IndieGoGo – Film Projects Community

IndieGoGo is an awesome Film and TV community for creating independent projects. In a nutshell, post your idea for a film project and find others to help you create it – the project management/producer stuff is handled on the site.

IndieGoGo is an online social marketplace connecting filmmakers and fans to make independent film happen. The platform provides filmmakers the tools for project funding, recruiting, and promotion, while enabling the audience to discover and connect directly with filmmakers and the causes they support.

Founded on the principles of opportunity, transparency, choice, and action, IndieGoGo launched in 2008 to address the fundraising challenges and market inefficiencies affecting independent filmmaking today. IndieGoGo enables this “filmocracy” by providing filmmakers an open platform to pitch their projects to the world, and giving the fans a vehicle to experience and influence the once inaccessible world of filmmaking.

Filmmakers get new resources to build and engage a loyal fan base to assist in making their projects happen. Filmmakers can raise money and awareness, find cast and crew, and gain credibility through the help of their number one resource: their fans.

Fans get the opportunity to discover and impact the films of tomorrow while getting insider access and VIP perks for their contributions. But beyond the VIP perks, fans get an everyday opportunity to support the people, films, or causes they believe in.

We’ve seen the marriage of movie-making and fans before (here’s one from 2006 I gave advice on) but an open forum for multiple projects has been sorely needed. Well, I mean, it’s been done but not done well.

Filmmakers:
Ever wondered if you could gain the support of others to make your film? Well now its time to DIWO – Do It With Others. First build your audience; then raise money to turn your project into reality. (more)
Fans:
Ever wondered what it would be like to help produce a film or be part of the film world? Don’t wonder anymore. IndieGoGo can help you get behind the scenes and enjoy VIP perks along the way. (more)

	Find Projects | People
	Post your Project
	Provide Feedback

I’m particularly impressed that they follow their own advice and “Do It With Others – DIWO):
… really good partners who are offering good advice, and building a good relationship with the community who can promote them. Thank goodness IndieGoGo spent some time on the sociability and didn’t dive into chucking up a bunch of tools for film collaboration expecting it to magically turn into a community. Lemme reiterate: Tools do not equal Community.

Warning: Rant. It is frustrating for me to see good ideas, where the initiators are willing to spend $200k to $1 million say on the technology and web development, yet not bring in the right assistance for a few thousand. Bad move, particularly with social networks. Beautiful digital graveyards with tumbleweed blowing through are a waste of money. Get a real social network consultant – doesn’t have to be me 🙂 – we’re generally cheaper than the agency you are spending a fortune on to build the service and can usually see at a glance what is missing/out of balance. Even if you don’t, at least do a proper audit yourself.

The ones (collaborative online communities around movies) that I’ve been involved in are not only huge fun, but a future direction for an ailing film industry. Let’s hope IndieGoGo works as well for the independent film makers as say, MySongCast does for independent music.