Dates

Workshop 1: January 2021
Workshop 2: April 2021
Workshop 3: July 2021
Feature Launch Spotlight: January 2022

Venues

Workshop 1: in collaboration with the Trieste FF – EASTWEEK / Trieste, Italy
Workshop 2: Trnava, Slovakia
Workshop 3: in collaboration with Karlovy Vary IFF / Prague / Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic 
Feature Launch Spotlight: in collaboration with When East Meets West / Trieste, Italy 

Who is it for?

* teams of writers and/or directors and producers (max. 3 participants per team) with projects of first and second feature films
(the rule regarding first or second feature film applies only to the director)

* aspiring script consultants

Eligible countries

Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia, Greece, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Malta, Moldova, Montenegro, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Ukraine, Tunisia

If you are not sure about your eligibility, please don't hesitate to contact us.

Deadline

September 9, 2020

Fee

* 1500 EUR: writers, directors, trainees 

* 1800 EUR: producers

The fee includes accommodation, board and tuition during the workshops. Travel costs are NOT included. Scholarships are available.

Contact person

Sona Morgenthalova
Program Coordinator
sona.morgenthalova@midpoint-institute.eu

General Project Methodology

The 9 selected projects go through an intensive 4-module program, spanning over a year that consists of 3 residential workshops, a project showcase and a follow-up session.

During the three residential workshops the participants focus on script and project development while also being able to gain deeper knowledge about other aspects of the industry.

The 9 creative teams work in small groups under the guidance of internationally renowned and experienced script consultant tutors. Most of the projects that are selected are in the early stage of development either with a treatment or an early draft of the script, therefore Workshop 1 focuses mainly on creative development and structural dramaturgy. Workshop 2 serves as a platform to further advance the scripts, while it also incorporates marketing strategies into the development process.

Both workshops consist of group work, plenary sessions, inspiring master-classes and case studies which offer a deeper understanding of the creative aspects involved in the work, as well as insights into financing, sales, festival and distribution strategies. There are also one-to-one meetings with guest tutors and international experts from different areas of the audiovisual industry to help the participants to further develop their projects.

Workshop 3 includes a two-day intensive training which addresses the crucial matters connected to presentation skills and promotion. This workshop is immediately followed by the Works in development - Feature Launch project showcase at the Karlovy Vary IFF, where all 9 selected projects are presented to an audience of industry decision makers, including funders, sales agents, producers and festival programmers.

Tailor-made online consultations follow each workshop according to the needs of each project.

To close the cycle of the one-year program, When East Meets West co-production forum invites all 2021 selected producers one more time to Trieste to offer them the chance to have a follow up with their potential artistic and financing partners during the Feature Launch Spotlight platform.

General Script Consultancy Training Methodology

The development process that the Feature Launch projects go through is used as a platform to train the attending script consultant trainees, who are being trained for their future careers as professional script consultants.

The script consultant trainees are trained by both their trainee mentor who supervises their entire learning process, and Feature Launch tutors, who help them understand the different approaches and strategies they use while developing feature film projects.

The trainees attend all three residential workshops and the project showcase along with the Feature Launch participants. Each trainee is assigned to a group of projects and works closely with the script consultant tutor and the participants on the development of their scripts. In addition, the trainees regularly meet their trainee mentor and review their learning progress.

Through this process, the trainees are acquainted with the script and development aspects of developing a film project, enhance their communication skills in the creative process and most importantly, learn how to give constructive feedback to the creative teams to help them move forward in their development. They witness the different stages of development of the projects up through the final presentation at Karlovy Vary IFF. Simultaneously, the trainees also receive training in presentation skills and introduce themselves during the pitching forum at KVIFF.

Required materials

For Script Consultant Trainees

/ basic information about the applicant
/ applicant's statement of purpose
/ scene analysis
/ short professional biography
/ photo

For Projects

/ basic information about the applicants and the project
/ logline
/ short synopsis
/ long synopsis
/ treatment or script
/ writer's note
/ producer's package:
- preliminary financing plan of the project 
- development & production timetable of the project
- brief distribution strategy of the project 
- profile of the production company
- producer's letter elaborating the strategy
/ director's note (if attending)
/ short professional biographies of all team members
/ photos of all team members
/ previous work of the writer
/ previous work of the director (if attending)