Crypto is on track to record its first month under $1 billion in sales since June 2021, according to Dapp Radar. OpenSea, the leading NFT marketplace, is down 75% in sales since May and looks set to scrape the lowest levels since July 2021, according to Dune.
Of course, OpenSea is still by far the largest and doing over $14 billion in transactions.
During this downturn, we look to NFT projects that have lasting utility. Over the last 12 months, we have interviewed directors like David Kronenberg and Julie Pacino who have used NFT sales to promote and fund their upcoming films.
Mogul Productions STARS/USD is doing things on a different scale: creating a platform aimed at helping independent filmmakers find their voice and create their content with the fundraising support of Mogul’s platform, which serves as a launchpad for outstanding projects.
In the last week, Mogul has partnered with Beem for distribution on its Web3 online streaming platform. It is launching a new NFT drop to fund the sci-fi blockbuster “Retrogression,” with award-winning filmmaker and actor Anthony Hayes. Mogul partnered with CryptoCart to allow community members to purchase gift cards for traditional retailers with their STARS utility tokens.
Mogul is looking to create a Web3-native way for more creative stories to be told through film and to bring the superfan closer to the production process than ever before. These are big aspirations to meet the needs of a real community of users during a time when the market is making so many projects pull back.
We interviewed Jake Fraser, head of development for Mogul Productions, to learn more about their vision and how they are fulfilling it regardless of crypto winter.
BZ: Who are you serving with Mogul Productions? What problem are you solving?
Fraser: “The primary target market for Mogul is film fans. The problem we’re trying to solve within the film ecosystem is the issue of financing for the many fantastic independent storytellers and filmmakers. So we are creating a platform for film fans and filmmakers. We bring those two groups of people together to produce excellent stories and consume great content.
We are a cross-chain marketplace on Ethereum and BSC (now known as BBN). We also have a utility token called $STARS. They apply to a bunch of different use cases within the ecosystem, everything from buying and selling NFTs to the ability to vote on films. We’ve got staking governance, so that ties everything together.”
BZ: As a launchpad for independent creators, what kinds of projects have you funded?
Fraser: “We’ve worked with three different films that we have launched through the platform. There’s one called ‘Reboot Camp’ we did that was shut down in Los Angeles and had stars like David Kushner and Chaz Bono. There was another film called ‘Bonded’ that we worked with that star Jason Patric, we helped finance that film. It’s currently in distribution. We also did a campaign with Julianne Moore, who donated some red carpet gowns to ‘Gowns for Good.’ We partnered with The Actors Fund, which is a philanthropic organization, and we turned three dresses in the physical form into virtual, 3D NFTs. We raised about $80,000 for charity by selling the NFTs, and so the purchaser got the digital version and the physical designer dress that Moore wore on the red carpet.
One of the main projects we’re working on is called ‘Mogies.’ Mogies is a celebration of 100 years of Hollywood icons. We partnered with animators from ‘The Simpsons’ and ‘King of the Hill’ with big Animation Studio to create a commemorative celebration of Hollywood. There are 1,923 characters, to celebrate the year the Hollywood sign was erected, that represent film and entertainment over the last 100 years. It’s a three-part ecosystem – the first part is the NFT collection, the second part is a Hollywood Metaverse project very similar to Hollywood Boulevard and the third part of that ecosystem and IP is a fully-fledged animated TV show.”
BZ: Is Mogul functioning primarily as a DAO? How much influence does voting have over creators and their projects?
Fraser: “We’re what you could call a hybrid DAO, in that we can enable quadratic voting for people to have a voice in certain elements of the production process. Ultimately, decision-making for a piece of IP is up to whoever owns that film. But the filmmakers bring specific questions to the audience – we can ask them to vote on actors, shooting locations, script changes, and more.
In the last vote, we presented three films, and the winning film got 33,000 votes. Since then, we’ve grown the community to 250,000 people.”
BZ: Are your customers buying because they hope the NFT will gain value or are they looking for access to the filmmaking process?
Fraser: “If you’re going to see your favorite band, you paid $200 for a ticket, you go, and you’re really happy with the experience, you aren’t looking for a return on trying to resell that ticket. We’re creating an entity pass that enables you to get unlockable experiences across all kinds of gated content and virtual and physical events. The resale value is not necessarily there, but it brings fans closer to the action and helps raise financing for great stories.”
BZ: With Mogul, is the intent to create an alternative-funded production company? Or a Web3 ecosystem that produces films?
Fraser: “Initially, it was more of a production company from script to screen. But as we developed the last 18 months, it’s creating an ecosystem and a marketplace where we act as a launchpad. So not necessarily always producing films, but we’re acting as a vehicle for financing.”
BZ: What separates you from other NFT-funded filmmakers?
Fraser: “We’ve seen directors fund films with NFTs, and stuff like that is fantastic. But it’s more like a one-off film or piece of IP that they’re leveraging blockchain technology to raise financing, which is great. Mogul is a platform that enables that on a bigger scale. It’s a multi-sided marketplace, a platform, and ecosystem that’s scalable for the whole industry.”
BZ: Is the vision to democratize the filmmaking process?
Fraser: “The vision for Mogul is to scale out the volume and quality of films and filmmakers that we’re working with, to create a seamless multisided marketplace where we’re the bridge between Web2 and Web3 in film. Even for people who don’t understand what Web2 and Web3 are, we want to position ourselves as the platform for film fans to go and be part of their favorite film or join the process and use cool products for them to enjoy their consumption of entertainment media.
There are so many fantastic talented people that have stories and scripts that just never see the light of day. Unfortunately, unless you’re well connected, getting access to financing or capital can be very difficult. And unless you have that as the first step, you could have the best story in the world, but it’s never going to see the light of day. So I think to answer your question, yes, I think as we democratize the film industry and give more power to the fans, I think that’ll enable fantastic stories and filmmakers for that for their scripts and see the light of day.”
BZ: How do you select films to fund through Mogul?
Fraser: “We’re a curated platform, so everything that we launch on the marketplace is curated. We have a submission portal on our platform where anyone can submit their story or a screenplay. And then we have a team of well-credentialed film and TV producers, mostly in LA, Hollywood and Toronto, that review all the stories and screenplays that get submitted. We create a shortlist of the different films that we think have a great chance for success.”
BZ: Has the downturn in NFTs and crypto affected your productions?
Fraser: “Yes. Well obviously, NFT trading volume is down substantially, like there’s no hiding that. I think, in some ways, that was almost a much-needed correction. But like any market, it will pick back up. For us, nothing’s changed strategically.”
BZ: Do you think it’s a good time for young filmmakers? Are there more options available to them in terms of getting funding than there used to be?
Fraser: “They’re looking at new mediums to get their films being made. And we can see that with a lot of the applicants. So for young filmmakers, I think the answer is yes, definitely – there is new opportunity out there.”
Conclusion
We have been saying it for some time, and all interested parties seem to agree: the future of NFTs is in projects with real utility. This project reminds me of famous music producer Illmind’s Squad of Knights project, which brings together token holders that can share tracks and collaborate on creative projects as part of its ongoing utility, along with IDO launchpads like AdLunam, which uses an Engage to Earn model for users and is one of many funds that lets community members vote on which projects to fund.
I’m in favor of any NFT project that goes beyond art and collectibles to create a real community that has common goals that can be accomplished together. Perhaps someday Mogul’s model will be part of any major film studio or their indie studio’s creative arm. For now, there is real progress that can be made in the film industry, and more independent artists can be platformed with Web3 funding.
Cover image based on image by Gaby Stein from Pixabay.
