Break out the popcorn: A new crowdfunding campaign, launched overnight, aims to raise $150,000 to complete a movie about the open-source software movement and the “war for freedom” against the world of proprietary software.
The main producer is Keith Curtis, a Seattle-based author and programmer who spent 11 years at Microsoft before being converted to the world of Linux and open-source software. The movie is based on a portion of Curtis’ book, “After the Software Wars,” but he’s working on the project with an extensive virtual team out of L.A.
He says the goal is to make a film that’s engaging and informative for geeks, but also approachable and interesting to everyone else.
Check out the trailer above, including snippets of interviews with Linus Torvalds and other key players from the open-source software movement.
Here’s the synopsis from the IndieGoGo campaign page …
The average computer user is unaware there is a war for freedom going on that will determine the path of modern society. Software Wars is a movie about the battle for our right to share technology and ideas.
This software will not be “owned” by corporations like Microsoft, Apple, and Google, who are mostly impeding technological progress. (Google supports efforts such as Linux via Android, but their AI code in Google Now, language translation and driverless cars are not built in an open way.)
The software we need will be built by a global community, taking on problems too big for any one company or team to even understand. We should have been working together all along, but it is necessary now for the few big problems that remain.
Greater use of free and open source software and the ideas in this movie will lead to faster progress on the Linux desktop, improve the way children learn math, build computers that think, decode DNA, and more. The movie’s experts explain what is possible, and the audience decides what happens.
The campaign runs through Jan. 17. The funds will be used to finish the interviews and complete production. Perks for contributors include digital downloads, a Blu-ray version, and tickets to the premier (estimated June 2013) in Seattle or Los Angeles.
