FilmFunds introduces PiggyPoints and more

Encouraging a growing online community of filmmakers and fans to embrace a better way to make and market films, FilmFunds introduced a slate of new website tools today, augmenting its already game-changing technologies such as real-time Emotional ID (EID) and image recognition. Concurrently, the company debuted a production arm to more actively facilitate fan-favorite projects. FilmFunds, which launched last month, empowers a social community of 60+ million entertainment fans to be part of the green-light process in moving popular film concepts toward reality.

That process begins with content owners/creators uploading materials (e.g., synopses, trailers, artwork) to the website (http://www.filmfunds.com/) under one of two groups: Category I (projects not yet in production) or Category II (projects already in production, or completed, that require finishing, P&A or other funds). In the spirit of its piggybank icon, FilmFunds members who "Like" a potential project can then click the icon to give it an "Oink!," with a critical mass of "Oinks!" forecasting an audience for it down the road.

New website features include:

For filmmakers:

• New Rewards System - Enhancing the way that FilmFunds connects content creators with fans, filmmakers can now offer specific rewards for the most active and supportive fans: from set visits and signed scripts all the way up to executive producer credits on a project

• Redesigned Upload - Uploading a project to FilmFunds has been redesigned and streamlined, making the process faster than a greased pig at a county fair

• FilmFunds Talent - Now actors and actresses can connect with fans and filmmakers, with a new category for uploading headshots, bios/resumes and performance reels

• Social Media Calendar - A unique, customizable tool designed to simplify the social networking process. Now filmmakers can quickly and easily create timely news updates and keep connected with their fans through social media channels.

For film fans:

• PiggyPoints - Every activity and level of engagement on FilmFunds is now rewarded! Users can earn PiggyPoints, for example, by discovering and promoting new movies, sharing their love for a project across their social networks, even by uploading their own project.

• Share Bars - Add your Twitter timeline to your FilmFunds home page for a personalized news feed and share everything on FilmFunds across Facebook, Twitter and Google+ through "share bars" throughout the site

• Movie Tickets via Fandango - Purchase tickets for the hottest new releases without leaving the FilmFunds site or mobile app. Showtimes and tickets powered by Fandango are available for movie theaters coast to coast at the touch of a button!

The FilmFunds mobile app offers the same functionality as the website in a more compact form and is available on Apple and Android handsets, with a BlackBerry version available late November and Windows and Symbian versions available by year's end. The mobile app features image recognition technology enabling users to snap a photo of a movie poster, for example, automatically returning information about the content. Its groundbreaking Emotional ID (EID) technology translates real-time facial reactions during test previews into measurable emotional results.

In addition, FilmFunds has launched a new production arm that will tap the company's Hollywood reach to attach experienced producing personnel to qualified projects, i.e., those with a critical mass of "Oinks!" FilmFunds Creative Director Mika Astrom says, "We launched last month with a focus on pre-qualifying entertainment content so that it could be financed and produced. Based on the early positive response, our investors have encouraged us to expand our mission and actively shepherd promising projects ourselves."

The currency of public opinion, as captured through crowd-sourcing technology, is an exciting new model for providing analytics and insight to producers and studios, says Astrom, who predicts it will one day replace costly test screenings. "Why spend millions producing something that might find an audience, when millions of fans can tell you if a project has resonance before it's made?"