Richard Ragon Posted March 14, 2013 Report Share Posted March 14, 2013 I think this one will go down as 'the first major motion picture to be funded via kickstarter'. http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/559914737/the-veronica-mars-movie-project?ref=home_popular 2.5M and climbing now.. -Richard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackHenry Posted March 14, 2013 Report Share Posted March 14, 2013 I wonder how much 'authentication' goes into a kickstarter project? Do the applicants need to prove they are doing what they say they're doing? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geordi Posted March 14, 2013 Report Share Posted March 14, 2013 This could go well... Or it could be a giant Subway Tuna for the crew while all the 'seed money' gets kept above the line and in the actor's pocket. I'm cautiously optimistic. Very cautious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Aitken Posted March 14, 2013 Report Share Posted March 14, 2013 10 grand for one line in a movie...wowza! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Ragon Posted March 14, 2013 Author Report Share Posted March 14, 2013 One downfall as far as kickstarter is concerned.. There's no guarantee that anything will be done with the money. Also.. the producers can totally mis-manage the cash, just like any other film. I've received crew calls, on kickstarter projects, where they were asking for ALL crew for free, after raising a fair amount. During the phone interview, I ask, "wait, didn't you raise cash on kickstarter to properly pay cast and crew??" One plus for kickstarter is that the goal must be reached before funding from people. This gives a crowd source, green light.. -Richard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
studiomprd Posted March 14, 2013 Report Share Posted March 14, 2013 Q: " didn't you raise cash on kickstarter to properly pay cast and crew??" " A: no, that $$ was for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hugh Holesome Posted March 14, 2013 Report Share Posted March 14, 2013 I would think the poorest financial decision was to rent out a theater in each backers home town for a $5,000 pledge. That would have to eat up a fair amount of the cash. Pledge $5,000 or more 5 backers All gone! At this price point, we will rent out a theater in your home town — or a town near you — and have a screening for up to 50 guests. With apparently rabid fans out there it looks like they could have asked on Facebook for people to rent out their local theater for them and it would have happened! Good for them I guess, I know nothing about the show. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Blankenship Posted March 14, 2013 Report Share Posted March 14, 2013 Keep in mind that the "rent out a local theater" part has more value than just a payback to donors. It's also a marketing tool. Fifty people -- presumably heavy duty fans -- in each such market, will help word about the film. Pretty sharp idea, actually, as they likely have the donor who can become a further asset to help them find a proper venue and spread the world. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RPSharman Posted March 14, 2013 Report Share Posted March 14, 2013 Except the fact that there are very few "local theaters" any longer. Try to rent a Regal Cinema theater for a private event and see what that costs. I'd bet it's high. But I am full of misinformation lately. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alexander Burstein Posted March 14, 2013 Report Share Posted March 14, 2013 If I were an investor wouldn't the idea of crowd funding be scary? All of the money that the movie makes goes to...the producers and cast? Warner Bros. has offered to pay for the marketing and will likely make their money back and then some, but essentially isn't the position 'executive producer' eliminated? At least in this case? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
studiomprd Posted March 14, 2013 Report Share Posted March 14, 2013 " All of the money that the movie makes goes to...the producers and cast? " at least in this specific case, the crowd funders are not investors, and get no ownership for their contributions beyond the swag offered. at best they are sponsors.. (as in: "brought to you by..." I suppose they will get mentioned in the credits, as part of their SWAG " essentially isn't the position 'executive producer' eliminated? " singular ?? heavens no, there will be the usual credits (and paychecks) for numerous executive producers (plural) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrouchingTigerHiddenLav Posted March 14, 2013 Report Share Posted March 14, 2013 hmm.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alexander Burstein Posted March 14, 2013 Report Share Posted March 14, 2013 " All of the money that the movie makes goes to...the producers and cast? " at least in this specific case, the crowd funders are not investors, and get no ownership for their contributions beyond the swag offered. at best they are sponsors.. (as in: "brought to you by..." I suppose they will get mentioned in the credits, as part of their SWAG " essentially isn't the position 'executive producer' eliminated? " singular ?? heavens no, there will be the usual credits (and paychecks) for numerous executive producers (plural) That's my point. They're filling the position of the executive producer (not necessarily singular) without the return on investment. I'm not suggesting that they do make a return on their investment, but the money that would normally go to these people with the success of a movie is now spread out between fewer individuals. Meaning larger paychecks for others? Are you sure there will be other executive producers? It seems as though this fundraising campaign looks to be the majority if not all the cash put in. Besides what Warner Bros. has promised. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Ragon Posted March 14, 2013 Author Report Share Posted March 14, 2013 3M and counting as of this post.. crazy, but kind of kewl. I venture to even wounder what Amazon's cut is going to be here. Major payday for them. -Richard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Blankenship Posted March 15, 2013 Report Share Posted March 15, 2013 Except the fact that there are very few "local theaters" any longer. Try to rent a Regal Cinema theater for a private event and see what that costs. I'd bet it's high. But I am full of misinformation lately. That may be true in LA, but in many parts of the country there are numerous second-run, and alternative, cinema venues -- often available for rent, especially during off-peak times, for reasonable rates. Many of these are former first run houses that have been usurped by maxi-multiplexes and enjoy a second life serving true film lovers. In my neck of the woods, even some of the bigger first-run venues can be rented reasonably during off-peak times. Several of them are "independent film friendly" and like to host screenings by area talent during times that won't negatively impact their bottom line. Perhaps LA is not so independent friendly, but Indianapolis is, and I'm guessing many other areas of the country are also. Screening rates I've heard quoted include: Free, $50, $200, $500, and Ridiculous. I don't recommend "Ridiculous. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RPSharman Posted March 15, 2013 Report Share Posted March 15, 2013 I doubt Amazon will even notice their commission. Tiny drop. Massive bucket. But Kickstarter will notice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harris K Posted March 15, 2013 Report Share Posted March 15, 2013 Amazon and kickstartr combined take about a 9% commission between them, so it'll be a hair. Significant part of the budget. I'm a bit confused why there seems to be an air of weariness towards this. This was a network show being funded by a hungry fan base, run by pedigrees producers. This will be a union show, with mainstream talent and above the line. The budget probably won't exceed 6m, but will a built in fan base i'd reckon a decent distribution. This strikes as actual market growth, instead of the devaluing usually produced from these services. But maybe I'm being naive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angelo Waldron Posted March 15, 2013 Report Share Posted March 15, 2013 I work at one of the Ridiculous screening rooms.. 50 seats. How much does a HDCAMSR cost to rent per day if you went out and made the deal yourself, went and picked it up? It's about $900 a day. So a 4 hour time slot to run you feature movie is gonna be about $2000. Operator included. We are indie friendly.... We call it ridiculous because it works ridiculously reliably. Good luck with your bluray for $500. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfisk Posted March 15, 2013 Report Share Posted March 15, 2013 Lots of indie movies have been funded through Kickstarter. There was a brief time that people who created kickstarter accounts were ripping people off, but I haven't heard of that recently. If you are weary of it, don't contribute to the project. I would be more likely to contribute to an indie short being made by people I know rather than something like this, but that's just me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philip Perkins Posted March 15, 2013 Report Share Posted March 15, 2013 I've done at least two post audio jobs that were at least partially KS funded. A dollar is a dollar, and fundraising for indie films of all types is harder than ever now. philp Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
studiomprd Posted March 15, 2013 Report Share Posted March 15, 2013 " This will be a union show, " SAG = yes DGA = ? maybe IATSE = ?? ?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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