Detailed view of CrowdFunding

Crowdfunding, a recently popularized activity is the practice of providing monetary support to any business or enterprise by raising funds from large sections of people. It is an alternative form of financing depending mainly on the general crowd. Crowdfunding has been around for quite some time and it owes its present spot in the limelight to the internet and the widespread connectivity it provides. In recent years, new business ventures, art projects, travelling, community development work have come to depend on crowd funding as a source of their financial stability.

There are two primary types of crowd funding:

1. Rewards crowdfunding- mainly used for small ventures, the entrepreneurs pledge their services or products to the supporters in exchange for financial backing. The incentives thus provided in order to pull in monetary support give the name rewards crowdfunding.
2. Equity crowdfunding- a large group of investors agree to fund a particular venture in exchange for some equity (like shares, bonds, etc).

Short filmmakers stand to benefit a lot from crowdfunding as a majority of their expenditure on their art will be taken care of by their audience/fan base. They fall mainly under the rewards crowdfunding type where rewards are claimed by the investors in exchange for contributing towards the funds.

The process of crowd funding looks somewhat similar to this:

1. A business makes a public announcement of the project up for crowdfunding.
2. They, especially short filmmakers, then release teasers regarding their project to get potential investors interested in their product and pull in more funds.
3. The project is then publicized by various means of media.
4. In return for backing the venture, the investors get certain rewards, such as special mentions in the credits, a download of the film before its official release, etc.
5. On garnering a large enough fan base through extensive campaigning, the filmmakers then release their projects.

Though this seems like a very easy method of making money to support their projects, the filmmakers have to actually put in a lot of their time and effort into making their product attractive to not just their already existing supporters, but to also make it impressive enough to convince strangers to contribute towards the funding.

1. The main benefit of crowdfunding lies in the plain truth that the filmmakers need not look for loans from banks which could turn out to be quite a heavy burden on them later.
2. By running a successful crowdfunding campaign, the filmmakers have already created a solid and supportive fan base who eagerly await the release of the films.
3. It cuts down a lot of entrepreneurial risks such as giving up equity before even taking the product to the consumers i.e other than the promised tangible rewards, the filmmakers needn’t worry about selling their bonds or shares and going bankrupt in case the film does not receive a great response.
4. Not only does crowdfunding pull in the funds for the venture, it also doubles as a marketing and publicity tool. The film gets a lot of publicity through crowdfunding creating a greater interest in people before its release.
5. Crowdfunding, when it comes to shortfilms, isn’t just all bark and no bite. It gives proof that the person behind the idea, means business, that they actually do have a concept that they’re serious about and are willing to execute it. This establishes a sense of faith in the fandom, thus bridging the gap between the creator and viewer.
6. Last but not the least, it encourages innovative thought and provides a probable path for execution of the idea without the burden of funding weighing the creator down. Thus, crowdfunding establishes a creative school of thought in the filmmaking society, giving rise to newer and fresher perspectives.

All in all, crowdfunding is a boon to be utilized wisely by ventures failing which they could suffer major losses. Filmmakers stand to gain a lot out of crowdfunding if they have a good concept, are willing to see the project till the end and pull off a successful campaign.

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