“Would you rather fight 1 horse-sized duck or 100 duck sized horses?”

A common question posed of the online community forum known as reddit. Reddit, among its vast amounts of “subreddits” has what is refereed to as an AMA (ask me anything) in which reddit users can ask any question to willing participants. 

As I write this blog entry there are currently AMA’s from a delivery driver from a Sub chain, Vancouver band “Said the Whale” and Robert Reich, a former Secretary of Labour.

Within all of the submissions for AMA’s most tend to deal with “Non-celebrities” who are there for purely a question and answer on a specific topic. However A few times a day someone joins the forum to promote an upcoming project or event, or if they do not have one to simply promote themselves. In recent months A-list celebrities from Woody Harrelson, Morgan Freeman, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Snoop Lion (nee Dogg) have used the site to promote upcoming projects.

While this format is reminiscent of a traditional interview or late night talk show, the biggest difference is that rarely do the questions pertain to their project, instead most users ask questions regarding personal facts of their lives, previous works and compliments; in response the interviewee commonly respond with little tidbits of their lives and personal anecdotes that have rarely been heard before.

The Over-arching theme of an AMA is honesty, and a lack of promotion. For example Harrelson and Freeman both joined their AMA’s and simply talked about their upcoming films and neglected answering any personal questions; this may work on traditional media but not here. These AMA’s were widely panned and resulted in negative responses to both of their films, however in the case Gordon-Levitt and Snoop they gain popularity for their projects and receive additional promotion through users who experienced positive emotions with the AMA.

In the basic terms an AMA is an advertisement, if the interviewee is honest and engaging users will be more likely to promote the projects within their online circles, however if they are not users will not spread any sources of promotion.

An AMA is a tricky form of marketing, however done right and it can create a personal bond between users and the interviewee, that can result in increased success for an upcoming project.

*Extra* the best responses from Robin Williams AMA this week:

http://www.businessinsider.com/robin-williams-reddit-ama-2013-9

Long gone are the days when decisions on funding would take place deep within the halls on the Universal or Warner Brothers offices. The few division heads deciding on where to allocate millions of dollars to a film  they hope to be a sure thing. However as this last summer has proven, a sure thing just does not exist.

Moving down the budget ladder of the film industry, we finally reach those of the independent variety; many first time writers, actors, directors and producers trying to get a modest product off the ground. If The Sundance Film Festival is any indication, a trend has been growing within the industry where many are turning to independent films to get work, as much larger fare has slowed with succession with economic downturn; the main bill is littered with famous actors and writers.

However even with famous names and talented members most people within the independent industry struggle to find funding to get their idea to the screen.

This is where Kickstarter comes in, a crowd-sourcing website which allows for anyone with a valid idea or propose to seek funding. In recent months however, the site has received a large amount of media attention for a few of its members, namely Rob Thomas and Zach Braff. Thomas sought to fund a movie version of his popular television series “Veronica Mars”, shortly after Braff, of “Scrubs” fame, replicated the idea

Now where does this tie in with marketing you may ask, well not only are these filmmakers trying to sell you on the idea that their film is what that you believe in and is something as an avid film-goer would love to see, they are trying selling you on the benefits and rewards of being involved and investing in the project.  to fund his film “Wish I Was Here”.

Speaking from first hand experience investing in Braff’s project, he made a very honest and sincere appeal to his online community which spans Kickstarter, Facebook and Twitter. Within this message he displayed his reasoning for using the Kickstarter medium; his message of making a quality and uncompromising film is consistent with his endeavors throughout his career. As well the passion he showed throughout really spoke to members as they invested $3.1 million in one month.

In addition, Braff, as did Thomas, released benefits to investors with the minimum being access to a production diary of the film with video updates; benefits ranged up to being a walk-on cast member. With these production diaries in particular Braff has manage to market the film in such a way that it feels like a team effort with all investors being a part. Not only does this bode well for Braff’s image, but it also gives an original film an immediate fan base.

All in all, Kickstarter poses a interesting possibility to many independent filmmakers and is sure to help lift many great films off the ground in the near future.