Once when I was raising money for a project, a mentor of mine once offered the “donation brick” method:
Visit local art museums, cultural centers, etc. and look at the engraved bricks on the ground. These were early donors or investors in your community who supported local artists. Perhaps, they’d be willing to do it again. Now you have a shortlist of names to begin seed funding.
The idea is simple: raise through many smaller supporters rather than waiting for one person to write a massive check.
Think of it like community fundraising. Each supporter contributes one “brick” to help build the film. In exchange, they might receive a credit, premiere access, producer perks, or simply the feeling of helping bring a story to life.
Very few projects come together through a single source.
You’re financing a project and also building:
• An Audience
• Advocates
• Early Word of Mouth
• Proof of Concept
• A Community Emotionally Invested in the Film’s Success
The “brick-by-brick” mindset also changes how filmmakers psychologically approach fundraising. Instead of asking, “Who will fund my movie?” the question becomes:
“How do I assemble enough people who believe in this story?”
Interesting strategy for sure!
Sean Hussey If you need $20 million to make a film, you probably need a more defined strategy.
Sean Hussey I really like the psychology behind this approach.
What stands out to me is that it reframes fundraising from a search for a single savior into a process of building relationships and belief. Many filmmakers spend years waiting for one large investor to say yes, when sometimes a project gains more momentum by gathering dozens of smaller supporters who genuinely care about the story.
I also think there's a producing lesson hidden in the "donation brick" idea. Those engraved bricks represent people who wanted to be part of something larger than themselves. In many ways, independent filmmaking works the same way. People don't always invest solely because of financial projections—they invest because they connect with the vision, the filmmaker, the community, or the cultural value of the project.
And as you mentioned, those supporters can become much more than sources of capital. They can become advocates, audience members, future collaborators, and the foundation of a project's early visibility.
The phrase that really resonates with me is: "How do I assemble enough people who believe in this story?" That feels less like fundraising and more like community-building, which is often what independent filmmaking requires in the first place.