(NEW YORK — OCTOBER 28, 2021) — Today, Kickstarter is pleased to announce that Creative Capital and Skoll Foundation have partnered to launch a $500,000 Creative Capital x Skoll Creator Fund that backs projects by Asian, Black, Indigenous, and Latinx creators on the crowdfunding platform. Effective immediately, funds will be awarded on an ongoing basis to creators with active projects across all of Kickstarter’s categories: Arts, Comics & Illustration, Design & Tech, Film, Food & Craft, Games, Music, and Publishing.

As the largest crowdfunding platform for cultural projects, Kickstarter supports the success of thousands of new creative ideas every year and provides an opportunity for the public to counter larger structural inequities in how capital is distributed. However, research studies suggest that Black, Latinx, Asian, and Indigenous communities face larger barriers on crowdfunding platforms, be it via access to community support or early investment to begin a proof of concept.

“Since Kickstarter was founded, it has challenged traditional, outdated structures of cultural patronage and funding. This fund is a major opportunity for us to take that work even further and push for racial equity in the creative economy,” says Patton Hindle, Kickstarter’s Head of Arts.

The mission of the Creative Capital x Skoll Creator Fund is to increase the number of funded Kickstarter projects launched by Asian, Black, Indigenous, and Latinx creators through removing early financial hurdles. These funds will help bring more of their creative projects to life in the world, creating a more diverse and equitable artistic ecosystem overall.

“Creative Capital believes that investing in projects at catalytic moments by creators of color can lead to transformative cultural and social impact. We’re honored to extend our venture philanthropy approach and infrastructure to fund innovative artists via this inspiring new partnership,” says Christine Kuan, Creative Capital President & Executive Director.

To select fund recipients, Creative Capital, Kickstarter, and Skoll Foundation will work closely together to continually review active projects by Asian, Black, Indigenous, and Latinx creators on the platform. The final selections will ultimately be made by Creative Capital and Skoll Foundation.

As part of the partnership, Kickstarter’s category experts will offer strategic guidance throughout each of the selected projects’ runs and Creative Capital will offer its extensive artist career development programming to the creators after they have successfully funded their project. Kickstarter will regularly promote the chosen creators on its platform, highlighting who has been funded and including them in promotional efforts through newsletters and social media.

ABOUT CREATIVE CAPITAL

Creative Capital is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to fund artists in the creation of groundbreaking new work, to amplify the impact of their work, and to foster sustainable artistic careers. Founded in 1999, Creative Capital pioneered a transformative grant-making model that marries direct funding to individual artists with infrastructure and scaffolding support. Our pioneering efforts have impacted not just artists, but the arts ecosystem as a whole. The Creative Capital model of philanthropy has inspired countless other nonprofits investing in the long-term, sustainable careers of artists. More than 75% of our recent awardees are Black, Indigenous, Latinx, Asian, or artists of color representing a wide range of age groups, artistic disciplines, and regions. Our awardees have received prestigious honors and other accolades, including: 127 Guggenheim Fellowships, 19 MacArthur “Genius” Fellowships, 3 Academy Awards and 13 nominations, and 1 Booker Prize. www.creative-capital.org

ABOUT SKOLL FOUNDATION

Jeff Skoll created The Skoll Foundation in 1999 to pursue his vision of a sustainable world of peace and prosperity. Led by CEO Sally Osberg since 2001, its mission is to drive large scale change by investing in, connecting and celebrating social entrepreneurs and the innovators who help them solve the world’s most pressing problems. By identifying the people and programs already creating positive change, Skoll Foundation empowers them to extend their reach, deepen their impact and fundamentally improve society.

Over the past 12 years, the Foundation has awarded more than $400 million, including investments in 122 social entrepreneurs and 100 organizations on five continents. In addition to grant-making, the Foundation funds a $20 million+ portfolio of program-related and mission-aligned investments. Skoll also operates the annual Skoll World Forum, the premier conference on social entrepreneurship, and shares the stories of social entrepreneurs through partnerships with leading film and broadcast organizations including the PBS NewsHour and the Sundance Institute, to drive awareness of social entrepreneurship and its potential to address the critical issues of our time. www.skoll.org

ABOUT KICKSTARTER

Kickstarter’s mission is to help bring creative projects to life. We believe that art and creative expression is essential to a healthy and vibrant society, and the space to create it requires protection. We don’t want art world elites and entertainment executives to define our culture; we want creative people—even those who’ve never made anything before—to take the wheel. We help creators connect directly with their communities, putting power where it belongs. We are so committed to our mission, we wrote it into our business model. In 2015 we became a Public Benefit Corporation—a for-profit company that prioritizes positive outcomes for society as much as our shareholders. We updated our corporate charter to lay out specific goals and commitments to put our values into our operations, promote arts and culture, fight inequality, and help creative projects happen. www.kickstarter.com

 

KICKSTARTER PRESS CONTACT

Jill Robinson
Associate Director, Cultural Counsel
[email protected]