised over £800,000 from 300 investors for the Age of Stupid, starring Pete Postlethwaite and featuring Kofi Annan, Gillian Anderson & Radiohead's Thom Yorke. At its global premiere in New York, a million people watched the film in 700 cinemas in 63 countries, linked by satellite. Armstrong went on to develop Indie Screenings a method of online distribution which allows the filmmaker to they retain the majority of revenue from the sale of licences and individuals watching their film.