Bluestone Goes To Crowd-Funding!

[crwarr]

JUST FOOD FOR THOUGHT BLUE, WITH ONLY 8 VOTES FOR STRANGLING MAYBE YOUR LOOSING STRANGLE/CHOKE FANS WITH ALL THE OTHER ENDINGS??? CRWARR

[Bluestone]

Thanks for your further comments. They are noted. The reason that I can't cut the quality is that it would mean not filming what I am currently doing with this series. If I let the cast and crew go, I would be going back to filming on the cheap, which would mean that I also wouldn't bother with costumes, and simply do the crime videos exclusively. There's no middle ground. I won't be going the route of some other producers and dressing up porn and fetish models in cheap cosplay costumes without displaying their powers just so that I can call them superheroine videos. So, unfortunately, the cost is what it is. $5,000 is the beginning cost. The real or total cost is $10 k per episode. So, I am matching dollar for dollar the funds raised through crowd funding.

Yes, the Supernova Prime campaign has to be successful for us to continue shooting these videos at all. The Darkwing campaign has to be successful for us to hire Yvonne for the shoot.

Here are both campaigns again:

Supernova Prime: Earthbound:
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/supe ... /7769801#/

Darkwing: Ambushed:
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/dark ... /7769801#/

Blue

[Richpartist]

The only fear I have right now is that we are only about 14 days away from the "ending" of the campaign and even though alot of people have given what they can(like me) its only reached a little over 1,000.
Don't really know of any other forums to sell this but of course I want to help out in any way I can.Just the thought of seeing Melody chloroformed and ots is just.....just.............oh I need a cold shower dammit! :)

[Dr Manhattan]

Just a quick question about this. If we pledge to the peril or extreme version, do we have the option of changing our mind when we see what the elements are? Sometimes I like one, sometimes I like the other.

[twd32]

Well, if the regular cost of a video is $10k, and you sell them for less than $25, then I suppose you need to sell at least 500 copies to even break even. I think it's a fair assumption that most of your sales are from returning customers, so it's probably safe to assume the major part of those sales are to people who would like to see you keep producing these videos. So why have the Supernova campaign attracted less than 5% of the regular sales?

I think there are a few factors working against the success of the campaign:

• 1. You're running two of them at the same time.
  I understand that you're doing this to be able to do both shoots at the same time, to reduce costs, but as a potential backer, I do have limited funds. (This is largely mitigated by your clear statement that the Supernova campaign is prioritized.)
  
  2. You're putting out a boat load of (fantastic!) videos at the same time as the campaign is running.
  Assuming your potential backer (let's say me) have limited funds, I'm forced to chose between something I know I want and get it now or something I might want and might get at some point in the future. It's easy to see how funds might go the "wrong" way here.
  
  3. As a backer, I do take a risk. There is no money back. Sure, a failed campaign should afford me store credits, but if there is something in the store that I want for the given price, why haven't I already bought it? What I'm trying to say is that a straight conversion of backing funds into credits doesn't feel quite fair. Some form of rebate, like if you got twice the money invested back in terms of credit on a failed campaign, might make people less hesitant.

EDIT: OK, I went and reread the campaign description. Credits are not limited to Bluestone videos. Removed some invalid speculations above..

This said, I'm a backer. $45, so far.

[Richpartist]

I agree 100 % especially about the "store credit" thing and the limited funds.I've given around $70 and now I'm not sure I can give anymore again with the videos coming out and Christmas coming(working out paydays that can be used and etc..)

[Richpartist]

Basically you guys need richer backers :)

[Fordo007]

Well, if the regular cost of a video is $10k, and you sell them for less than $25, then I suppose you need to sell at least 500 copies to even break even. I think it's a fair assumption that most of your sales are from returning customers, so it's probably safe to assume the major part of those sales are to people who would like to see you keep producing these videos. So why have the Supernova campaign attracted less than 5% of the regular sales?

I think there are a few factors working against the success of the campaign:

• 1. You're running two of them at the same time.
  I understand that you're doing this to be able to do both shoots at the same time, to reduce costs, but as a potential backer, I do have limited funds. (This is largely mitigated by your clear statement that the Supernova campaign is prioritized.)
  
  2. You're putting out a boat load of (fantastic!) videos at the same time as the campaign is running.
  Assuming your potential backer (let's say me) have limited funds, I'm forced to chose between something I know I want and get it now or something I might want and might get at some point in the future. It's easy to see how funds might go the "wrong" way here.
  
  3. As a backer, I do take a risk. There is no money back. Sure, a failed campaign should afford me store credits, but if there is something in the store that I want for the given price, why haven't I already bought it? What I'm trying to say is that a straight conversion of backing funds into credits doesn't feel quite fair. Some form of rebate, like if you got twice the money invested back in terms of credit on a failed campaign, might make people less hesitant.

EDIT: OK, I went and reread the campaign description. Credits are not limited to Bluestone videos. Removed some invalid speculations above..

This said, I'm a backer. $45, so far.

Yeah for me I really want to get the new vids that are out so i can choose saving and buying them or contributing to the campaign, only issue is the campaign doesn't appear to be going well so logic says to just buy the vids I know I want.

Why not wait until all the vids are done and THEN do the campaign so everyone can funnel the money we'd normally use on your superheroinie vids, into the campaign to make them?

[xj900uk]

I've been thinking, Blue & Director B, and I don't believe you are going about this 'crowdfunding' quite the right way.
Perhaps you should talk to Big O and his campaign to get the 'Sandra West Dairies' prepaid - that has been a stunning success and he has succeeded in generating a fair amount of capital each time in advance of production.

[LTerry]

I didn't see this on the wish list at the top of this thread, but I'd be willing to contribute $50 to every video with a facedown death scene, especially if they were wearing the black catsuit, so essentially any video with Catwarrior (any of them), Agent August, or anyone else who wanted to don the outfit. I would also do this for a facedown death scene with Melanie as Supernova. She's a worthy successor to the much-missed and magnificent Danica (whose departure saddens me still), and I'd love to see her in the Supernova outfit facedown and eyes open. Stabbings or shootings are preferred, but a nice strangle from behind as she's on her knees a la Agent August in "Take Back the Night" Darkwing video would also be fantastic.

I'm not sure if this is of interest or possible, but there it is.

LT

[LTerry]

Addendum to the above.

I'd also be interested in contributing $50 on a regular basis, becoming a sort of "patron" I guess, even for the videos in which I was less interested. If I knew that some of the videos would eventually feature some of the material I am interested in, I'd be willing to contribute to the overall health of the superheroines project on a regular basis instead of just the videos I'm more interested in.

[xj900uk]

I know where you are coming from, LTerry. In fact you highlight the main problem with this appeal - everyone has their own particular fetishes or interests. Nothing wrong with that but it is very difficult for Bluestone and Mr B to satisfy all the various requests or preferences (especially on the funding campaign!) in a particular movie.
One possible way round this would be to have multiple endings, to try to (at least) satisfy the top 5 (say!) preferred endings, be-it headshot, strangle, belly shot, face down, de-booting and so forth. I don't know how possible this is, but at least it should be considered.

[LTerry]

I know where you are coming from, LTerry. In fact you highlight the main problem with this appeal - everyone has their own particular fetishes or interests. Nothing wrong with that but it is very difficult for Bluestone and Mr B to satisfy all the various requests or preferences (especially on the funding campaign!) in a particular movie.
One possible way round this would be to have multiple endings, to try to (at least) satisfy the top 5 (say!) preferred endings, be-it headshot, strangle, belly shot, face down, de-booting and so forth. I don't know how possible this is, but at least it should be considered.

Exactly. The appeal seems to be getting too granular, with people willing to fund only what they want to see. In contrast, I'd be willing to fund regularly to maintain the health of the overall project if I knew that I would sometimes get to see what I wanted (Apparently I take my inspiration from the Canadian healthcare model, no offence intended to Mr. Trump's bizarre characterization of it last night). To me it seems like a choice between: 1) fund regularly and get to see what you want sometimes, or; 2) fund only the projects that have something you want to see, thereby making the funding fragmented and inconsistent, contribute to the failure of the project as a result, and end up seeing nothing.

Considering the quality of the videos and the community Blue and his team have created, I think it's not too onerous to consider moving the appeal up a level from funding individual videos to funding the overall superheroine project, even if that means that not every video is exactly to your taste. Some will be, some won't, but the project as a whole will survive.

And yes, I think the multiple endings idea has some merit. I don't know about the logistics of this, but I'd certainly rather see one video with the top 5 multiple endings than the split peril/extreme versions.

Just my rudimentary ideas, and I'm happy to discuss and amend further.

LT

[Bluestone]

Thanks for your ideas, guys.

Everything's being considered, but at present both campaigns seem to have stalled at only a fraction of their goals. I just hope that enough people wake up soon and start pre-buying these videos to at least get them filmed. It would open the door to more videos and satisfying more requests in the future, but if we can't even get support for two video projects starring a couple of our most popular characters and actresses, it doesn't bode well for the future of Bluestone Superheroine Videos. I can see why other producers have simply dropped their quality in order to save their businesses, because there doesn't seem to be enough buyers in this marketplace in order to support high quality productions.

I hope you can all prove me wrong by rescuing these two struggling campaigns.

Supernova Prime: Earthbound:
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/supe ... /7769801#/

Darkwing: Ambushed:
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/dark ... /7769801#/

Blue

[xj900uk]

As I said before when I was talking to LTerry, BLue, I honestly don't believe it's the lack of interest or desire to see and buy more superheroine movies that is stalling these campaigns. It's just that you are being too secular with their contents and going about crowdfunding and pledging support the wrong way.
Honestly, you need to be more dendritic and expansive.