
Explore what crowdfunding is, who can back a film project, and practical tips on platform choice, campaign length, launch timing, and target goals to fund indie films.
Launch your crowdfunding campaign on Tuesday at 11 a.m. to capitalize on the first week. Avoid Monday and weekends, and tailor timing to your audience.
Set target between five and twenty five thousand for a campaign, choosing the lowest amount that excites you and is realistic to raise from your network, three times your estimate.
Start on a Tuesday, run 30 days, and finish on a Friday to maximize funding. The first and last five days drive most funding, while the middle plateau creates urgency.
Compare Kickstarter's all-or-nothing funding with Indiegogo's flexible options, highlighting how urgency and backer trust influence success rates. Explore Seed & Spark, Greenlit, and soft-launch strategies for pre-funding.
Do thorough research early to boost success, as joining Kickstarter years before launch raises success rate; explore campaigns on Kickstarter and Indiegogo, observe outcomes, and engage by supporting campaigns.
Understand indie film crowdfunding metrics—50-dollar average backer, 5% conversion rate, and 4,000 page visits for a 10k goal—plus a three-element outreach strategy to reach a mass audience who know you.
Explore why people back film crowdfunding campaigns by connecting with creators, influencers, or the people behind the project, and learn to craft engaging pitches that highlight those connections.
Launch your crowdfunding with a real personal campaign story that explains why you want to make the film and why you are the right filmmaker.
Engage supporters with personalized outreach through emails, private messages, phone calls, and in-person meetings to maximize donations. Avoid spam and generic posts; build direct, human connections that win support.
Identify your target audience—cold, warm, and hot—focusing on people who know you to maximize backers and design rewards that appeal to supporters.
Identify the right audience by focusing on hot backers who know you, and offer rewards that appeal to backing the creator, backing the topic, or a day on set.
Scale your indie film crowdfunding by building a core team of filmmakers, cast and crew, and personal contacts to expand reach and backers.
Are you looking for funding for your next film project?
When I first started out as film producer I was completely lost as to where I can find funding for short films and micro budget features. I'd apply for every grant, investor scheme and screenplay competition I could find and I would never hear back so I decided to take matters into my own hands and green light my own project through crowdfunding.
But it's not that easy... if you've ever tried crowdfunding you know. Where do I find hundreds of backers and thousands of pounds from? Who would give money to my campaign except for maybe immediate friends and family? What steps do I need to take to make the campaign A SUCCESS?
I want to show you exactly how I funded multiple film projects through crowdfunding, one of which was a short film that raised over £30,000.
In this intensive course I will walk you through the essential steps that you will need to take to have a successful campaign. This is suitable for anyone who is considering launching a campaign, in the middle of a campaign that's not going as planned, or simply for people who want to learn more about the process.
TESTIMONIALS:
'I was unsure about crowdfunding my next short documentary but the webinar filled me with ideas and knowledge to move it forward with confidence.'
'I liked the balance of information from a statistical platform as well as personal experience. The course didn't shy away from the difficulty of the task.'
'It was super informative, much more so than all of the crowdfunding seminars I’ve previously attended at film festivals...'
'Highly informative, very thorough, and ultimately - extremely useful. ZB presents with simplicity and clarity and is easy to follow, both in his speech and slides.'
ABOUT ME:
ZB SIWEK is a film producer at Thunderhawk Pictures and the founder of Cine Circle. He has personally raised over £50,000 for his own crowdfunding campaigns including "The Power of One Coin" which won multiple international festival awards and received countless nominations as well as the action sci-fi short film "The Verge". He currently works as a crowdfunding coach and digital marketing specialist. He also helped filmmakers raise thousands through fundraising events, and pitching competitions.