Director Mitzi Peirone's debut movie, a psychological thriller called Braid, claims to be the first major feature film to be fully funded through an equity crowdsale using Ethereum cryptocurrency.
The official website for the movie says, "The first psychothriller funded by cryptocurrency."
Braid partnered with the blockchain company ConsenSys to utilize the latter's WeiFund open-source Ethereum-based crowdfunding platform to raise the projected $1.4 million to produce the film.
A post on reddit by WeiFund team says, "WeiFund is debuting our crowdfunding platform in partnership with the feature film, Braid. Braid will be the first US feature film to be financed using Ethereum-based crowdfunding. Using our bug-bountied smart contracts, WeiFund will help Braid raise funds and distribute 30% of their profits to token holders."
Braid will set a new precedent for independent film finance by using an ICO funding model to disrupt the traditional film financing models.
The Braid crowdsale enabled and incentivized thousands of people to become investors and promoters of the film. Investors will receive 30 percent of the future profits of the film.
The Braid team set out in June to raise a minimum of $1.4 million and maximum of $2.1 million worth of Ether in exchange for 30 percent of the future profits of the film. The Braid crowdsale is said to have raised $1.7 million in just under two weeks.
Some reports suggest that the Braid team attributed the success of the crowdsale to timing. The sale began just six months before Bitcoin hit the $19,000 mark at the heights of the crypto fever. The funds soared nearly tenfold as bitcoin was only trading at about $2,700 in July. Film-makers have traditionally relied upon investments from wealthy Hollywood financiers or donation-based crowdfunding sites such as Kickstarter or Indiegogo. Often large investors strip young directors of creative freedom and are focused on the bottom line instead of artistic ingenuity.
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June 12, 2026 17:14 ET Major central bank action was the focus this week in economic news. The European Central Bank became the first major central bank to move in response to the rising inflationary pressures in the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East. In North America, the U.S. inflation and trade data as well as Canada’s central bank decision gained attention. The Chinese trade data was the main news in Asia.