Trailers for Non-Existent 'Iron Sky' Used to Snag Financing

Wired is reporting that those great 'Iron Sky' trailers were for a movie that had not been shot and were only used to snag financing.

Thanks to a pair of knock-out fake trailers, a team of Finnish filmmakers will soon start shooting an outlandish sci-fi Nazi movie financed in part by fans who flipped over the clips.

The first teaser for Iron Sky, embedded below, has pulled more than 1.3 million YouTube views since its release two years ago. The follow-up clip (above), released last month, continued the momentum as the project’s website harvested micro-investments from 52 fans enticed by the spooky-sleek visuals.

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Fan investments in Iron Sky were augmented by money from 12 traditional financiers, according to producer Tero Kaukomaa of Blind Spot Pictures. “If we are able to make money,” Kaukomaa said, “then the crowd who invested will make money, and if that happens, it will speed up the possibility to fund films totally with crowds.”

Smart. This picture has a built-in audience and is practically guaranteed to score at the box office. This technique could become the new way to judge whether a movie should be produced or not. If enough fans send in a dollar you make the movie. If not, you don't.