Zach Braff Kickstarter for 'Wish I Was Here'
Zach Braff is taking a page from the Veronica Mars playbook. The Garden State director is going the Kickstarter route in an effort to fund Wish I Was Here.
While Braff tried to go through normal equity financing channels but felt that route sacrificed too much artistic license and, most notably, less control over casting and final cut, reports EW.
"Financing an independent film the traditional way often means having to give away your right to "the final cut," casting choices, location choices and cutting down your script to make it shoot-able on the cheapest budget possible," Braff wrote on his project's Kickstarter page. "What if there is a different way."
When Rob Thomas and Kristen Bell turned to Kickstarter and the Veronica Mars fan base in an effort to fund their upcoming movie, they found unparallel success. Planning on raise $2 million, the project wound up with $5.7 million. Although Braff was reportedly about to sign a deal for equity financing, the director took inspiration from the Veronica Mars success, reports The Hollywood Reporter.
According to Kickstarter, the story, written by Braff and his brother Adam, focuses on a daydreaming, struggling actor, Aidan, and his family. When Aidan's father can no longer afford to send his two children to private school, the actor attempts home schooling only to find that winds up teaching and learning more about life than standard curriculum.
Larry Sher is slated to shoot the film (Garden State, The Hangover), Judy Becker will handle the production design (Garden State, Silver Linings Playbook), and Stacey Sher and Michael Shamberg, also of Garden State will produce.
Incentives to back the project include a weekly production diary from Braff for a contribution of $10 to a chance to have a line in the movie for $10,000. Looking to raise $2 million by May 24, the project has received over $1,100,000 in its first day alone.
