[CounterCorp] Goodbye to a great 2009, hello to an even better 2010!

[CounterCorp News]

Dear CounterCorp supporters,

	As with most other non-profit organizations, media outlets, and  
pretty much everyone else, we feel compelled to end 2009 with a brief  
retrospective, along with a "last call" for donations, and an  
announcement to start 2010 off with a bang:

  (#1)  OUR MOST SUCCESSFUL FILM FESTIVAL YET -- The 2009 Anti- 
Corporate Film Festival, the first one we've ever held in the Spring  
(and specifically, in May), was our most successful yet, and we think  
that was due at least in part to two new elements we introduced this  
year: our first opening night party, and the first-ever CounterCorp t- 
shirt.

	The opening night party at the San Francisco Media Archive was a  
great success -- thanks to volunteer caterer Ellen Roggemann (www.radicalradish.org 
), wine donated by Alec Gordon, a great venue, and of course a great  
crowd. The t-shirts proved a similarly popular item at this year's  
Festival, and we hope to have them in larger sizes next year.

	As a result of the party, the t-shirts, and the generally well- 
attended screenings, this year's Festival came within about $500 of  
breaking even, which is pretty rare for any festival, including the  
really big ones -- which all have corporate sponsors (which we don't  
have and do not want) and big institutional donors (which we'd like  
but haven't gotten yet).

	So we view the success of this year's Festival as an indication that  
we're on the right track, that public awareness of and interest in the  
CounterCorp Festival is growing, and that hopefully the Anti-Corporate  
Film Festival will be even more successful next year!


  (#2)  LAST CALL FOR END-OF-YEAR DONATIONS -- Despite the success of  
this year's Festival, we still need to cover the remaining $500 in  
debts associated with it, as well as the other expenses that arose  
during the year, such as our very modest office space, website  
hosting, transportation costs for events, and other basic  
administrative expenses.

	As you know, CounterCorp and the Anti-Corporate Film Festival are  
organized and run *entirely* by volunteers -- no one gets a salary or  
any kind of stipend or other payment for their hard work, time, and  
effort. (We'd like to change that, but doing so is dependent on  
successful fundraising, which is something we're working on.)

	So we're asking our supporters to please consider making an end-of- 
year donation in any amount that you can afford to help us pay off the  
deficit from this year's Festival, as well as the other costs we incur  
during the course of the year. Any and all contributions are *greatly*  
appreciated AND tax deductible.

	To donate online through the secure eBay account of our fiscal agent,  
Independent Arts and Media, use this link or go to the "Donations"  
page on our newly revamped website: www.countercorp.org/donations. If  
you prefer to make an in-kind donation of materials or services,  
please e-mail us at donations2009 at countercorp.org.


  (#3)  NEW 2010 FESTIVAL TRAILER CONTEST -- With the success of this  
year's Film Festival, we've made it our goal to try to add something  
new to the Festival every year from now on. So for the 5th Annual  
CounterCorp Festival in May, we decided to create a Festival trailer,  
just like they have at those big-budget film festivals we mentioned  
before.

	But since we lack the big budgets those festivals have to commission  
trailers from professional filmmakers, we decided to "crowd source"  
the first CounterCorp trailer by holding a contest and asking our  
supporters and members of the general public to create one for us.

	In short, we're seeking a 30-second trailer that will be posted on  
the new CounterCorp website, shown in the theater in the days (and  
hopefully weeks) prior to the Festival itself, and shown before each  
film at the Festival.

	Complete details about the trailer contest can be found on the new  
CounterCorp website -- either by using the link in the "NEWS" box in  
the top right-hand corner of the front page, or by clicking on the  
"News" button in the navigation bar across the top of the site, and  
then selecting "Trailer Contest".

	We look forward to reviewing a wide variety of creative, funny, and  
possibly even disturbing trailers from all sorts of filmmakers in the  
coming months!

				*	*	*

	Thanks again to everyone who attended this year's Anti-Corporate Film  
Festival or otherwise supported us throughout the year -- we couldn't  
do any of this without YOU!

John Wilner
Director


   CounterCorp: Putting An End to Business as Usual
   5th Annual Anti-Corporate Film Festival, May 2010
			www.countercorp.org

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