Review campaigns for Double or Nothing, Horimono, and Women Who Ride

As you review these successful crowdfunding campaigns, consider their pitch video, their updates, their stories, their perks, their images, etc... What wheels are turning? What/how did they build that helped them to reach their funding goal? What did you learn that you can use in your own campaign? 

This is where I start to get overwhelmed and uncomfortable. I hate the idea of having to force my creative work into a neat little package to ask for money. And I hate promoting myself, especially on social media and the internet. It makes me cringe. Sadly, it’s a necessary evil of being an independent filmmaker. As with other assignments, it reinforces the importance of having a really good producer, so they can do all these undesirable tasks. These campaigns emphasize the need for promotional material like a trailer and interviews with crew members. Also, it gives me the idea that I could also have my centenarian participants record a spot to use in promotions like Scott Johnson did, which would increase the networking and reach of the campaign. Other items to consider are which perks to offer, including the creation of swag (shirts, etc.) that can be used to entice and reward patrons. I would think interesting, novelty swag might be enticing, but also it would be wise to limit swag that costs the campaign money, and instead opt for rewards like shout outs, producer credits, production updates, etc. I also noticed that “Double or Nothing” stated that their film was 75% finished, so I wonder if it  matters which stage a filmmaker should do a campaign. Is it more beneficial to do it at the beginning, middle, or end? Does saying that you’ve done most of the film already make your project more legitimate vs. a project that says “help us get this started”?

Chap 9 Budget & Contract, “A (Revised!) Introduction to Documentary Budgeting”

Documentary - Rosenthal, Chap 9 Budget & Contract, “A (Revised!) Introduction to Documentary Budgeting”

Yikes! So much information that my creative brain is hurting. Even though most of this is boring and business-y, it is super important to know. One of the things that got my attention was the “Triangle of Quality”: “Fast, cheap or good—pick two!” It’s so simple, but it makes total sense. I also liked that both readings suggested making an ideal budget, or a high scenario, that includes “full professional rates and will be the budget that you’ll submit to potential funders,” then two other budgets, mid and low scenarios for yourself, each with increasing compromises and sacrifices and thus, decreasing grand totals. I also appreciated the detailed line items in each reading, which makes the whole process more do-able. Very insightful readings, however, two things I want to find out more about are how to efficiently include “assumptions” and “profit margins” both as a student (lol-that’d be nice) and as a professional filmmaker.

Chap 5: Research, Chapter 6: Shaping Your Film What wheels were turning? What was most useful for your project?

 For me, research can be a double-edged sword because it can serve as inspiration, but it can also send me down a rabbit hole that prevents me from taking the next step. I often get so obsessed with the topic and finding the next great resource. I’ve found that this is usually just part of my process. I have to become saturated with information to the point of becoming overwhelmed, take a couple of days away from it so I can process it, then dive back in with synthesizing it. The section on interviews was also of interest because I’m concerned about how to approach certain possible topics with centenarians I meet, such as their thoughts on aging and death, race relations, or family issues.

Ch 3,4,17 What wheels were turning? What was most useful for your project?

Documentary - Rosenthal, Chaps 3,4,17

After reading how precise and involved the proposal must be, it was reassuring that the ball can get rolling with just a short email or letter. Although, I suppose since it's brief, it's important that it be creatively and cleverly written to intrigue the reader at the tv station, etc. And obviously you must already have a very clear idea of what you want your project to be. The Limitations section was also thought-provoking, specifically cost limitations because I realize I have minimal knowledge of what the cost of shooting a doc would be. In chapter 17, I loved the phrase that a documentary filmmaker is “the person who opens secret doors”….”about people and their secrets; their secret lives, their secret passions.” It just resonated about how special the task is. I also realize how important it is to have quality action-filled footage beyond interviews.