First Flights’ cryptocurrency-driven crowdfunding platform FF3, from indie entertainment studio and financier Goldfinch, has launched its second funding project, Bloom, an animated short film that explores themes of loneliness, longing, curiosity wonder and failure, from writer, director and illustrator Zachary Gladwin.
“With Bloom, the immensely talented Zachary has created a captivating and inspirational concept, and there’s no doubt that with his expert filmmaking and illustration background, he possesses the creativity to bring this fantastical story to life,” said Nick Sadler, Founder of First Flights. “Our first project on FF3, The Dead of Winter, quickly exceeded its funding goal, and we’re confident this collaboration will be just as successful and enable us to take the first step into bringing Bloom to audiences.”
Marking FF3’s inaugural animated project, Bloom will be produced by Art Before Comfort, and proceeds raised via FF3 will go towards the film’s production budget. FF3 is a tokenized community-driven funding platform for films that raises money through the allocation of tokens and NFT rewards in exchange for crypto.
The campaign for Bloom is open until December 3, 2022, with a $20,000 minimum target, and patrons will receive tiered rewards including NFTs, behind the scenes access to Gladwin and his animation team, early viewing of the film, access to the production discord and IMDb producer
credits.
Synopsis: After a young teen awakes from a hypnotic trance in a strange land, he must search high and low for a way to escape his lonely existence. Will his curiosity and ingenuity be able to withstand repeated failures and the familiar draw to complacency, or will he find a way to break through his limits and explore the great beyond?
Bloom asks questions such as: What does it take for someone to bloom into their full potential? What holds us back? Is it ever too late to try? It aims to inspire you to stay curious, never give up, and remind you that no one achieves anything alone.
“Bloom is more than a creative endeavor — it’s a personal expression of the challenges I’ve faced as an intuitive queer person growing up in a seemingly dim world,” Gladwin shared. “Creative thinkers, feelers and dreamers, like myself, often face setbacks, fears and failures — doubting that we can achieve our full potential. This film intends to uncover the beauty of imagination, creativity and dreams for those believing that life is nothing more than the limits we’ve been shown.”
Inspired by wonder, magic, myths, legends and fairytales, Zachary Gladwin is an artist and storyteller who lives in the mountains of North Carolina. He has cultivated over 14 years of experience in the film industry, while also working as an independent children’s book illustrator and popular NFT artist.
FF3 is an extension of the First Flights funding program for emerging and established indie filmmakers. Since its inception, First Flights has connected with over 7,000 filmmakers and produced 12 short films in two years. The platform aims to offer three primary benefits to filmmakers: transparency of ownership and revenues through the blockchain, access to untapped crypto funds, and the creation and resale potential of NFTs. As limited edition NFTs can be sold on marketplaces, with a portion of sales going back to the filmmaker, this creates a new monetization channel which will grow with the film’s popularity.
