It is the intention of Family Office Benefits to help business and nonprofit communities to survive and flourish.
Our family of charities act as a fiscal sponsor by lending its 501( c )3 tax exempt status (and thus its credibility) to qualified projects and organizations so that donations are tax-deductible and major funding can be pursued (such as grants and large philanthropic funding).
All funds are paid to the Sponsoring Charity who, in turn, sends you a check after deducting an agreed-upon sponsorship-administration fee.
Please read our Guidelines and our Forms for more details. Then, call or email if you have further questions.
Fiscal Sponsorship Information
One of the benefits of Family Office Benefits is Fiscal Sponsorship. As a Non-Profit Organization, Filmmakers Alliance can reach an agreement between Filmmakers and accept donations, grants, and gifts on behalf of a Project from companies, corporations, stores, and/or personal donations. Those donating the monies will receive a Tax Write-off and you get to complete your project. If interested, call and ask for an application today.
To submit
Fill out the Filmmakers Alliance Fiscal Sponsorship Agreement and send it in along with 1) a copy of the filmmakers Driver’s License, 2) a copy of the top sheet of the projects budget, 3) a treatment or synopsis of the project, 4) a copy of the script and 5) a Fiscal Sponsorship Application fee check for $20/- made payable to "Filmmakers Alliance".
If the project is accepted, the filmmaker may now collect donations on behalf of their project. The checks must be made out to “Filmmakers Alliance” and have the title of the project written clearly on the memo section of the check. It is up to each filmmaker to collect the donations and keep records of all monies donated. Once a bundle is collected the checks are sent to Filmmakers Alliance, along with a list of the current address of all donors and the amount that was donated. This information is used to send the donor their tax donation thank you letter.
Funds Remittance
Funds shall be remitted to the account designated by the filmmaker (less the fiscal sponsorship fee - see below) in approximately 3 weeks from the time the donation is deposited into the Filmmakers Alliance account - depending on the size and type of contribution. Filmmakers Alliance reserves the right to hold the funds for a longer period due to unusual and/or extenuating circumstances, but in no case longer than 30 days. Funds will normally be released by check via the mail or pre-arranged pick up. If a wire transfer is requested, additional fees may apply.
Project Ownership and Exhibition
The project shall be wholly owned by the filmmaker.
The filmmaker shall, under all circumstances, maintain control over all master elements of the project and shall reserve the right to exhibit the project and/or negotiate its sale whenever and wherever it is deemed appropriate without additional consultation or authorization of the company beyond this agreement. The filmmaker agrees to make available to the company upon demand, in reasonable time and at the filmmakers expense, a VHS copy of the project as the company so requests. The company reserves the right to privatelyexhibit the aforementioned copy of the project without additional authorization of the filmmaker beyond this agreement.
Credits
In consideration of the above-mentioned fiscal sponsorship the filmmaker agrees to provide the company with a back end “Special Thanks To Filmmakers Alliance” credit.
Compensation
The filmmaker agrees to compensate the company for its fiscal sponsorship by providing a fee of 5% of all monies deposited into the company’s account on behalf of the project.
FAQs
Fiscal Sponsorship FAQs:
1.Should I submit my proposal documents online or only by post?
A: You can submit proposals via post or through email. Our mailing address:
2.Once I submit my paperwork, how much time does it take for FA to get back to me with the decision?
A: Typically it takes us around 8-10 days, sometimes even less. If you don’t hear from us after 10 days, you are requested to call the office at 310-568-0633 and enquire about the status of your proposal.
3.What are the criteria for the selection of the projects?
A: We don’t have any single point agenda in selecting projects, the ONLY criteria is that the project needs to be film related. It could be anything between feature narratives, documentaries, shorts, music videos, web-series or even trailers. The project just needs to satisfy a basic standard of creativity and exhibit a unique approach and sensitivity towards filmmaking.
4.Can a project win Fiscal sponsorship at any stage of production?
A: Yes, the project could be at any stage of production. Completed projects can also get fiscal sponsorship for covering their film festival and distribution fees. Please contact the FA office before you submit your documents for a completed film.
5.Does FA help the filmmakers in contacting potential funders?
6.Can I solicit funds from donors as well as investors? What is the difference?
A: Under FA’s fiscal sponsorship you can avail yourself of ONLY DONATIONS. Investments of any kind with the provision of earning some return profit is strictly prohibited under Fiscal sponsorship guidelines; however, at any given point of time you can simultaneously receive donations as well as investment for the project, even from the same person, provided you agree to give the tax benefit only to the amount that was a ‘Donation’. FA does not care about you soliciting investments if you strictly offer the tax benefit to Donations only.
7.Can I get In-Kind Donations for my project?
A: Yes, you can, but we charge you a slightly high fee of 10% for In-kind donations. This is just to discourage the filmmaker in soliciting any in-kind donations, the reason we do that is because it is difficult for us to keep a track of such donations and estimate the value associated with the goods donated. Please ask for an In-kind donation form from the office.
8.Once the project is approved and FA starts getting regular donation checks, how much is the turnaround time for getting the fiscal checks?
A: Once FA office receives a bundle of checks or online payment through PayPal, the turnaround time for dispatching the fiscal check for ‘check donations’ is 3 weeks and for online donations is ‘one month’.
9.Why does FA take WEEKS in sending money that belongs to the filmmakers in the first place?
A: FA is a small non-profit set up manned by just two people at the moment, once we receive a bundle of checks there is a lot that goes in processing checks. Currently we are handling 100 fiscal projects and regular processing of these donation checks entails depositing the checks, clearing of the checks and deducting the administrative and accounting fee before we dispatch the fiscal checks. Also, for PayPal donations, we would like to wait and collect a bulk of donations at our end before we dispatch a final check, our experience has shown that in a month’s time a project typically can gather at least 8-15 small donations, unless it is a time bound money raising initiative, which makes it easier for us while cutting a final check.
10.What happens in case a fiscal check gets lost in the mail, does FA reissue the check?
A: Yes, FA would reissue a check by deducting the Bank cancellation charges from the fiscal amount.
11.What happens if a donor check bounces?
A: FA charges $25/- penalty fee to the filmmaker under those circumstances.
12.Can we directly transfer the donation money in FA’s bank account?
A: Yes, we can provide you with the Bank address, account number and the routing number details.
13.Under Unusual or extenuating circumstances how long can FA hold funds before remitting them to the Filmmaker?
