Despite the windy and rainy day, NEXT's Monday session opened with an overcrowded pavilion, full of attendees eager to learn the most they could from Touscoprod's experience.

Its founder and CEO, Nicolas Bailly, held a keynote speech analysing the possibilities and challenges that 2014 may have in store for crowdfunding platforms. Five years ago, Bailly could never have imagined what his small company would be able to achieve in a relatively short period of time: nearly 50,000 members and €3 million in subscriptions, which has been used to produce over 300 films.

But what is the secret of crowdfunding? Almost every participant in the workshop did his or her best to find out, starting from the very basic questions such as: “How do I create a community?”

“A video campaign is the very start of this process,” answered Nicolas. “Simply focus on a short but essential video, preferably with some humour and behind-the-scenes footage, where you state why you need the viewer’s money and how you plan to spend it. To make a long story short, sell your adventure. What your ‘crowd’ wants in return is to be informed step by step about what you are doing, to be part of your project. If you play your cards right, they will come with you and help you through your journey.”

However, Bailly also insisted on the importance of having a clear communication plan and constantly checking the pulse of one’s finances, as it is “all or nothing”. A magazine might give you €10 for a poster and its name in the credits, but its owners have to be sure that the project exists. Social networks play a key role in this sense: uploading your trailer onto YouTube, posting thoughts about your film on Twitter, or sharing snapshots on Instagram and Facebook will help to increase awareness in your “circles”.

“We might call them ‘circles’, and crowdfunders are split into three of them,” concluded Bailly. “The first is our family and close friends: they validate what we do from the start; the second: virtual friends, those who are engaged by our shared content; but the third one is the real deal: people we don't know and who know nothing about us. If we get their attention, we hit the jackpot.”