• READ BEFORE POSTING!
    • If posting a video, please post HERE, unless it is a video as part of an advertisement and then post it in this section.
    • If replying to threads please remember this is the Promotion area and the person posting may not be open to feedback.

campaign Help our short horror film come to life - crowdfunding

A couple'a drive-by thoughts, off the top of my head (which may have larger points for anyone considering a crowdfunding campaign):

It is usually not as effective as creators hope to post crowdfunding campaigns in movie-making forums. We are not your audience; we are your colleagues, and in some cases your competitors. We're all trying to make movies with insufficient resources (whatever your level, there's never enough time and there's never enough money); if we have money, we're more likely to spend it on our own projects than yours.

It is more effective to post your campaign where your audience hangs out. They are the very people who (you hope) will want to see your movie, and thus more likely to support it. Your movie seems to be at a junction between horror / societal issue / faith-based. The first is a solid hook; the latter two are hard sells to a mainstream audience, but can find an audience among sympathizers / believers.

The overwhelming majority (depending on who you ask, between two-thirds and 90 percent) of crowdfunding donations do not come from strangers, but from your extended network: the people you know, and the people they know. Get all your friends and collaborators to promote your campaign to their circles!

You also make some claims that I suggest are not as accurate as you might wish, eg. "the Moroccan hammam is widely recognized as a global ritual". I don't think that is the case; I suggest that most of the world is largely unaware of Moroccan culture and has never heard of this ritual ("hammam" is not a widely-recognized word in the English-speaking world, and where it is known it most commonly means a steam bath, not a religious ritual). That's by no means fatal, but it is a creative and marketing challenge: you must introduce the audience to the culture and ritual. (Of course, this does not apply if you're making this movie for your fellow Moroccans, who will know this stuff.)

In your budget breakdown, I see no allocations for promotion and distribution. You don't mention these subjects at all. How will you place this movie before an audience? You won't make money with a short movie, but you might garner some exposure and awards at film festivals, and raise awareness of the issues your movie addresses (one of your stated goals). It's always a stronger pitch if the creators seem to have given some thought to what happens after the movie is made.

I see that you are almost halfway to your fundraising goal. Congratulations! That already puts you ahead of most crowdfunding campaigns. You can expect a slump in donations now, but don't lose heart; most crowdfunding donations come in on the first and last weeks of the campaign. Keep promoting the campaign everywhere you can (without annoying people with spam -- a delicate balance!). And post regular updates to the campaign, so the project looks like it's progressing and hasn't just posted and abandoned the campaign. Make us feel like Inside People getting the inside track on this project.

Break a leg with the project!
 
Back
Top