Creator mentors Colin and Samir want to turn their followers’ ideas into productions

“Starting with your own existing community and relationships is a great way to incubate original IP and talent no matter who you are,” said Adam Wescott, CEO and co-founder of Home Game Studios and Mind Chatter Media.

While this project is a good “proof of concept” for creators to sell a bigger format series, he believes the pair will likely need to partner with more “traditional Hollywood players” if they’re hoping to expand beyond this Adobe-backed Big Idea Fund and understand development, financing, production, and distribution.

Since around 2017, Rosenblum and Chaudry have shared advice with a growing community of creators. Four months ago, they began publishing videos on how to solve creator problems, from low engagement to navigating a rebrand, under a new Creator Support YouTube series when they realized they wanted to do more.

Chaudry wondered: “How do we curate within our own community of people who have ambitious ideas, who want to make more film-style projects, multi-part series? How do we create a space for them?”

Adobe, a long-term partner, agreed to a the fund (terms of the agreement are unclear) as long as creators use Adobe tools to edit content. Creators around the world submitted over 150 projects from documentaries, music, and multi-part series. They included a 50-state “one-of-a-kind experience” travel vlog, a documentary about Haitian immigrants, several home remodelings, and an animated children’s show.

While most of the submissions were unlisted and not available to the public, their community (and anyone who visited the Big Idea Fund website) had access to watch them. Some of those submissions still garnered hundreds of views. It made clear to Chaudry that the duo needed to find a space for people who “want to make bigger ideas.”

“We have extreme proximity to the creator community… We also have a lot of proximity and connection to the world of Hollywood. I always want to be a bridge between the worlds,” Chaudry said.

Longtime, successful creators are seeing more opportunities in taking on mentorship roles, or acting as creator connectors — Dhar Mann pledged $100 million in creator deals, as Rosenblum and Chaudry are using their position in the creator economy to connect creators with opportunities. 

“I see connectors and agencies as complementary. Connectors open the door, and the agency and brand teams behind them are what turn an introduction into a partnership that performs,” said Lauren Lyster, vp and head of social media at Go Fish Digital.