René Pinnell : 100x Times more art
The emergence of augmented reality and virtual reality requires a change in methods of financing and distribution, according to René Pinnell, co-founder of the Kaleidoscope marketplace. At the NewImages Festival 2019, René explains how can Kaleidoscope invent a new system of financing XR projects.
“Why we don’t see more private investors putting money into art and entertainment projects the same way we see it happening with start-ups” although provocative, René Pinnell’s this question is no less relevant. “Culture creates an open mind. It is the basis of our interactions” says the co-founder of Kaleidoscope, the international funding platform for immersive arts and entertainment. “The number of creations should be 100x times more. “
With the foundation of Kaleidoscop in 2014 René Pinell faced one major challenge: the difficulty of financing and distributing augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) works. “Our approach is a rationalization to accelerate the financing of projects and as well as negotiations with artists on the one side and industrialists, investors or cultural institutions on the other. “
For René Pinnell, the current entertainment industry is fragmented, siloed & mostly offline. “It’s inefficient: artists require networking to succeed while private investors have limited access to top art and entertainment projects which generate most of the returs.” “Meanwhile Hollywood prefers to operate under its own rules: “unethical Hollywood” accounting and lack of transparency meaning that is very difficult for the investors to receive their share of the profit”
“We are building a new model of fundraising in Kaleidoscope” what AngelIist did for startups Kaleidoscope will do for creative projects like movies video games and VR/AR experiences. The platform, which has nearly 2,000 users, has already financed nearly 500 projects for 25 million euros. For example, Battlescar, an animated film presented at the Tribeca and Sundance American festivals in 2018, was supported by Kaleidoscope.
The financial capital represents the profits, rights or the values of the studio. Emotional capital is the commitment via crowfunding, the sales of premium subscriptions or of limited editions. While the fine art market is the only model that values the cultural impact.
By creating Kaleidoscope Marketplace we take the best of above listed models and make a hybrid model – cultural crowdfunding “we allow creators to raise money for new work by selling limited editions of their project directly to fan, collectors and investors.”
Kaleidoscope sees much more for the future. “We believe
that investing in art must be both emotionally and financially rewarding,” explains René Pinnell.