Fan Funded Sucess!!! Dream made reality by You!

What does it look like to have a Fan Funded Film? In my case it would have not have happened without these 227 amazing Backers & Supporters. In 52 Days, this group rallied around our film 'Goodbye Promise' and helped us reach 108% Funding.

My sincerest gratitude to each of these believers. Each of you have impacted my life in a dramatic way. I am going to write more about this campaign soon. For now, I want to shine the light on these deserving 'Goodbye Promise' Contributors.

Gary King - http://grking.com/blog/
Paul Borgonia
Sheri Candler - http://www.shericandler.com/
Roger M. Richards - http://www.sarajevoroses.com/
Kiowa Winans & Jamin Winans - http://www.doubleedgefilms.com/
Greg Goldman
Andrea Shreeman - http://www.shree.tv
Len Cordova - http://www.LenCordova.com
Brian Durkin - http://www.takingthelastshot.blogspot.com/
Philip Calderone - http://manhatermovie.com/
Bill Houskeeper - http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2567223/
Janet Caliri - http://www.sightforsound.com/
Nick Murphy - http://www.pizzaandbullets.com
Ai Loon
Susan Williamson - http://www.threetuxedosfilms.com/
Mike Hedge - http://mikehedge.com/
Nathan Cole - http://www.thewaterholemovie.com/
Erika Benites - http://www.imdb.com/
Owen Thomas - http://www.owenthomas.org/
Melissa Darpino
Peter Bernhard Altmann
Sally Outlaw - www.peerbackers.com
Kevin Deen
Matt Anderson - www.filmforgestudios.com
Marcella Selbach - http://twitter.com/movieangel
Cassandra M. Bellantoni
Gia Milani
Chad Davis
Jeff Kinney - www.jjkinney.com
Thomas Corkran
Patrick Mosher
Joe Lessard
Todd Cattell
Phoebe Owens - http://superphoebe.com
Dina Bekerovich
Michele Simmons
Paul Barrett
Jenn Page
Mary Callahan
Elias Daughdrill - http://www.bit.ly/aVaCQ0
Paul J. Gitschner
Kieran Masterton - http://openindie.com/
Joseph F. Alexandre - http://www.indiegogo.com/Warriors-of-the-Discotheque-The-Starck-Club-Documentary
Ben Hicks - www.kidsgofreemovie.com
Alex Luster - http://shooteditsleep.com
Robert Babish - http://robertbabish.com/
Mark Stolaroff - http://www.nobudgetfilmschool.com/
Chuck Westfield - http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3658430/
Karen Zumsteg
Mike Merell - http://www.desertvows.com/
Adam Young
Ralph Greco aka RGreco2009 - http://twitter.com/RGreco2009
Joseph Williamson - http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2006513/
Johanna Park
D.R. Edmonds - http://twitter.com/DivineRight78
Suzy Noel Benfatto
Nic Baisley of FilmSnobbery - http://filmsnobbery.com/
Kaylee Turbeville - www.kayleeturbeville.blogspot.com
Michelle Saunders
Clark Arroyo - http://twitter.com/clarkarroyo
Giju John
Brian Erzen of Erzen Design
Dee Marie - http://www.sonsofavalon.com
Joe Gold - www.goldcapfilms.com
John Wayne Bosley of JB Movies - http://www.jbmovies.com/
Phil Seneker
Christian Collins
Ho Sau-on
Matthew Prater
Paul Collins - www.amertrust.com
Matt Gough
Julie Keck & Jessica King - http://kingisafink.com/
Margie Crain
John Paul Rice - http://www.NoRestrictionsEnt.com
Andie Redwine - www.paradiserecovered.com
Tom Vaughan
Tony Mouleart
Amy Hamilton
David Zaugh - www.zaughphotography.com
Sean Hackett
Arthur Vincie
Stacy Carolan
Brian Ronalds & Dean Matthew Ronalds aka Ronalds Brothers
Monika Persson
David ‘Choogie’ Morales
Stacey Ann Shevlin
Chris Cain McKalpain - http://twitter.com/kalpain
Dennis Peters
Craig Welzbacher
Nicole Snapp-Holloway - www.impeccabletastesokc.com
Joseph Primm - http://primmsplace.blogspot.com
Steve Nguyen - http://www.scnbenstein.com/
Christina Rose
Phil Holbrook - www.creativejinx.com
Juan Salazar
Gregory Bayne - www.thislovelymachine.com
Kathy Orrico
Aundrea Klines
Michael Palombo - http://fansoffilm.com
Angie Palmer - http://skyepublicrelations.com
Stuart and Susie Foote - http://writersblock-susie.blogspot.com/
Nickolas Potocic
Karla Salgado
Tom Gostomski - http://www.t2bcleaningservices.com/
Lara Ertl
Greg Phelan - www.gregphelan.com
4D4Films (Will & Valerie Wittstruck) - 4D4Films.com
Craig Ouellette - www.SOTMmovie.com
David Baker - http://www.missionx.co.uk/
Autumn Macdonald
Christopher Guckenberger
Jenna Edwards
Paula Ayala
Jayne Hickman
Altmann Family
Jerry Cavallaro - http://www.stucklikechucktoo.com/
Mark Chavez
Dennis Richardson - www.linkedin.com/in/dennisrichardson
Nick Carroll
Sal Vernali
Ernie Gonzalez
Linda Dailey
Ale Provenzano
Ryan Patterson - www.rpbodyworks.com
Bridget Stokes
Kim Garland - http://www.kgarland.com
Brendon Fogle
Marinell Montales - http://ventriloqui.posterous.com/
WORKING CLASS FILMS - www.workingclassfilms.com
Beverly Marshall
Veronica Shay
Kevin K. Shah - http://sabipictures.com/
Lizette Corral
John T. Trigonis - www.cerisemovie.com
Vincent Ly
Scott Mossman
Keith Palmer
Raffi Asdourian
Robert Hammond - http://cbdemille.com
John Keating - thejohnkeating.com
Celeste Nadauld - www.twitter.com/celestenadauld
Carrie Fisher-Pascual - www.planetzaya.com
Mario I. Erosa
Eme Ikwuakor
Jordan White - www.jordanallenmusic.com
S Lane Porter - www.snapthought.com
Saskia Wilson-Brown - http://www.saskiawilsonbrown.com
Michelle Cowell Roebuck
Andrew Bichler - www.infobitsystems.com
Carmen Perez - www.carmenperez.net
Darrell Womack - www.DarrellWomack.com
Lara Scheunemann
Anne Lundgren
Betty Navas - www.myspace.com/bettynavas
Marion Kerr - www.goldenearringsmovie.com
Lisa Vandever
Rob Wagner - www.westmont.edu
Ryan Koo
Jenmovies
Mike Pasley - http://www.steviewondershow.com/
Daniel Menahem - www.thewaterholemovie.com
Miguel
Sarah Hanley-Butler - http://www.twitter.com/SarahHanleyB
Fiona Horrigan - www.fionahorrigan.com
Ryan Falcheck - http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3131365/
Longlost Pictures - http://www.longlostpictures.com/
Danny Lacey - www.dannylaceyfilm.co.uk
André Hedetoft - http://www.andrehedetoft.com
Jake Stetler - http://nosanctuarymovie.com/
Lance Conatser
Spring Productions (Jonathan Lieberman) - http://www.springproductions.com/
Nora Zerillo
Wally Marzano-Lesnevich - www.worldofwally.com
Bill Elverman
Ryan Wehner - http://www.steviewondershow.com/
Alain Aguilar
Anne Renton - http://www.theperfectfamilymovie.com
Kevin Riepl
Sherry "Cosmo" Cummings - http://twitter.com/cosmosherry
Jeff Burke
Devin Watson
Hugh Guiney - http://www.nospoon.tv
Emily Millay Haddad - http://www.circlesoffireproductions.com
John T. Woods - www.johntwoods.com
Michael John Schofield
Susan Schofield - http://www.latalkradio.com/Bipolar.php
Andretti Dante - www.indiegogo.com/book-of-1000-deaths
VK Shah
Dolly Moloney
Kevin Kilkenny
Schneider
Hans Burnett
Jennifer Lynn O'Hara - www.jenniferlynnjacobs.com
Frantz Durand
Sally Miller Outlaw - www.peerbackers.com
Larry Wilson - http://www.twitter.com/bergnj
Joshua Zain - http://www.facebook.com/pages/Joshua-Zain/327937907224
Mandy Hubert - http://twitter.com/machubert
Michael Rodriguez
Marcia B
Carlos Kuttler
Greg Stitt - http://www.gregstitt.com/
Jennifer Haldane - www.JenniferHaldane.CAbionline.com
The Madman - the.madmanproject.com
Christopher James Lum - http://warholiansuperstar.com/
Eric Damon Walters
Rikki Sisneros
Denise Aldelia Ward
Tod Lancaster - facebook.com/shootingapril
Valerian Zamel
Sean Gillane - www.seangillane.com
Carly Eckerle Beebe - http://twitter.com/carlyoof
Miles Maker - http://twitter.com/milesmaker
FilmSchoolDatabase.com - www.filmschooldatabase.com
Zak Forsman - http://sabipictures.com/
Neil Raymond
Todd Terwilliger
Lorie Marsh
Sam Wieland - www.myspace.com/bentelbowproductions
Kimberly Campbell
Mark Lund - http://www.marklundtv.com
Tony Riccio - http://eliteadventuretours.com
Susana Ribeirao-Marczak
Jason Gladstone
Davan Holt
Daniel Sol - http://www.HollyShorts.com
Jonas Studer - http://www.steviewondershow.com/
Richard Cardona - www.FilmmakerinLA.com
David Ratonyi
Amit
Cheryl Petty - http://www.twitter.com/cherpetty

THE KICKSTARTER EFFECT by Gary King

I am not the only one in the throes of a Kickstarter Campaign. Close friend and super supportive Filmmaker Gary King (this week's guest 4/4/10 on Film Courage) has impressively raised over $16,000 (out of $30,000) with 17 days to go for his next film How Do You Write a Joe Schermann Song. Gary was kind enough to pass on this article that he wrote one month ago about Kickstarter. He is someone I admire, he is as tenacious as anyone I know in the world of filmmaking and he was the first person to get behind my campaign for Goodbye Promise. I am privileged to share with you this guest blog by Gary King.

THE KICKSTARTER EFFECT (originally posted at multi-hyphenate on Feb 25th, 2010)

by Gary King. Follow me on Twitter.

Have you made -- or ever wanted to make a feature film? How far did you (or would you) go in order to get it done?

One of the most common questions I get asked is how did I finance my feature films NEW YORK LATELY and WHAT'S UP LOVELY. While there is not one true approach, the answer always makes me reflect on how crazy I possibly am in being a filmmaker.

Would you be willing to quit your well-paying corporate day job and move to New York City? Would you be willing to cash out your 401K to finance your first feature film? Would you be willing to spend over an entire year (or longer) seeing a project through from start to finish? If your answer is "yes" to those questions, then put on this straight jacket my friend and please join me in my padded cell.

Unfortunately for most of us, we are not lucky enough to self-finance every single film project (nor would some want to). So in order to make the films we want, we must seek financing from an outside source. In today's climate, even major studios are having trouble funding pictures unless the project is an established franchise or already has a built-in audience. They take safer risks, whereas we indie filmmakers are still the true risk takers. But where does that leave us if we know that our film fits into more of a niche and is not intended for the masses at the cineplex? Thankfully filmmakers like this are still getting movies made and it's inspiring to see. How are they managing to do it? The answer is crowdfunding.

Crowd-whata-who? That's the response I usually get from people who are not familiar with the term.

According to Wikipedia:

"Crowdfunding describes the collective cooperation, attention and trust by people who network and pool their money together, usually via the Internet, in order to support efforts initiated by other people or organizations."

So basically we've seen this in action already for various causes (typically political or humanitarian campaigns) -- but never has it been so popular with the indie film community until recently.

Right now, there are two prevalent services (IndieGoGo and Kickstarter) that assist filmmakers with crowdfunding. Both lead to the same question people ask over and over again (including myself): which one?

IndieGoGo and Kickstarter have the same intentions, but just different executions. I suggest researching both to see which fits your needs. But my initial response is "why not both?" In fact, I plan to use both sites eventually.

However, for my indie film musical HOW DO YOU WRITE A JOE SCHERMANN SONG I chose Kickstarter for two main reasons. The first is what has been coined the "Kickstarter Effect" where the implemented deadline gives a sense of urgency around the project and utilizes game theory to create an almost gambling atmosphere for people to generate interest and ideally financial contributions. And secondly the basic layout of the website design gave me more flexibility in terms of how I wanted to present the information about the film.

"SCHERMANN SONG" centers around the theater and Broadway realm of New York City. It deals with the struggle of artistic integrity vs. doing what others want you do to in order to be successful and examines how careers can affect personal relationships through unspoken competition. And the fun part is the song and dance numbers will be a mixture of both reality and fantasy sequences.

Now thankfully, the budget I'm trying to raise is nowhere close to what a full-fledged union cast/crew production would entail as that would be hundreds of thousands if not millions of dollars needed depending on its scope. So for all intents and purposes, most people using the sites are dealing with micro-budgets (a casual search found the largest campaign around $50K).
But what crowdfunding does is take the investor equation out of making films. One no longer has to worry about the return-on-investment or making money back to recoup costs. Although I'm sure the majority of filmmakers do want to turn a profit with their film, it is not a looming cloud above their heads. In fact, crowdfunding is more attune to a PBS pldege drive where "thank you" gifts are offered in return for the donation -- in a sense the person contributing to the project is pre-ordering certain goods that will be ready when the film is completed.
This platform frees up the filmmaker to really make the film he or she wants - and to know there is audience demand for it. It is actually a mind-blowing concept and liberating to know that you can get a film made this way. Even if the crowdfunding concept was around for a while, these sites have polished the system and has given legitimacy to it. Projects are getting funded every day.

The most challenging part comes once you have chosen which site to use: the fundraising campaign. I can only write about my experience thus far as I have approximately two more months to hopefully raise the full amount needed ($30K) to make HOW DO YOU WRITE A JOE SCHERMANN SONG. I plan on returning (if Tyler wants me back) to contribute an update on the campaign with any learning lessons to share mid-way through. So it seems that this is just a prologue to this topic in which there will be an epilogue later down the road.

The outcome is yet to be determined, but I really believe in this project for various reasons. The first being my complete adoration for the genre. I think it will be very interesting to explore the hybrid of intimate storytelling within the musical realm. And second, these types are films are rarely made at the indie level and people are hungry for them. We just have to find our audience which is part of the campaign's goal. And we're doing it -- so far so good.