23 Jun CROWDFUNDING A CHINESE FILM
Why not consider crowdfunding your next China project?
What is crowdfunding? It’s the process of funding a venture or project by raising small amounts of money. This comes from a large number of people. This is typically done via the internet.
The article Entertainment Finance: Where Will the Money Come From? highlights several key points. Bennett Pozil, Executive Vice President and Head of Corporate Banking at East West Bank this: “There’s a huge change that’s going on from our traditional models to non-traditional models of entertainment finance.”
Additionally, Mr. Pozil said that crowdfunding assists low-budget films, new filmmakers, and independent productions to enter the mainstream.
Furthermore, Mr. Pozil added content is no longer limited to theatrical releases. The industry is now looking at streaming companies. Mr. Pozil pointed out that China’s capital outflows remain uncertain.
Moreover, the article China’s Booming Equity Crowdfunding Industry: What Happened In The Past Year? offered key insights. Huang Xiangping, the former chairperson of the Securities Association of China, echoed this. He says it’s the most effective way to solve the problems of financing difficulties for small and micro-businesses.
Crowdfunding Differences
The article highlighted the differences with this chart.
Crowdfunding: The Future Looks Bright
The Rise of China’s Crowdfunding Potential reported that China is estimated to generate 52 percent of the global total in crowdfunding by 2025. The article surveyed 283 platforms. Hence, the majority (69%) of funded projects were reward-based projects. This is where participants were given incentives in return for donations.
HOW IS CROWDFUNDING IN CHINA DIFFERENT?
First, many sites have a specialized focus. Accordingly, it said that “Dreamore raises funds for art, culture, and public welfare projects. Musikid serves as a platform for music-related projects. Tao Meng funds amateur filmmakers and can also recruit crew for proposed projects.” Thus, many of these sites offer goods (a DVD, book, etc.) in return for a donation.
CROWDFUNDING: WHERE TO START?
Equity Crowdfunding Sites
AngelCrunch
REWARDS
Dreamore Is an all-or-nothing model.
Fundator This is another all-or-nothing model. (This site is also in English).
Tao Meng A site to fund amateur filmmakers and recruit crews.
Musikid Focuses on music-related projects.
ZhongChou Uses a reward-based platform.
FringeBacker Bilingual site facilitates creative arts, innovative industries, and charitable organizations.
Music Bee An outlet for musicians to generate buzz.
Kickstarter (Hong Kong) Focused on creativity and merchandising.
BEWARE / FRAUD
However, crowdfunding is relatively new in China. So are its regulations. Fraud can happen. The article The Rise of China’s Crowdfunding Potential highlighted one telling example. Thus, it mentioned “Ezubao, an online finance company that supposedly offered fake investment products to nearly one million investors. Subsequently, it pilfered over US$7.6 billion. After this, local officials investigated, shut down, and discredited it as a large Ponzi scheme.”
TIPS
Moreover, here are some steps you can take to begin your campaign.
To start with, study successful and unsuccessful campaigns. The article 5 Tips for Crowdfunding a Film or Movie – highlights key points. These include what to look for in successful campaigns such as:
- Review the length and structure of the pitch video.
- Determine the rewards that are most and least popular.
- Discern how creators do updates and respond to comments.
- Check the layout of the project text (titles/images) for included and omitted information.
MORE IDEAS
Additionally, other ideas you can use to build your campaign include:
- Create a landing page to build a list.
- Invent a customer avatar.
- Shoot a video.
- Assemble your team ahead of time.
- Plan to publish daily content.
- Give fans an inside peek at your project.
Also, see our articles to help you get started:
7 WAYS TO BULLETPROOF YOUR SCRIPT FOR CHINA
HOW TO SELL YOUR WEB SERIES TO CHINA
WHERE TO FIND CHINESE-AMERICANS TO ADD TO YOUR CO-PRO
In summary, to start your campaign – know the dangers, and create your campaign.
Furthermore, if you want to connect with Chinese financiers/filmmakers – join my Facebook group here.
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