What types of projects are eligible?

This rally is for narrative or documentary feature films centered around your home town (documentary), or primarily shot in your hometown using local talent and resources (feature).

What do you mean by “hometown”?

Your hometown can be the place you are from or the place you live now. Either way, at least 75% of your production should be committed to this place.

Can my hometown be outside the U.S.?

Sure! However, you’ll need a U.S. bank account to crowdfund on Seed&Spark at this time.

Does the project have to be ready to go into production?

Not at all! You can run a crowdfunding campaign at any stage from development to post-production. The purpose is to start building your audience and to advance your project to the next phase.

When should I submit and launch my campaign on Seed&Spark?

You can submit your project as soon as you want, but you must submit by 11:59 pm PST on August 31, 2018 at the latest to participate. Once your campaign is submitted, our team of crowdfunding experts (who are working filmmakers themselves) will review it and provide personalized feedback, so you’ll be in the best shape. Your campaign must be approved for launch by 5 pm PST on September 14, 2018. All campaigns will launch at 9 am PST on September 17, 2018.

How long will the Hometown Heroes crowdfunding campaigns run?

All participating campaigns will launch at 9 am PST on September 17, 2018, and end at 9 pm PST on October 17, 2018.

What happens after the crowdfunding ends?

The end of your campaign is just the beginning! If you get the green light (raise 80% of your goal), we begin to transfer the funds and you get to work fulfilling incentives, updating your supporters and making your project.

If you raise at least 80% of your goal (in cash, not including loans) and have a minimum of 1000 campaign followers, you'll advance to the finals. Once the finalists are announced, you'll have 10 days to submit your pitch materials for the Duplass Brothers Productions, Salem Street Entertainment and UnLTD Productions prizes. (Don't worry, we'll email you all those details when you become eligible.) And of course, the funds will be transferred, you'll fulfill your incentives and (most importantly!) be one giant step closer to making your film!

When will the finalists be announced?

Finalists will be notified on October 19, 2018.

When will the winners be announced?

All winners will be announced and notified in early November 2018.

Are there still benefits if I don’t win?

You betcha! YES! ALL filmmakers who gather 250 or more followers are eligible for Seed&Spark's Filmmaker Rewards, worth over $9,000 in production, post, distribution and marketing perks, as well as festival fee waivers. More importantly, by raising funds and gathering an audience on Seed&Spark, participants take control of their creative future, creating a path to their own sustainable filmmaking career. And that's the biggest win we can think of.