Swarm of Angels - Collaborative film financing

The website Swarm of Angels, which launched earlier this year, is using the enthusiasm of the crowds to finance a film. In their own words, Swarm of Angels is:

A groundbreaking project to create a £1 million film and give it away to over 1 million people using the Internet and a global community of members. By subscribing for £25 members become part of a revolutionary process to make an open source feature film.

They are at their second level of investment, having raised approximately £125,000. The benefits of investment are well documented on the site - for £25, you get to be involved in all stages of the development cycle, early previews of the film and access to investor-only products.

However, investors will not get exclusive access to the finished film. This is shared under a Creative Commons license. This license provides a simple legal framework for open and collaborative work. It protects everyone involved from improper use of material, while allowing viewers to freely download watch and remix the finished product.

Matt Hanson, the man behind Swarm of Angles has attracted a lot of attention for his efforts. Recently, Forbes recently included him as on of the 10 people who could change the world. His commitment to the project is well documented through the sites blog.

Swarm of Angels shares similar traits to Star Trek Hidden Frontier. In this case a group of enthusiasts have got together to make their own Star Trek series. They include actors, camera men, special effects professionals, etc. They all commit to the project in their spare time and work to produce a high quality product for a particularly avid audience. Just as with Swarm of Angels Hidden Frontier is free to download.

Why I blog this
I like their approach to ‘remixing cinema’. If handled properly, as it seems Swarm of Angels is doing, this concept could have real milage. There are two areas, both concerning the relationship with the investors that I think are particularly important:

Trust - By keeping the development process open and, as much as possible, collaborative, Swarm of Angels has managed to build this with its audience. They have effectively used online services to achieve this. For example, the blog uses very inclusive language. This, along with other well executed techniques, helps bring the visitor and investors right into the heart of the project - no matter where they are in the world.

Momentum - By clearly setting out both investment and creative milestones, Swarm of Angels is able to keep current investors interested and focused. When managed well, this creates a self perpetuating buzz - building u a viral nature to the project.

Credibility is going to be vital if this project is going to succeed. I wish them all the luck with this interesting endeavor.

Via hamey.com.