Zach Braff has received a lot of criticism for his decision to fund his next film using Kickstarter. Critics complained that the Scrubs star was cheating the system when he chose to get public funding for his project instead of going through the traditional studio system. However, as Braff said on The Howard Stern Show, he wasn't able to get the movie funded because he is not an international box office draw and that's what producers are looking for when they fund movies.
The main complaint from critics was that Braff was taking away from projects that really needed public support to get made. Many said that Braff's decision to start a Kickstarter would lead to other successful stars joining the site and take money from projects that actually need it. In defense of his decision, Braff said that he chose to make the Kickstarter because he wanted final cut on the project. He reports that he would not be able to make the final edits on his film if he funded his project through traditional means.
However, fans of the actor/director work seemed undeterred by the criticism. Braff's Kickstarter ended up receiving its goal and then some. Within one month the project earned over $3 million. That put the feature $1 million over its goal. In total, the project received over 46,000 backers.
Those who funded the project were rewarded the chance to check out early screenings of the film, visit the set during the production and have the chance to be a featured extra on the movie.
The film, Wish I Was Here, is being pegged as a spiritual sequel to Braff's first film Garden State. It will follow the story of a father who decides to home-school his children after no longer being able to afford private school. Wish I Was Here has already cast Kate Hudson (Almost Famous), Josh Gad (The Book of Mormon) and Mandy Patinkin (Homeland). It was written by Braff and his brother and marks Braff's second directorial effort.
Braff decided to take his project to Kickstarter after the success that the TV show Veronica Mars found on the site. The beloved TV show took to Kickstarter after years of attempting to get funding for a movie through traditional means. Veronica Mars: The Movie (working title) quickly gained funding on the site even though the show was cancelled over seven years ago.