Seed&Spark

Seed&Spark

Company type	Video on demand, crowdfunding
Founded	2012
Headquarters	United States

Seed&Spark is a film-centric crowdfunding and SVOD platform launched in 2012.

Business

Seed&Spark is a crowdsourced film & TV studio where creators can build audiences through crowdfunding and audiences can watch movies & shows through on-demand streaming. Distribution contracts are non-exclusive to Seed&Spark, with a caveat that a movie or show on the Seed&Spark must not be distributed free elsewhere online.^[1]

Crowdfunding platform

Unlike other crowdfunding platforms like Kickstarter and IndieGoGo, Seed&Spark is purpose-built for film & TV, and its crowdfunding page acts like a registry system, showing potential backers a budget determined by exactly what "WishList" items are needed and at what cost. The platform also allows backers to contribute cash or loan specific items to the project.^[2] Seed&Spark takes a 5% fee from successfully funded projects, lower than other crowdfunding platforms, and allows campaign supporters to cover the filmmakers' fees. Seed&Spark currently holds a 75% success rate^[3] for its crowdfunding campaigns, nearly twice that of Kickstarter,^[4] and an average raise of $14,700 per project.

History

Founder Emily Best created the prototype for Seed&Spark with Caroline Von Kuhn and Liam Brady^[5] while raising funds for their feature film Like the Water in 2010. Through the platform, the film was able to raise $23,000 in 30 days. The public site launched on December 1, 2012^[6] with 11 distributed films and 15 crowdfunding campaigns.

Seed&Spark raised more than $300,000 in its first 6 months.^[7] Originally based in Brooklyn, New York,^[8] Seed&Spark relocated to Los Angeles in 2014.

Funding

Best was the recipient in 2013 of $10,000 grant for Seed&Spark from SoftBank Capital and Lerer Ventures,^[9] given via the New York Observer blog Betabeat's competition series The Pitch. Lerer principal Steve Schlafman explained that Best "proved to us that her product is working and solves a real problem that she experienced first hand."^[10] In August 2014, Seed&Spark closed a million dollar seed round led by Wadsworth Family investment fund Manitou Ventures.^[11]

References

1. "Submit a Movie for release on Seed&Spark!". Seed&Spark. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
2. Renninger, Bryce J (30 November 2012). "Filmmakers Create a New Platform for Crowdfunding and Streaming Distribution in the Same Place". Indiewire. Retrieved 11 January 2015.
3. "Is Seed & Spark's high crowdfunding success rate for real?". Stephen Follows. 2017-05-22. Retrieved 2017-12-12.
4. Salovaara, Sarah (11 August 2014). "Ranking Crowdfunding Sites: Kickstarter, Seed&Spark, Rockethub and More". filmmakermagazine.com. Filmmaker Magazine. Retrieved 11 January 2015.
5. Dunaway, Michael (5 December 2012). "Catching Up With Emily Best of Seed&Spark". Paste Magazine. Retrieved 11 January 2015.
6. Best, Emily. "FAIR TRADE FILMMAKING: SEED&SPARK". tribecafilm.com/stories/5130fa651c7d76ec6c00000f-fair-trade-filmmaking-see. Tribeca Film Festival. Archived from the original on 31 October 2019. Retrieved 11 January 2015.
7. Harris, Dana. "Indiewire Influencers". Indiewire. Retrieved 11 January 2015.
8. Rossini, Elena (30 November 2012). "Emily Best, 30s, Founder and CEO of Seed&Spark". No Country for Young Women. Retrieved 11 January 2015.
9. Observer Staff. "The Pitch Season 2". Beta Beat. The Observer. Retrieved 11 January 2015.
10. Observer Staff. "What Makes a Good Pitch? A Q&A With VCs Nikhil Kalghatgi and Steve Schlafman". Beta Beat. The Observer. Archived from the original on 11 January 2015. Retrieved 11 January 2015.
11. Ellingson, Annlee. "Q&A: Seed&Spark raises $1 million for indie-film 'wedding registry'". bizjournal.com. New York Business Journal. Retrieved 12 January 2015.

External links

• Official website