Berkshire Film and Media Collaborative (BFMC) and Nonprofit Center of the Berkshires will officially launch their new initiative, the Community Film Fund, at a benefit dinner at Chez Nous, 150 Main Street in Lee, MA on Wednesday, February 12th. Dinner will be served from 5:00pm – 9:00pm. The Community Film Fund is a matching fund to help Berkshire region nonprofits create impactful videos for their branding, marketing and social media. Details of the fund will be announced and 15% of the evening’s proceeds will go to the new Fund thanks to the generosity of Chez Nous (merci)!
In today’s world, video messaging is becoming increasingly important. Wordstream, an online advertising company, states that the average user spends 88% more time on a website with video. Viewers retain 95% of a message when they watch it in a video compared to 10% when reading it in text. An initial email with a video receives an increase click-through rate by 96%.
Yet, according to BMFC’s Executive Director, Diane Pearlman, “Many times, this essential tool is cut from a nonprofit’s budget. The Community Film Fund will help give a “voice” through video to our smaller nonprofit organizations, as well as create jobs for professional filmmakers in our area.”
BFMC has raised an initial $25,000 to launch the Fund. Information, guidelines as well as links to local filmmakers will be available on the BFMC website on February 14, 2020.
Liana Toscanini, Executive Director of the Nonprofit Center of the Berkshires, says video is one of the most wished-for marketing tools in the nonprofit world. “Those who can’t afford to create a professional piece are at a disadvantage because digital storytelling directly impacts fundraising,” says Toscanini. “If you don’t tell your story, people don’t open their checkbooks!”
To make dinner reservations for the February 12th benefit, visit https://cheznousbistro.com/events or call 413.243.6397
Special thanks to the Community Film Fund major sponsors: Black Rock Foundation, GWFF, Jadana Productions, Jayne Atkinson & Michel Gill, Berkshire Bank, Sikalia Productions, Karen Zink, John Lawrence Ré, Greylock Federal Credit Union and the Massachusetts Cultural Council.
For more information about the Berkshire Film and Media Collaborative and the Community Film Fund, go to www.berkshirefilm.org or call 413.528.4223. For more information about the Nonprofit Center of the Berkshires, go to https://npcberkshires.org or call 413.645.3151.