Filmmaker's Dream Blog

Kickstarter is a great website that lets you pitch your idea for anything to gain funding for your project. Kickstarter is also partnered with Amazon and allows you to set up your business account through Amazon to receive any money you gain through your Kickstarter campaign.
Website Review

• User Friendly: Kickstarter is a very user-friendly website and isn't too complicated to use. The layout is very simple, yet keeps you interested in the site. 
• Features: Kickstarter includes your own mail inbox for messages from contributors or other people. You're able to gain inspiration from other projects from the discover feature. A help page and a blog is provided on the top corner of the website to give you any resources or answer question you may have regarding Kickstarter.
• Recognition: Kickstarter has been featured through CNN, TIME, BBC, and Wired.
• Socio-Cultural: Kickstarter has a social network feel to it even though the platform is for funding. The website allows you to connect with so many different types of people and helps you build a fan base. (Malik, 2011)

Process

• During the process of gaining funding from Kickstarter you must have your idea formed and ready to show. The best way of getting your idea understood is by making a video of yourself to give your audience something to connect to. Promote your kickstarter campaign on your blog, Facebook, Twitter, etc. Set a goal for when you need the funding for your project as well as how much you want to achieve. You will also need to come up with some type of rewards for your contributors so they receive some sort of incentive for donating money to your project. The rewards can be big or small, but you will need at least 1 or 2 for the people who decide to help you out. 

Success

• Many people have gained a lot of success and funding from Kickstarter. Over millions of dollars have been donated to thousands of projects pitched. A new hit web-series, 'Awkward Black Girl' received over $60,000 from their funding campaign. 

Pros & Cons

• Pros: Kickstarter is one of the easiest ways to reach multiple people and pitch your idea. The amount you can receive is unlimited, all it takes is a great idea that encourages people to want to help donate. If you exceed your funding goal, you can still receive any extra money given. 
• Cons: If you don't reach your funding goal by the deadline, even if its $1 short, you don't receive any of the money that was donated. All the money donated will be turned over once the entire campaign deadline is reached.

Competitors

• A similar website to Kickstarter is Indiegogo. Indiegogo is the largest funding platform website. Indiegogo allows you to keep all of the money that you raise even if you don't meet your funding goal, but with a higher percentage cut. If you reach your goal, you must pay Indiegogo 4%. If you don't reach your goal, you have to pay 9% to Indiegogo. Indiegogo is used by over millions of people all over the world and considered to be a very successful website. The site is extremely similar to Kickstarter, but with a few minor changes. Check out Indiegogo here: Indiegogo

Start your campaign for your wonderful projects today! Don't let money become an issue, because if there's a will, there's a way. Visit www.kickstarter.com or www.indiegogo.com

References:
Malik, O. (2011, May 25). [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://gigaom.com/2011/05/25/why-kickstarter-works/

How would you like to publish or distribute your own film/web series/tv show?
Times have changed so much when it comes to getting yourself out there. Filmmakers are almost able to create anything, from 3D movies to getting their film shown all over the world. Did you know that now you can self distribute your own films? A great website to check out is CreateSpace. It's a publishing/distribution website that's owned by Amazon which allows you to distribute your films on Amazon. How awesome would it be to allow others to purchase your film and receive it as a DVD or Video on Demand? While viewing the website they've got everything from publishing books, music, and film, so there's more than one form of media to get out there. With CreateSpace you can be sure to keep track of your inventory with the option of being able to stream your own video. The greatest thing is that so many people use Amazon and that only leads to more exposure for you. Marketing your film can be tough, but CreateSpace also has a full resource center which provides excellent tips on how to market your film and get it out to the right audience. The cost for setting up your online account is completely free! Sure, you could use YouTube or Vimeo, but this is allowing for you to make money off of what you create without having to lift a finger. The CreateSpace Disc on Demand feature reduces the risk of delay in inventory and spikes in demand or product shortfall. The Disc on Demand feature also allows you to get your films out in the market before hitting other retailers. There are some excellent tv shows and films that don't get a chance to make it out on DVD because of the cost for DVD authoring and copies. CreateSpace reduces those costs and makes it affordable for you so that you can get your work seen and out there. If you list your work in their online catalog, it can increase greater availability to future customers. Last, but not least one of the greatest features CreateSpace has to offer is the ability to forecast sales and the likelihood of how much you'll need to spend according to your audience. CreateSpace is an excellent website to use if you're really serious about distributing your own film, tv show, etc. Visit www.createspace.com
References: CreateSpace. (n.d.). Createspace: Self publishing for books, music, film.. Retrieved from https://www.createspace.com/Special/Enterprise/Studio/index.jsp