Crowd-funding an Emmy-award winning short film through audience participation
The Emmy-winning anime White Rabbit, co-directed by world-builder Maciej Kuciara and pioneering creative technologist Emily Yang (pplpleasr) and currently on view in SUBMERGE: Beyond the Render, did not win “Outstanding Innovation in Emerging Media Programming” just because of its storybook anime style and mesmerizing scenery.
The artists began the project without much resources, “just conviction and the skills to make about a minute of animation.” Rather than releasing the clip in isolation, Maciej and Emily engineered a ‘Choose Your Own Adventure’ mechanic where, using digital currency, users voted what direction they wanted the story to take.
These decisions were more than opinions. Viewers were turned into not just fans, but active producers, directly connected to the development of the story in real-time.
As each chapter was released, fans voted, waiting months for the next installation as the story developed in real-time.
This innovative participatory model allowed the artists to allocate the tokens staked to actual production costs, facilitating the creative process without the reliance on a big studio.
“White Rabbit began as a proof of concept — not just for a film, but for a new way of creating…Three years later, we have a fully crowdfunded, grassroots film that never would’ve existed if we’d gone the traditional route.”
– Emily Yang (pplpleasr) + Maciej Kuciara
Maciej Kuciara >
Maciej Kuciara is a Polish artist and director whose two decades in visual storytelling span concept art, animation, and world-building for The Last of Us, Spider-Man: No Way Home, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, and more. He co-directed White Rabbit, an Emmy award-winning anime, as well as films such as MECHA and Linkin Park’s “Lost”.
Emily Yang> (pplpleasr)
Emily Yang, professionally known as pplpleasr, is a multidisciplinary artist and technologist whose work bridges anime, video games, and traditional Asian art. A Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree, Yang co-directed the Emmy award-winning anime, White Rabbit, and has collaborated with the likes of Kering, Sotheby’s, Steve Aoki, and Vogue.
