ScreenWest’s first crowdfunding initiative, 3 to 1, has filled its $250,000 funding allocation within hours of its launch.
The WA funding agency selected 28 screen projects to take part in the scheme, with ScreenWest set to triple funds pledged to the successful projects.
ScreenWest digital project manager Michelle Glaser said the public had pledged $100,000 within seven hours of the scheme’s launch on December 12 and ScreenWest was now completing final checks on the successful projects.
“Even though so many projects have reached their targets, the other projects will all go forward in some way if they reach their goals even without ScreenWest money. So it’s not over yet!”
Eight projects have already reached their funding targets: short film Tango Underpants, stop-motion animation Edison: Adventures in Power, web comedy series Zac and Me, YouTube adventure ChinChilla Hunt, short film FACTORY293, short drama MAN The Movie, web series Greenfield, and digital documentary Punjab to Perth.
The projects selected by ScreenWest for funding will be those 'first past the post' although some projects will proceed in a scaled-down version. Teams were required to raise between $5,000 and $50,000 over a maximum 90 days to trigger a maximum $150,000 contribution from ScreenWest. They also needed a minimum of 40 pledges.
Glaser said WA had previously produced successful digital projects such as Super Dingo and the Henry and Aaron series.
“On the back of that, it was a great way of building in audience feedback into the mechanism of how our pool could be distributed and another way to test that. For the creative teams, it gave them an opportunity to build their audience alongside building their project and learn how to run a really kick-arse social media campaign.”
ScreenWest director development, Rikki Lea Bestall – who also ran the 3 to 1 project – said: "All of the teams themsleves have really got into the spirit of the thing and the campaigns they have put together are really fun – and people like to have fun."
Check out the full list of projects at Pozible.
Contact this reporter at bswift@www.if.com.au or on Twitter at @bcswift.