Mark's Pro Tip #2

Pro Tip #2 - Raising money for films is hard no matter what.

Whether you're raising $100K or $10M, it's all relative and it's always difficult. A lot of young filmmakers make the mistake of thinking it's easier to raise money if they ask for a lesser amount. While it may be true that more people can afford to give $100K than $10M, getting those people to part with their money is just as challenging as getting it from richer people. You need to convince someone why they should give you their money. In fact, if the investor is savvy, sometimes it's better to ask for more money than less. A few reasons for this.

First, it sets the bar and gives you room to negotiate. How do you know they won't give you $1M unless you ask?

Second, an investor will want justification for why you're asking for that amount. If you say you can make a $1M film for $100K, you better be able to back it up with a budget that shows exactly how you're going to pull it off. Chances are you'll have to sacrifice a lot of quality to do it if you can do it at all. If, on the other hand, you're budget shows how you can confidently deliver that film for $1M and that's what you're asking for, it's going to give the investor confidence.

Third, a higher ask from the investor can be justified by the cost of more valuable elements like star actors or P&A funds that will help the film make a return on investment. A $100K film with no names in it has less of a chance of ever recouping than a $10M film with several names.

So when asking for money, ask for what you need and be prepared to back it up with a legitimate budget.

(Side note: This doesn't mean one investor has to give you the entire budget. If you need $1M to properly make your film, you may ask an investor to give you $100K with the caveat that you're asking 10 different investors for that same amount and will only be able to greenlight once all 10 are in place.)