Case Study · Documentary
What the Pier
Gave Us
A meditative nature documentary about immigrant feelings, directed by Laura X. Moya. Fully funded on Kickstarter with foundation-first strategy from pre-launch to close.
View the campaignFrom our team
The work behind the raise
The brief. Laura came to us with a deeply personal film, five seasonal vignettes shot at a New York City fishing pier, using nature to express feelings of immigration that are hard to put into words. The story was strong; what it needed was an audience ready to back it on day one and a campaign built to reach a firm $60,000 goal.
Foundation first. Before a single page went live, we built the foundation: a pre-launch interest list, a clear reward ladder (including her original illustrations and the standout Medellín and Outer Banks stay rewards), and a narrative that framed the documentary for both immigrant audiences and environmentally minded backers. We shaped the page so the "why" landed in the first scroll.
Launch and momentum. We timed the launch to convert that warm list immediately, giving the campaign the early momentum Kickstarter rewards. From there it was rigorous, timely follow-up: update cadence, backer communication, reward clarity and press-ready assets, so the campaign never stalled between the opening spike and the final push.
The result. "What the Pier Gave Us" closed fully funded at $60,060 from 212 backers, earning a "Project We Love" spotlight. A film that started as one filmmaker's private way of processing pain reached the finish line with an audience behind it.
In her words
"This film was one of the most personal things I have ever made, and handing part of it over felt frightening. Fund Studio took the weight of the campaign off my shoulders so I could stay focused on the work. They built the audience before we launched, kept every update and reward organised, and never let the momentum drop. We hit our full $60,000 goal, something I honestly wasn't sure was possible. Working with them felt less like hiring a service and more like having a team that believed in the film as much as I did."
Have a film that deserves this?
We take a small number of campaigns end to end, foundation to finish.