Filmustage raises $1.5M to accelerate the film pre-production phase
US-based Filmustage, an innovative AI platform revolutionising film pre-production, recently announced it had secured a $1.5 million seed funding round. The funding was led by UK-based VC fund Raw Ventures, with participation from US-based Geek Ventures and other investors.
Filmustage's technology is already in use by notable professionals in the film industry, including the Oscar-winning set decorator and director Roger Christian, known for his work on “Star Wars”, and Byron Saltysiak, a former Vice President at WarnerMedia.
Filmustage dramatically reduces the manual effort required for script breakdowns by 90%, enabling production teams to work more efficiently with six times greater accuracy. Founded by Egor Dubrovsky, who recognised the inefficiencies in pre-production while working on pilots for Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, the platform leverages advanced AI technology to automate script breakdowns. Unlike competitors such as StudioBinder and Celtx, Filmustage provides precise results within minutes and adapts to script changes seamlessly.
The platform uses AI to analyse scripts, identifying over 17 categories including characters, locations, and props. It ensures high accuracy by dynamically updating breakdowns in response to script changes. Filmustage also offers smart scheduling, risk analysis for each scene, and generates detailed synopses for both individual scenes and entire scripts. Its AI-driven approach significantly streamlines pre-production processes, making it uniquely efficient. Furthermore, the platform supports export to industry-standard software such as Movie Magic, Gorilla Scheduling, and Final Draft, allowing for smooth integration into existing workflows.
Egor Dubrovsky, CEO and Co-Founder of Filmustage said: “Filmustage continues to work on reducing budget risks and ensuring efficient resource management for film production studios. The investment will be used to acquire new B2B clients, including Tier-1 clients, and expand our AI capabilities to cover even more aspects of pre-production and post-production, including AI-based budget estimation, AI-based storyboards, and marketplace & Omniverse integrations.”
By August 2024, the number of registrations had already exceeded 15,000. Among other prominent clients are Callan Green, an award-winning Director of Photography who used Filmustage in the TV series "The Gentlemen," "Masters of the Air," and "Gangs of London"; Chris LeDoux, one of the co-founders of Crafty Apes; Mark Kolpack, a visual effects pioneer; and Martin Manuel Nuza, whose film "A Cannibal Mind" won awards for Best Feature Script and Best Original Story.
Alexey Skobelkin, a CPO responsible for Product and Technology expertise at Raw Ventures, said: “We invested in Filmustage after their attendance in the finals of our investment program Global MediaTech Pitch Day, where they stood out among 400 applicants. The main reason we invested is due to the pragmatic and efficient approach by which the company's product successfully integrates advanced AI developments, such as ChatGPT and Gemini, into the production processes of the film industry without competing with them. Meanwhile, the team is developing their own specialised and unique AI model for working with scripts and production plans, which ensures the product's practical efficiency. We see the product market fit, the team's focus and concentration, and we want to support scaling both financially and with our industry expertise.”
