My book, Crowdfunding for Filmmakers: The Way to a Successful Film Campaign is now available in its SECOND EDITION, and you can ORDER YOUR COPY at Amazon, Michael Wiese Productions, or wherever else you buy your books.
A book about crowdfunding? Specifically for filmmakers?
As a recognized thought leader in crowdfunding, as well as a very early crowdfunding success story myself, raising funds back in 2010 to produce my award-winning short film Cerise, I realized then that most filmmakers don’t consider themselves crowdfunders, never mind entrepreneurs, and oftentimes don’t take time to research other campaign strategies like I had done. Instead, they try and navigate this bustling landscape blindfolded with only a hope and a dream. That’s why Crowdfunding for Filmmakers: The Way to a Successful Film Campaign has proven an indispensable tool that ensures a triumphant climax to a rigorous crowdfunding campaign.
So what’s the book about?
Crowdfunding for Filmmakers centers around offering practical information, tips, and tactics about how to launch a successful film campaign by going with the flow of traditional models of fundraising, utilizing today’s technological and social innovations, and augmenting each with an added personal touch. The book examines various ways to meet and exceed one’s crowdfunding goal through chapters that home in on team building, audience outreach, and crowdfunder etiquette, along with a section containing case studies from successful film campaigns, as well as a few unsuccessful ones and what they could’ve done to remedy their unfavorable outcomes.
What makes the second edition different from the previous edition (and all the other books and resources out there about crowdfunding)?
Brace yourselves! –– here’s a list (Hey, you asked, right?)
- It’s still focused –– This is a book about crowdfunding for filmmakers by a crowdfunder and a filmmaker.
- It’s teeming with new examples –– Filmmakers learn crowdfunding from real life success stories that will inspire them to be as creative with their campaign as they are with their films.
- Its advice is tightly organized into five parts –– Crowdfunding Basics, Campaign Personalization, Community Engagement, The Tao of Twitter, Facebook, and Social Networking, and Advanced Crowdfunding.
- It’s summarized and exercised –– The end of each section offers summary points for quick review as well as exercises to help crowdfunding filmmakers get a head start thinking about their own film campaigns.
- Its “Crowd Studies” have depth –– Through an in-depth “Trignosis,” filmmakers can see which tactics used by specific campaigns made them successful, including two all new case studies.
- It continues to steer clear of corporate jargon –– No business speak or unfriendly jargon that can deter filmmakers from reading a book about crowdfunding.
- Its appendix paves the way further –– Links to a handful of victorious campaigns and helpful articles about crowdfunding promise to keep the next wave on the path to success.
Okay, that’s cool, but is it just for filmmakers?
Absolutely not! It’s especially for indie/Do-It-Yourself filmmakers, but Crowdfunding for Filmmakers – 2nd Ed. can really be used by anyone who wants to launch a crowdfunding campaign, including, but not limited to:
- Independent/DIY filmmakers
- Screenwriters seeking funding for their next screenplay
- Producers of indie films, web series, and transmedia projects
- YouTubers wanting to get more into filmmaking
- Actors looking to transition into the realm of writer/producer
- Development executives
- Students in film school
- Teachers and professors who teach film and/or film finance classes
- Artists, musicians, photographers, writers, and anyone else interested in running a successful crowdfunding campaign for their creative projects
What sort of information does Crowdfunding for Filmmakers – 2nd Ed. contain?
So glad you asked! Here’s the complete table of contents:
Foreword by Slava Rubin, Co-Founder, Indiegogo
Introduction: The What of Crowdfunding?
Part One: Film Financing: A Brief History
- Chapter One: The Traditional Hollywood Model of Film Financing
- Chapter Two: The DIY Revolution
- Chapter Three: Crowdfunding and Filmmaking: Yin Meets Its Yang
Part Two: Crowdfunding Basics
- Chapter Four: Tao: Begin with the Basics of Fundraising
- Chapter Five: Decide If Crowdfunding Is Right for Your Film
- Chapter Six: Build Your Team
- Chapter Seven: Decide How Much Funding You Need
- Chapter Eight: Choose Your Platform
- Chapter Nine: Home In on Your Target Audience
- Chapter Ten: Create (and Maintain) Your Campaign Strategy
- Chapter Eleven: Give Yourself Enough Time
Part Three: Campaign Personalization
- Chapter Twelve: Te: Integrity is the Tao to (Ka-)Ching!
- Chapter Thirteen: Invitation Video: Make It About Your Project and Yourself
- Chapter Fourteen: Incentives: Make Them About Your Project and Your Contributors
- Chapter Fifteen: Interactions: It’s Not About You, It’s About Us
- Chapter Sixteen: The Elements of Style: Dressing Your Campaign to Impress
- Chapter Seventeen: “Be Water, My Friend… ” — Transparency Is Clear and Cool
- Chapter Eighteen: A Practical Guide to Crowdfunder Etiquette
Part Four: Community Engagement
- Chapter Nineteen: Pu: Let Your Community Help Carve Your Uncarved Block
- Chapter Twenty: The Golden Rule: “Don’t Solicit, Elicit”
- Chapter Twenty-One: The Importance of Keeping Your Contributors Updated
- Chapter Twenty-Two: Avoiding “The Flood”
- Chapter Twenty-Three: “I’ve Got No Money, But I Can Give __________!”
- Chapter Twenty-Four: Don’t Panic! — Handling the Lull Between Contributions
- Chapter Twenty-Five: The Fine Art of Consecutive Campaigning
- Chapter Twenty-Six: Build Relationships, Not Transactions
Part Five: The Tao of Twitter, Facebook, and Social Networking
- Chapter Twenty-Seven: Wei Wu Wei: “Doing Without (Over)Doing”
- Chapter Twenty-Eight: Twitter Tips for Crowdfunding Filmmakers
- Chapter Twenty-Nine: Facebook Pages, Events, and “Friend Fawning”
- Chapter Thirty: Instagram for Crowdfunding Filmmakers
- Chapter Thirty-One: Broadcasting, Virtual Reality, and Emerging Forms of Social Media
- Chapter Thirty-Two: A Few Should Nots of Social Media for Crowdfunding
Part Six: Advanced Crowdfunding
- Chapter Thirty-Three: From Lao Tzu to Sun Tzu: Waging the War of Art
- Chapter Thirty-Four: $100K – $1M+ Goals — How Do They Raise It?
- Chapter Thirty-Five: When to Bring On a Campaign Manager
- Chapter Thirty-Six: Fiscal Sponsorship, Matching Funds, and Equity: Added Incentives for Contributors
- Chapter Thirty-Seven: Soft Launches, Pre-Launch Campaigns, and Stretch Goals: Proven Strategies for Success
Part Seven: Crowd Studies
- Trignosis #1: The [Smallest] Space Between Fans and Fundraising
- Trignosis #2: At Home Away From Home: Tilt the Town
- Trignosis #3: Synced Up with Details and Nostalgia
- Trignosis #4: How Do You Direct [A Gary King Musical] — Build Your Brand
- Trignosis #5: A “Celebrity Campaign” Miles Ahead of the Rest
Conclusion: The You of Crowdfunding
Additional Resources for Crowdfunding Filmmakers
Wow! This looks great, Trig! What’s that link again?
I thought you’d never ask! Just click HERE and you can order your very own copy of Crowdfunding for Filmmakers – 2nd Ed. and be on the Right Path to crowdfunding your next indie film successfully!

Hey there. Hope this is not the wrong place to ask this, but I own the domain crowdfundingforfilmmakers.com. I’ve got it up on GoDaddy auctions right now. Would you be interested in buying it?
Good luck with your book, either way. It needed to be written!
I love this book! I have dog eared so many pages that I may need to get another book just to be able to share it.
Thank you so much, Michael! I don’t think I’ll ever tire of hearing kind words like that about my book!
Where can I get the book?
Thanks for the interest, Daniel. You can get it an any Barnes and Noble, if there’s one near you and you dig hard copies. Or you can check out http://bit.ly/CF4Amazon and get it on Amazon, either in print or for Kindle.
No Audible version?
Unfortunately, Rob, not just yet.