Need a business plan? Want to do crowd funding but not sure how? Need crew or talent but don’t know where to find them? Then stay tuned.
Beginning in 2020 IMN will provide online resources for you to learn the funding trade and get the resources you need to get your story made.
Need a fiscal agent?
Join Independent Media Network and become an artist working for good. You will benefit from our 501 (C) 3 status set up to fund media artists working for the public good.
Memberships
Become a member of IMN and vote on which artist project receives funding from our general fund. And, just like the President – you can vote for yourself.
Help us help you.
IMN is a 501 (C) 3 non-profit member organization. We serve as fiscal agent for Media Artists. We offer resources to help artists fund their work. You donation helps us help you. Thank you. Are you in?
“If you put passion and organization together, we can overcome any of these candidates who have all the money but really lack ideas… The middle class is decimated. It’s time for a new movement in this country – the justice movement.” —Rocky Anderson
In a September 2011 Gallup poll 55% of those polled supported the idea that a third major party is needed on the American political scene. According to Gallup, “Despite American’s attitudes, no third-party candidate who garners a significant level of support has emerged….” In most countries several political party candidates are voted upon during presidential elections.
In the summer of 2011 Rocky worked with Ralph Nader, Daniel Ellsberg, and Author, Chris Hedges planning democratic primary campaigns to oppose Obama for the Democratic Party nomination.
These challenges in state primaries would serve two purposes: To push President Obama on issues needing more attention than a middle of the road approach and challenge the President on his right of the road stance during Democratic primaries and debates. By giving the President opportunities to debate during the year during Democratic Primaries the group felt the Democratic Party would get more airtime with media so as not to fall behind Republicans while they embarked in televised debates.
Although a promising idea, one by one potential primary candidates bowed out of the plan except Rocky. Then executive director of High Road for Human Rights, a non-profit that he started after leaving the Mayor’s office, Rocky began pitching the idea of a new political party. Anderson hoped to attract disenchanted members of both parties, independents, and Occupy members with the help of social media.
When Rocky formed his party those powerful liberals he had felt were behind him, excepting Ralph Nader, deserted him. Even Luke, Rocky’s son would not support his father’s endeavor.
As we follow Rocky Anderson on his quixotic quest building the Justice Party, we experience first hand the difficulties of third-party creation. As he meets with his initial steering committee in Washington, DC we film as it falls apart when members can’t agree on whether to use Roberts Rules of order or “twinkle” hand signals used by Occupy.
Rocky trudges on, with us being the fly on the wall during his campaign travels. A Charismatic Candidate. Rocky’s optimism inspires youth ready for action, cable news media and women of all ages.
Young web savvy volunteers begin building a foundation of party members using Facebook and Twitter. The doldrums of the never-ending Republican Debates give cable news impetus to seek out new blood — Rocky becomes a frequent guest to liven up the political news shows. Rocky travels across the country campaigning in coffee shops schools and churches. As a single man, Rocky, with his Jimmy Stewart drawl, attracts middle-aged and younger women nationwide to volunteer for his campaign. With no campaign finances, volunteers often camped at Rocky’s home.
Rocky becomes one of the top four candidates in the Americans Elect online campaign. His party gets on the ballot in 15 states; he is nominated for other parties already on the ballot in another 10 states. The Justice Party achieves write in status in all but four states for which he was not on the ballot. His campaign raises $84,000 (Rocky refuses all corporate donations and caps donations to $100 from any individual).
When Americans Elect cancels their online campaign half way through campaign season, third-party candidates had to work harder to galvanize support. In the fall of 2012 Rocky Anderson and Jill Stein (Green Party’s Candidate) were invited to debate Obama and Romney via a Democracy Now special broadcast. The show, which streamed online and aired on Link TV, used time delay to allow Anderson and Stein to answer the same questions posed to Obama and Romney. Democracy Now aired shows for all three Presidential Debates and the Vice-Presidential Debate. Over 20,000 viewers watched the debates stream online.
In October 2012 Larry King moderated a televised debate hosting the four top third-party candidates in Chicago. Included where Libertarian Party’s Gary Johnson, the Green Party’s Jill Stein, the Constitution Party’s Virgil Good and the Justice Party’s Rocky Anderson. The debate was broadcast on Link TV, Al Jazeera English and C-Span.
Viewers wondered where these candidates had been during the past year – they finally were getting media attention and speaking about issues American’s wanted addressed, but were missing from the two-party horse race.
On November 3rd Ralph Nader moderated a debate with the same top four third-party candidates at Busboys and Poets, Washington, DC. During an interview after the debate Nader said he believed Rocky Anderson is the Nation’s greatest hope for a progressive candidate that could go the distance and possibly get real attention in 2016. But that’s another show.
Independent Media Network, a 501 (c) 3 private, nonprofit corporation, acts as a fiscal sponsor for media artists seeking funding from corporate or foundation sponsors.
Our Mission
IMN’s mission is to assist media artists in funding and distribution of projects created for the public good. As a fiscal sponsor, IMN’s nonprofit status enables the movement of resources from funders and donors to projects, activities, ideas, and organizations that share our mission but otherwise would not be able to receive tax-exempt donations for their projects.
Non-profit tax-exempt status is required by many foundations, corporations and government agencies in order to be eligible for funding since many do not accept application proposals from individuals. Additionally, 501(c) 3 status allows you to receive charitable deductible contributions from individuals—a major incentive for individuals considering making a donation to your project.
Fiscal Sponsor
As a fiscal sponsor, IMN acts as a non-profit tax-exempt umbrella organization that accepts and administers contributions made to your project. IMN is legally responsible for the funds received on behalf of fiscally sponsored projects and must ensure that the funds are used for charitable activities, as agreed upon between the donor and recipient, and that the donor reporting requirements are met and in a timely fashion.
IMN serving as a fiscal sponsor does not mean that we are your producers, fundraisers, or in any way connected to the content or actual production of your project. All artistic and proprietary rights, title, interest in and to the completed project will belong to the Project Director and may be copyrighted in the Project Director’s name.
Our Fees
In order to serve as a fiscal sponsor we set up financial and database files to keep track of your project; acknowledge contributions to donors for tax purposes; prepare End-of-the-Year reports. For this service we charge a 5% fee for all grants, with the exception of the National Endowment for the Humanities and State Humanities Council grants (for which we charge 7% due to the additional administrative costs involved).
Citizen Rocky (working title) is currently in post-production. Produced by Gavry Monroe Productions, LLC, the feature-length documentary follows former Salt Lake City Mayor and 2012 Justice Party Presidential Candidate Rocky Anderson as he seeks environmental justice, social justice and economic justice. $80,000 cash funded; $200,000 in-kind funded.
As your fiscal sponsor, IMN acts as a non-profit tax-exempt umbrella organization that accepts and administers contributions made to your project.
For this service we charge a 5% fee for all grants, with the exception of the National Endowment for the Humanities and State Humanities Council grants (for which we charge 7% due to the additional administrative costs involved).
IMN is legally responsible for the funds received on behalf of fiscally sponsored projects and must ensure that the funds are used for charitable activities, as agreed upon between the donor and recipient, and that the donor reporting requirements are met and in a timely fashion.
Acting as your fiscal sponsor does not mean that we are your producers, fundraisers, or in any way connected to the content or actual production of your project.
All artistic and proprietary rights, title, interest in and to the completed project will belong to the Project Director and may be copyrighted in the Project Director’s name.
If IMN approves your request for fiscal sponsorship, we will require a copy of each funding request you are making using IMN as a fiscal sponsor.
If the funding request is approved by IMN as fitting our mission guidelines, we will then create a cover letter for you to attach to the funding request.
When the funder agrees to fund your project, IMN will help administer the funding for your project.
We will create an account for you and all monies contributed to your project will be placed in this account.
When you are ready to start using the funds for your project you will submit a payment request to IMN for the funds. Upon receipt of the request we will send a payment to the Project Director.
Checks are only made payable to Project Directors, a production company or another individual. Disbursements are made to one name only per project. You are responsible for paying your vendors and consultants with these funds.
You must keep track of all your expenses connected with the project and submit Disbursement Expense Reports to IMN with copies of receipts and invoices after each disbursement is made to you.
You also agree to spend funds administered to you by IMN in accordance with the budget approved by IMN and your funder. An annual narrative and financial report has to be filed with IMN at the end of each year.
You must also file reports to your funders in accordance with their guidelines and deadlines.
As a fiscal sponsor, we are legally responsible for the funds received on behalf of your sponsored project.
We must insure that the project uses the funds for non-commercial charitable activities in accordance with the agreed upon terms between the donor and your project, and that the donor reporting requirements are met by the project in a timely fashion.
In order to do this, we set up financial and database files to keep track of your project; acknowledge contributions to donors for tax purposes; prepare End-of-the-Year reports.
For this service we charge a 5% fee for all grants, with the exception of the National Endowment for the Humanities and State Humanities Council grants (for which we charge 7% due to the additional administrative costs involved).
Hopefully this information is helpful to you in understanding how a fiscal sponsorship works. Please let me know if I can answer any questions if you want to move forward with a fiscal sponsorship through Independent Media Network.
A respected member of a middle-class community is accused by his children of sexual abuse. He denies the charges. Whom do we believe? Rhea Gavry uses a gut-wrenching case set in a comfortable suburb of Salt Lake City as a context for a timely reexamination of our attitudes toward the accused and the accuser when sex is part of the equation. ISBN 1559743794
This startling documentary examines the Hadfield child abuse case in Lehi, Utah. In 1987, Allan Hadfield was convicted of numerous counts of sexually abusing his own children and otherchildren in the Lehi community. For his crimes, Hadfield received the lightest allowable sentence, a ten-year probation. Despite the children’s testimony, community support for Hadfield was nearly unanimous. The local press portrayed the prosecution’s case as being based on hysterical fantasies drawn out of the children by incompetent therapists. The program probes this disturbing and complex case and analyzes how society’s attitudes about sexual abuse color its response towards victims. The influence of Freudian theory on society’s views of abuse is also discussed, illustrating the sometimes powerful tendency to deny truths to ugly to contemplate.
Promise Not To Tell –Broadcast as part of the 1992 P.O.V. Television Series on National PBS. This one-hour television special examines prevailing public policy and society’s response to child sexual abuse. Rated as “Best Bet” for day of nationwide broadcast by New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Chicago Sun-Times and others. Has been re-broadcast by several PBS affiliates in the United States and was selected for screening at INPUT International, Bristol, England and the AFI Women in Film Festival.
