Adam Carolla uses Donald Trump’s crowdfunding site for next movie

These days, if you’re a celebrity who wants $1 million to make a movie, you can just ask your fans. And Donald Trump.

Following Zach Braff, James Franco and a long list of other showbiz types, comedian Adam Carolla is trying to crowdfund his next movie, titled “Road Hard.”

Carolla, whose last movie, “The Hammer,” came out in 2007, has started a fundraising campaign on FundAnything, the Kickstarter and Indiegogo competitor that boasts Trump as a partner and spokesman.

The plot — as Carolla described it at a news conference at the ACME Comedy Theater in Los Angeles, recorded for his podcast — follows a former stand-up comic and sitcom star who, after losing his show and his wife, takes up touring again.

“The movie is somewhat cathartic, as my last movie, ‘The Hammer,’ was,” Carolla said. “‘Go for what you know’ has always been a motto of mine.”

Carolla, who rose to prominence as a host on “The Man Show” and “Loveline,” has maintained a substantial following through podcasts, including “The Adam Carolla Show.”

FundAnything was started by Learning Annex-founder Bill Zanker this year. The site lets users choose the amount they want to raise in their campaign, spread the word through social media and collect money as it’s donated, whether or not the funding goal is met.

Trump has promised to promote the campaigns through his Twitter account. The site features a “Donald’s Picks” section that currently highlights an effort to raise $19,000 for a kids’ dance academy and another to reap $100,000 for Celeste Buckingham’s new CD and music videos.

Carolla, who has 37 days left in his campaign, has raised nearly $411,000 of his $1-million goal as of this writing.

Anyone who donates $2,500 will get a role in the film as an extra.

This isn’t the first time Carolla has worked with the ever-bombastic Trump. He was fired in the fourth week of his stint on NBC’s “Celebrity Apprentice.”

Celebrity crowdfunding campaigns have become a more common method of financing projects in Hollywood. James Franco’s effort on Indiegogo has raised about $185,000 of his $500,000 goal with seven days remaining.

But the tactic is not without its risks. Zach Braff’s successful $2 million campaign turned into a PR face-plant, and “Girls” actress Zosia Mamet recently tried and failed to raise $32,000 through Kickstarter to fund a music video.

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ryan.faughnder@latimes.com