We missed this announcement earlier this month, but there’s always time to appreciate such overwhelming support for independent film on the part of the strongest part of this community: the fans! The milestone of $100,000,000 in pledge dollars for over 8,000 indie film projects just goes to show that, despite the naysayers, this industry is going strong.

An excerpt from Kickstarter blog:

Kickstarter’s impact on film

In Hollywood, $100 million might be the marketing budget for a single blockbuster, but independent filmmakers are more resourceful. This $100 million helped to create more than 8,000 films, many of which have gone on to great acclaim and success.

• At least 86 Kickstarter-funded films have been released theatrically, screening in more than 1,500 North American theaters according to Rentrak. Another 14 films have theatrical premieres slated for 2013.
• According to Rotten Tomatoes, three of the 20 best-reviewed films of 2012 are Kickstarter-funded (The Waiting Room, Brooklyn Castle, and Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry). Another Kickstarter-funded film, Pariah, was among the best-reviewed of 2011.
• Two films have been nominated for Oscars in the past two years: Sun Come Up and Incident in New Baghdad. A third, Barber of Birmingham, launched a project after being Oscar-nominated. Three documentary features and two documentary shorts are currently shortlisted for Oscar nominations in 2013: The Waiting Room, Detropia, Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry, Inocente, and Kings Point.
• Kickstarter-funded films comprised 10% of Sundance’s slate in 2012 and 2013. In total, 49 Kickstarter-funded films have been official selections at the prestigious festival.
• Kickstarter-funded films comprised 10% of the 2012 slates at the SXSW Film Festival andTribeca Film Festival. In total, 57 Kickstarter-funded films have premiered at SXSW and 21 at Tribeca.
• At least 16 Kickstarter-funded films have been picked up for national broadcast through HBO, PBS, Showtime, and other networks.
• Kickstarter-funded films have won at least 21 awards at the Sundance, SXSW, Tribeca, Cannes, and Berlinale festivals.
• Eight Kickstarter-funded films are nominated for Independent Spirit Awards this year.

This would be a very impressive track record for an established studio or production company. To see these results come from outside the system in such a short time is even more inspiring. Filmmakers and audiences have come together on Kickstarter to make the movies they want to see while protecting the filmmaker’s vision for their work.

The full article can be found here.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, January 23rd, 2013 at 9:19 pm and is filed under Daily News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.