Write On: 2024 Big Break Short Film Winner Brandon Osterman and Seed&Spark

On today's episode, we speak to writer Brandon Osterman, whose short script 'The Naughty List' won last year's Final Draft Big Break Short Screenplay Category. As part of his prize package, he received a consultation with Sav Rodgers, Marketing Manager for Seed&Spark, the film industry's most popular crowdfunding platform. Sav joins the conversation to tell us exactly what crowdfunding is and help all writers understand that funding for their project is possible to achieve.

"Who is your audience? At Seed&Spark, we always say that great crowdfunding is audience building first and fundraising second. While there is definitely a fundraising need, finding your audience is invaluable… Something that I always tell prospective crowdfunders is you already have the tools you need to do this. You know how to tell a story. You're here because you're a storyteller. You know how to invite people in. You already know how to talk about yourself persuasively," says Sav Rodgers.

Osterman also shares his journey creating his award-winning short script and gives advice to writers who are thinking of creating their own short film project.

"I don't think there's been a better time to be making short format content than right now. The demand for it seems to be expanding every time I turn around. I think if that's something that you're interested in, go after it. You know, I think there are more opportunities to distribute that form of content than there have ever been. I think we've got a generation now that's grown up with TikTok and social media and much shorter, digestible content that, whether it's conditioning or just sort of lowering of attention spans, I think more people are more tuned into short form content than they have ever been before. It's a really, really exciting time to be making shorts," says Osterman.

To hear more about the short filmmaking process and crowdfunding, listen to the podcast.