Filmmakers Bet on Web3 to Fix Hollywood Film Financing

Cutter Hodierne knew the odds were against him. As an independent filmmaker trying to secure funding for “Cold Wallet,” a crypto thriller about a heist gone wrong, he faced the usual hurdles—hesitant investors, an unpredictable industry, and a financing system that favored big studios over fresh voices.

“In Hollywood’s centralized model, breaking in is difficult,” he said. “You never know if you met the right person, if your script was overlooked, or if your work is truly considered.”

So instead of taking the traditional route, he turned to the decentralized film industry. Often referred to as Film3, it leverages blockchain technology, community voting, and cryptocurrency to fund movies, and television series. Unlike the traditional Hollywood system, which relies on centralized studios, agents, and intermediaries, Film3 lets filmmakers connect directly with their audiences and financing.

Hodierne put 10 minutes of his film up on the Decentralized Pictures website for review, where a community of producers, writers, investors, and film buffs got a look at his sizzle reel. In exchange for reviewing the clip, they earned $FILM, Decentralized Pictures’ token, which the studio says is “fuel for the platform. Users can stake them on their favorite projects, use them to pay others to review their own submissions (as a rewards pool), or simply purchase entry vouchers to pay for application fees for various creative financing rewards.”

One reviewer in particular was especially struck by the clip: “Steven Soderbergh, the king of the heist genre, gave us his blessing,” said Hodierne.

Soderbergh invested in the film, and Decentralized Pictures followed on with a grant, giving “Cold Wallet” enough money to make Hodierne’s movie. Now screening as a “Steven Soderbergh Presents” project, the movie is at select theaters and available for rent or purchase on Apple and Amazon Prime Video, and has garnered respectable reviews.

“Hopefully, it connects with viewers,” Hodierne said. “What excites me most is that you can rent and buy it on-chain with crypto—it’s highly appropriate.”

It’s another big step in the journey of the dominant studios in the Film3 movement, Decentralized Pictures and Gala Films, which have more than 60 movies and TV series in the works.

“We’re building the studio of the future,” said Decentralized Pictures co-founder Roman Coppola, a member of the Coppola filmmaking family. “At our company, American Zoetrope, and in my dad’s work, we value community and a cafe culture where people come together, share ideas, and compare notes.”

Coppola and others pointed out that just as important as community participation is the decentralized funding model that can support filmmakers, particularly those with distinctive voices and meaningful stories to tell, by allowing them to bypass industry hierarchies.

“The term we’ve been using—DeFiFi, decentralized film finance—represents a shift in film funding,” Stacy Spikes, co-founder of movie subscription platform MoviePass said during an interview with Decrypt at ETH Denver. “Distribution companies will still be needed to push films into the marketplace, but until now, back-end participation wasn’t possible. With smart contracts, it is.”

The idea is already gaining traction. In 2024, Film3 made history when actress Mena Suvari earned a Primetime Emmy nomination for her role in “RZR,” a sci-fi series created by David Bianchi’s Exertion3 Films in collaboration with the blockchain-powered streaming platform Gala Film.

Spikes likened the potential of decentralized filmmaking to past independent and genre film movements.

“If you go with the community—particularly black and brown communities or genre films—Web3 is a great place to tap into,” Spikes said. “I feel that people who were hesitant to invest will now be more likely to do so because they know they’ll get their money back.”

Hodierne also noted that by eliminating distributors and sales agents, all proceeds go directly to the filmmakers and Decentralized Pictures, allowing them to reinvest in independent artists and future projects.

“As a filmmaker, I’ve seen how centralized and fickle the industry is. This shift is a big deal, especially as streaming platforms pay artists less while struggling themselves,” he said. “It’s an exciting convergence for films, and for ‘Cold Wallet,’ a crypto thriller, this feels like the perfect first step in opening that door.”