Jordan Bernhardt

Arcata, CA (USA)
Role(s):
Associate/Staff

Montana Motion Picture Cooperative, Inc.

Find More Startups Startup
Location: Arcata
Industry: Entertainment
Year Founded: 2003
Number Employees: 50-100 people
Description: The Montana Motion Picture Cooperative, Inc. was created in 2003 to produce the independent feature film MUSIC OF DESIRE. David Scheerer, the company’s founder and a veteran independent filmmaker created this cooperative in a groundbreaking attempt to change the landscape of independent film financing. The core mission of the cooperative provides that each member, whether a financial contributor, a crewmember, an actor, or a donor of equipment or services is guaranteed a share in the revenue stream of the film in perpetuity. Each share is valued at its percentage of the final bottom-line cost of the film. The current budget of $750,000.00 includes $250,000.00 in cash to pay for the hard costs necessary to prepare the film for festival play and distribution. $150,000 cash and $500,000 in labor, services, materials and equipment have already been raised to create the 30 hours of Super 16mm film already in the can. For each additional $7,500.00 increment in contribution, a subscription agreement valued at 1% is created for the contributor (with incremental percentages valued accordingly). If the film sells for one million dollars then a 1% share will be paid $10,000.00. If the film sells for ten million, then the share will be paid $100,000.00. With this model, all contributions (cash, donated time, donated services or donated equipment) are treated uniformly. This is the first production mode that effectively challenges Hollywood’s traditional corporate, top-down system by equitably allowing the artists who create the work to own it. It is an idea whose time has come.