Financing projects and making films more immersive are some of the ways in which the non-fungible tokens (NFTs) could potentially revolutionise the film industry, as per a report by Rediffusion Consumer Lab (Redlab).
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The ‘Web 3.0- A New Revolution in the world of Indian Cinema’ report states that Salman Khan ventured into the NFT space when he launched a series of 200 NFTs based on the Dabang film series, and this was followed by multiple actors from south Indian cinema riding the wave. It states that VistaVerse partnered with ‘Rocketry – The Nambi Effect’ to introduce some NFTs in the metaverse. This partnership resulted in creating history by becoming the first Indian film with 10,000 NFTs claimed.
There are several ways in which NFTs could potentially revolutionise the film industry:
- Finance Projects Assistance: NFTs can be utilised to crowdfund film projects. By selling NFTs associated with a film or an actor, filmmakers can raise money to finance their project. This could be done in a number of ways, such as selling an NFT giving its holder the access to exclusive BTS content. Like Kamal Haasan’s new movie, Vikram, is the vehicle being used to launch the digital sphere. VistaVerse is behind this NFT and it at present has several partnerships in place with production houses, celebrities, influencers, gaming firms, musicians and brands to strengthen the backbone of its new Metaverse.
- Making Films More Immersive: The way films are viewed is going to be changed by Metaverse, and NFTs will play a big role in the same, as they can potentially be used to create more immersive experiences and potentially allow viewers to become part of the storytelling experience. NFTs would be a game changer since they could let artists go directly to individuals for support.
NFTs, in short, give artists the opportunity to keep their creative freedom while establishing a continuous revenue source that is supported by a loyal audience.
- Access to the Collaborative Economy: A new method of conducting business based on sharing resources and expertise is commonly referred to as the “Collaborative Economy”. Through NFTs, collaborative and participatory methods of filmmaking could be established.
For instance, filmmakers could provide their audiences with a new way to support the movies they love in addition to giving filmmakers access to the funding they need to create their movies.
- NFTs as an additional source of Income: NFTs gave a very important boost to the industry when movies did not do very well in theatres. Using blockchain technology, fans may relive their most treasured artistic and cinematic moments.
- NFTs as investment: Another aspect of the cinema and NFT convergence is the resale value. Fans can exchange NFTs in a thriving market in addition to owning them.
It goes on to state that there are tons of innovative possibilities such as interactive simultaneous viewing experiences possible within the Metaverse where friends and even strangers can go for a movie night where they could possibly witness each other’s emotional reactions and even chat about the movie in a virtual space using their own personalised avatars after the movie.
Web3 is poised to shake up every stage of film production, from financing through to distribution — and there are filmmaking pioneers already making use of Web3 to fix long-standing problems with the industry. A curated NFT commerce platform called Metascreen has debuted a selection of 26 distinct NFTs as movie tickets for the first time ever in the Metaverse.
The 26 distinct NFTs have a feature that allows users to access the material on the Metascreen platform and also feature a distinctive design that pays homage to Indian cinema history.
“With the advent of Web 3.0 and NFT’s, the Indian cinema may undergo a tectonic shift which may lead the ‘Indian Cinematic Universe’ into new and interesting bevy of trends. Us, Indians are known to have a very close and intimate relationship with cinema. We just adore and love our actors and sometimes even worship them. Think of Rajnikanth; he has a temple dedicated to him, or as a matter of fact, Sonu Sood who has one too. For us, cinema is like a piece of heritage, a part of our identities and a part of our personas. So, what can be better than actually owning an NFT which represents our heritage and celebrates our beloved actors, films, directors, screenwriters, producers and the rest to etch “Indian Cinema” and its emotions in our constantly beating hearts?” said Sandeep Goyal Managing Director, Rediffusion.