Former “Scrubs” star Zach Braff is ready to produce a follow-up movie to his well-received film “Garden State.” But he doesn’t want to deal with the Hollywood suits who are almost guaranteed to make any director sacrifice a good deal of creative control for the money needed to create a movie. So he’s taking a cue from Rob Thomas, who, less than two weeks ago, campaigned on Kickstarter to get his “Veronica Mars” movie funded—with huge success. Thomas’ project actually broke records on the crowdfunding site, raising more than $5.7 million in just 30 days. Now Braff is also attempting to finance his film, “Wish I Was Here,” through Kickstarter with a goal to raise $2 million in 30 days.

“I was about to sign a typical financing deal in order to get the money to make ‘Wish I Was Here,’ my follow up to ‘Garden State.’ It would have involved making a lot of sacrifices I think would have ultimately hurt the film,” Braff wrote on the Kickstarter project page. “After I saw the incredible way ‘Veronica Mars’ fans rallied around Kristen Bell and her show’s creator Rob Thomas, I couldn’t help but think (like I’m sure so many other independent filmmakers did) maybe there is a new way to finance smaller, personal films that didn’t involve signing away all your artistic control.”

And it looks like Braff will not only reach his goal, but may break some of the records just established by “Veronica Mars.” After only two days, the “Wish I Was Here” project has already raised more than $1.6 million in pledges from more than 24,000 backers—and there are 28 days to go until the project deadline. Apparently Braff has some fans out there.

“Wish I Was Here” tells the story of Aiden Bloom (played by Braff) a struggling actor, father and husband who, at age 35, has yet to understand his purpose in life. As he and his wife struffle financially, Bloom spends much of his time fantasizing about his childhood dreams of becoming a futuristic space knight. After Bloom’s elderly father can no longer foot the bill for his children’s private schooling, Bloom decides to home-school them, resulting in a comedic journey that ultimately brings Bloom a better understanding of his own life.

If the movie’s plot alone doesn’t excite backers, the awards offered to them surely will. Thus far, almost 4,000 backers have pledged $10 toward the production of “Wish I Was Here,” and will be sent Braff’s personal production diary throughout the making of the film, as well as a PDF of the screenplay just before the film’s premiere.

Another 3,200 backers (so far) have pledged $20, and they will be offered their own copy of the movie soundtrack before it’s officially released, in addition to the other prizes. Braff is offering a unique award to those who pledge $30: He will conduct a first-of-its-kind live online movie screening across the world. Backers will be able to watch from a computer or mobile device, and Braff will even participate in a Q&A afterward. Those who pledge $40 will receive all of the above, as well as a “Wish I Was Here” T-shirt, specially designed for Kickstarter backers and “soft as a kitten taint.”

For a pledge of just $100, 1,350 lucky backers will be invited to attend advance film screenings of “I Wish I Was Here” in Los Angeles, New York and Chicago or London… Sorry, these spots are all taken, as are the 1,335 $200-level advanced screenings for two.

Other various gifts including signed art prints, autographed DVDs and personalized voice messages from Braff are offered at various pledge levels. True true fans, however, can pledged $750 and receive premiere tickets for two in New York or Los Angeles, just like the 150 backers who, for $1,000, will get to attend the premier as well as the afterparty in the cities. Ten people who pledged $5,000 each will be Braff’s personal guests at the premier and afterparty in New York and LA. Another 20 backers pledged $1,500 to visit the movie’s set, and a pledge of $2,500 will allow 50 backers to be an extra in the film.  And for a $7,000 pledge, on backer will be able to name a character in the “Wish I Was Here.“

That all sounds pretty sweet, right? The project still offers three even bigger prizes to its three largest pledge levels. Braff is offering a filmmaking symposium to 50 backers who pledge $8,000 to the movie. They will be able to spend a day in New York City with him during post-production of “Wish I Was Here” for a screening of the director’s cut. After the screening, Braff will discuss the movie with them, and they will be able to help shape the final cut of the film and receive a “special thanks” credit.

Another 10 backers who pledge $9,000 will be invited to the premiere and afterparty with a plus-one, and also receive credit at the end of the film. Finally, one lucky backer (sorry the spot’s already filled) will be a cast member in the film for pledging $10,000. That’s in addition to an invite plus-one to the premiere and afterparty and all the other goodies.

“To sum it up, movie making is a crazy business, with a lot of unknown factors. We start with a script I’m really proud of,” Braff wrote. “Then, we assemble the best team possible, get insurance, and make contingency plans. It’s impossible to guarantee everything will come together exactly as planned, but in the end, we will have created a movie that hopefully all of us can be proud of. It’s a great journey, and I thank you in advance if you can help make this ride possible.”