Too often, independent film ends up being a terrible investment. In 2017, the median box office return for low-budget films in the US was just 45 cents on the dollar with little improvement since. This means investors rarely stand a chance of seeing any kind of meaningful return. But what about the cases when the stars align and a project reaches a passionate and paying audience? More boundary-pushing content creators than ever before means more important stories just waiting to be told, and despite the odds, there are ways for investors to identify financially responsible filmmakers and for filmmakers to secure trustworthy investment partners. This panel will explore how to bring a financially sound vision to screen from both the filmmaker and the investor perspective.