Finding funding for a film is tough! You have all the ideas, the script and the talent, but now you need money to get the ball rolling. Crowdfunding is a great way for filmmakers to get funding for their project because it’s cost effective, it lets you maintain creative freedom, and you get to include your fans in the whole process!
Many filmmakers have turned to Kickstarter to get their films funded, but you might be wondering if there are any alternative platforms out there. It’s true that Kickstarter is one of the most well-known crowdfunding platforms out there, however, there are also a lot of other film creators to compete with.
Seed & Spark is a niche crowdfunding platform that’s dedicated specifically to filmmakers. If you are looking for a platform that caters to indie filmmakers and their fans, this might be the place for you. This post will help you decide once and for all which of these two platforms is best for your crowdfunding campaign.
Seed & Spark
Seed & Spark was co-founded by Emily Best and Erica Anderson, who wanted to create a better place for people to make films. The team at Seed & Spark likes to think of films as business ventures that need ideas and investors, so that’s what they set out to provide with their crowdfunding platform.
What makes their platform unique is that it not only serves as a crowdfunding platform for TV and filmmakers, it also works as a subscription streaming service. Backers can support the projects they like and get Sparks in return, which they can use to watch a wide range of independent films and shows.
Pricing
Seed & Spark charges a 5% platform fee, which contributors can choose to cover along with their pledge. The credit card processing fee is $0.30 + 2.9%. On average, creators keep 95% of what they raise.
Features
Starting a Seed & Spark project is an easy four-step process that consists of starting a project and signing up for Wishlist items, improving the campaign based on feedback, submitting banking information to get paid, preparing your outreach materials and waiting for final approval.
This platform is also doing a lot to make sure that creators that use their platform succeed after crowdfunding. For projects that attract over 1,000 followers, Seed & Spark guarantees press and distribution to streaming services including iTunes, Comcast, Verizon, Netflix, and Hulu. Seed & Spark is also taking entries from other platforms that have attracted over 1K followers.
Unlike Kickstarter’s all-or-nothing funding model, Seed & Spark gives the green light to projects that once they reach 80% of their funding goal.
Reviews
Seed & Spark has an 8.9 out of 10 rating on CrowdsUnite. Users love that backers get to come back to the same place to watch the finished product. It is also useful that filmmakers are forced to put together a realistic budget for items that they need to complete the project and that supporters can see why they need to raise as much as they do. Another thing that filmmakers using this platform love is the commitment of its team to indie film. One satisfied user commented on how, unlike other platforms, this one seems to really put creators above profits:
“At Seed&Spark you deal with real people… They’re smart, they’re effective and they’re available. In my experience, most crowdfunders are all about pulling out your credit card: Seed&Spark is based on a unique ‘Wishlist’ model. Breaking the budget items down into the stuff you actually need to make a web series… opens the door to the possibility that someone can fill a $4000+ gap by loaning you their camera and lights.
On Seed&Spark, this kind of loaning of equipment as well as bartering of services is allowed and even encouraged to build toward the necessary 80% of funding necessary to greenlight. I’d like to note that while this form of donation is invaluable to filmmakers and often easier to come up with than hard cash, Seed&Spark gets no financial gain whatsoever from loans/barters.”
There have been several complaints of bugs and usability issues with Seed & Spark, but a lot of those seem to have been fixed when they came up or with updates over time. One other issue that people had with the platform was hearing from backers that Seed & Spark sends them a lot of emails.
Kickstarter
Kickstarter is a crowdfunding platform that has been around since April 2009, and has always been known for supporting creative projects, film making included. Since they are one of the most well-known platforms out there, you don’t have to worry about lack of traffic on the program but you may want to think of the thousands of projects in different categories that your project has to contend with. Still, they have an impressive history, with over $2.7 billion raised on the platform in total from over 11.6 million backers.
That being said, film is the fourth largest category on Kickstarter in terms of total funds raised and has had more projects launched than any other category. Several Kickstarter films have made their way into the mainstream (one even won an Oscar!). Kickstarter has put on yearly film festivals since 2011 to help highlight and share the work that was created with the help of their platform.
Pricing
Kickstarter charges a 5% platform fee, plus 3-5% for payment processing. You can find more details about the payment processing fees for different countries on Kickstarter here.
Features
Kickstarter is an all-or-nothing crowdfunding platform with different features built-in to help creators succeed. They have useful analytics tools, and easy to use interface, the ability to update backers during and after a campaign, and more.
Kickstarter also provides creators with a lot of resources to learn how to run a crowdfunding campaign well.
Reviews
Kickstarter has a 7.9 out of 10 rating on CrowdsUnite. Users love that Kickstarter is a great platform for telling stories, and that even though some campaigners do, you don’t need a huge PR budget to be successful on the platform. People find the platform very intuitive and easy to use, except for a few little things like the fact that you can’t edit your campaign page anymore once the project closes. Unlike some other platforms, creators mention getting a lot of direct traffic from Kickstarter. One satisfied customer shared:
“Kickstarter gave us access to a huge number of potential buyers, allowing us to produce Sets that we would normally never be able to do. The fact that KS has pretty much become a house hold name means that it is an excellent place to test the waters, as it were. With the countless sites now covering projects it is a massive boost, to know that what you are selling is in fact sold.
The site itself is easy to use, has a ton of help and advice sections and a very helpful team on standby in case there are any problems.”
One of the biggest issues that I’ve noticed from reading reviews of Kickstarter is the fact that backers have to use Amazon payments to process their pledges and other issues with people’s Kickstarter login. Now a days, Kickstarter does processing through Stripe.
These small frustrations and usability issues seem to have lost some creators pledges in the past, and is something that creators should be aware of.
Conclusion
Both Kickstarter and Seed & Spark support independent film and could make great platforms for your film crowdfunding project. The decision between the two is really based on what you are looking for. Do you want to go with a platform that has a longer history and is almost a household name now? Or are you willing to take a chance with a newer platform that already has a great reputation for customer service, a unique business model, and is creating a strong community dedicated specifically to film?
Feel free to leave any questions or comments below!
