Crowdfunding tastes blood in China's movie market

"China's movie industry does not lack hot money. Good projects can easily ensure funding and thus need not resort to crowdfunding," said a producer at a Zhejiang-based movie-making company.

"Some (films) launched such projects to expand the movie's fan base and encourage public participation," he said. "What they offer are more like a finance product, which promises fixed return rates instead of making you a shareholder of the film."

Lu said crowdfunding can boost popularity, but such investors usually have no say in a movie's production. Movies that have trouble getting venture capital may also find little luck in crowdfunding, he added.

Industry insiders say it will take a while for China's crowdfunding to grow into a mature fundraising channel to benefit both small investors and businesses. The sector needs better transparency and risk control as well as more success stories to boost public confidence.

"The crowdfunding sector needs to make a fortune before it can tell its success stories," said Li Qunlin, CEO of crowdfunding platform dajiatou.com, adding that the market is still under cultivation and needs time to bloom.

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