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In 2020, artist J.N. Silva<\/a> was in a Clubhouse room talking about NFTs and the power of royalties when a prominent psychedelic artist from the late 60s in the audience asked to speak.\u00a0According to Silva, he shared, \u201cI just stumbled into this room. I had no idea what was going on. But this single-handedly would have changed my life if it would have been around when I was creating art.<\/p>\n The artist, who Silva didn\u2019t name, sold pieces throughout the 60s and 70s during what he called a \u201cperiod of prime.\u201d Today though, his works are reselling for\u00a0millions<\/em>, but due to the nature of physical artworks, he hasn\u2019t seen a dime. \u201cImagine if I had been getting royalties from all these works,\u201d the artist told Silva, \u201cI would have the mental freedom to keep practicing my creativity and not have to battle against a past version of myself.<\/p>\n This emphasis on the\u00a0importance of royalties<\/a>, and the way they can offer ongoing opportunity to artists, was a prominent thread during The Gateway panel<\/a> \u201cThe State of Film NFTs,\u201d with Silva, filmmaker Nelson G. Navarrete<\/a>, and filmmaker Julie Pacino<\/a> on December 1, 2022.<\/p>\n In the past, indie filmmakers have turned to traditional crowdfunding platforms like Kickstarter to secure project funds. From critically acclaimed action comedies like\u00a0Kung Fury<\/em>\u00a0to award-winning horror flicks like\u00a0The Babadook<\/em>, crowdfunding has helped many cult classics come to fruition. But with the emergence of NFT technology, some filmmakers are abandoning these platforms in favor of Web3 fundraising opportunities.<\/p>\nRoyalties should \u201cnever go away\u201d<\/h2>\n