Earlier this year, Jennifer Fox (2005 Film/Video grantee) raised over $150,000 on Kickstarter for her new film My Reincarnation, making hers one of the most successful film campaigns in Kickstarter’s history. Even more impressive is the fact that Jennifer achieved this level of success on her first foray into the world of online fundraising. She learned a lot through the process of this crash-course and offers her Top 10 Crowdfunding Tips:
1. Reach Out to Family and Friends
Unlike what many will tell you, I must say that for me family (and friends) are more about getting emotional support than money. It is very dicey to ask people you know and love to give you their hard earned funds. I had some friends tell me that they felt offended that I was emailing them about our campaign. Discussing this with them led to some very interesting insights about why I feel this is a democratic and legitimate way to support the arts. But I am not here to proselytize. I immediately backed off. In a way what they are saying is true: they don’t ask me to fund their passion, why should I ask them to fund mine? However, that’s not exactly how I see it: I believe that the film project, My Reincarnation, has a greater good for humanity and is a contribution to people’s lives. Hence, it must be seen and is worth funding.