APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS - Austin Film Society
←
→
Page content transcription
If your browser does not render page correctly, please read the page content below
20 1 8
APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS
2014 Recipient: NEVER GOIN' BACK 2014 Recipient: LA BARRACUDA
THE AUSTIN FILM SOCIETY GRANT
(Formerly Texas Filmmakers' Production Fund)
makes annual grants to film and video artists in the state of Texas. Awards are
provided to artists whose work shows promise, skill, and creativity. Funded through 2018 AFS Grant Applications
revenues from benefit film premieres, the Texas Film Awards, the Texas Commission must be made through our website at www.austinfilm.org.
on the Arts and private and corporate donations, the grant serves to redress the For more information, call 512-322-0145 or email
loss of public funds for filmmakers by disbursing funds for production and distribu- artistservices@austinfilm.org.
tion once a year and offering travel stipends to Texas filmmakers. Since 1996, AFS
has awarded over $1.77 mil in cash and $300,000 in goods and services to over 400
artists. AFS Grant recipients have shown their films at renowned festivals like Sun-
dance, Berlin, Cannes, Toronto, Venice, Tribeca, Rotterdam and SXSW, and have won
Independent Spirit Awards and Student Academy Awards. This year, AFS staff will
provide informational workshops on how to apply for the Grant in Dallas, Houston
and Austin. Workshops are listed below in the “workshops” section of the application
instructions. They are also announced through our website (www.austinfilm.org), lo-
cal press, and through co-sponsoring regional organizations.
From mid-April through May 25th, staff are available for one-on-one consultations CAMERA
LIGHTING
either at the AFS offices or by phone to give feedback on draft proposals. Contact
AUSTIN
AFS at artistservices@austinfilm.org for more info.
The deadline for all applications is Monday, June 4, 2018. Applications must be
submitted by 5pm CST. In August, an independent panel of professionals from the
national film community will convene in Austin to review applications and administer This project is supported in part by the Cultural Arts Division of the
City of Austin Economic Development Department.
awards. Awards are announced at the end of August and grant disbursements are
made in the fall.
The Austin Film Society is a 501(c)(3) non-profit media arts organization. Established
in 1985, the Austin Film Society empowers our community to make, watch and love
film and creative media. The grant was started in 1996 as the Texas Filmmakers’
Production Fund, and was renamed the AFS Grant in 2013.
must agree to include a credit or thanks to applying project and cannot be sold. Any logged in to fill out the application. You will be
the "Harrison McClure Endowed Film Fund" unused certificate must be returned to the able to save and return to your application.
in addition to the crediting requirements Austin Film Society. Please visit the MPS
of the AFS Grant. Additionally, the selected Camera Austin website for more details General Information:
filmmaker is required to supply a copy of the about what they offer. Grantees must meet • Fill out this section in its entirety.
finished film to the Endowment donors and MPS’ minimum insurance requirements, and • Use the 2nd name field if you are working
the parents of Harrison McClure, a promising rentals are subject to availability. MPS must with a co-director.
Texas film student whose life and passion for be credited in the project credits. • Provide an email and mailing address that will
filmmaking are memorialized by this fund. be valid as of August 2018.
For information about the AFS Travel Grants,
Kodak Film - In-Kind Grant please go to the website https://www.austinfilm. Project Information:
Kodak is offering two exciting opportunities org/afs-grants/afs-grants-applications • Fill out a running time, even if it is an
for filmmakers interested in shooting or estimate.
exhibiting on motion picture film. Kodak V. Workshops/Consultations • Please check all boxes for funds that you
2017 Recipient: MAUDE 2016 Recipient: TOWER
offers up to $5,000 matching grant for 16mm It is highly recommended that you take are eligible for
or 35mm film stock. If you are requesting advantage of the workshops and/or one-on-one • Your total cash cost should only include
I. Applicant and Project Eligibility • If your project changes significantly from in cash grants to emerging filmmakers
the Kodak Film Stock Grant, you must consultations offered by AFS staff. Workshops cash costs, not in-kind totals.
In order to be eligible to submit to the grant, your proposal, you must write us a written residing in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and
indicate your plans to shoot on film. On the are offered in major Texas cities (Dallas, • Your cash request should not exceed
you must meet the following requirements: request before expenditure of grant funds. surrounding region. Three grants of $10,000
application, you should describe how the film Houston, & Austin) in mid-April through end of $15,000 in total if all cash grants
• You must be the director of the project in Approval isn’t guaranteed. each will be awarded for the production/
stock grant would be useful for your project. May. • Project summary: write a short synopsis that
order to apply. post-production of feature-length films
Be sure to include what phase of production best describes your film’s story.
• You must be a Texas resident since June III. Applicant Responsibilities (40 minutes or greater). The grant aims
and or post-production the stock would Current workshop schedule for 2018:
1, 2017. You cannot apply if you are attending All applicants are required to do the following to fund emerging filmmakers with first
cover. Stock must be redeemed within 1 year Required Attachments:
school full time outside the state of Texas. after submitting their grant application: or second feature films, and filmmakers
of the grant announcement. April 14th, Austin, TX at Austin Public Upload each of the attachments as PDFs with
• AFS staff and Board members may not be • You must notify AFS immediately of any with backgrounds that are traditionally
your application.
the project applicant. significant changes to your project that underrepresented in independent film. April 17th: Dallas, TX at the Texas Theatre
Kodak will also create a 35mm exhibition
occur after you submit your project. Filmmakers wishing to be considered for
film print for one film project of any length. April 22nd: Houston, TX at the Aurora Picture Show PROJECT DESCRIPTION
Projects must meet the following requirements: • If you are awarded an AFS grant, you this fund must provide proof of residency in
AFS will work with the filmmaking team to (Required, Submit Online)
• All genres of film and video are eligible to are required to carry out a project that is the Dallas-Fort Worth area and surrounding May 24th, Austin, TX at Austin Public
secure a public screening in Austin of the Project Description should not exceed 3 pages
apply, except industrial or promotional consistent with the proposal you submitted. region. All other regular eligibility and
35mm print when completed. This grant is Check our website www.austinfilm.org/afsgrant for
pieces, music videos and “works-for-hire.” • If your project changes significantly from application requirements for the AFS Grant and should include:
non-transferable and must be used for the updates to the schedule. • Description of the story of the film with
• All projects must be stand-alone single your proposal, you must write us a written must be met.
applicant project. From mid-April through May 25th , staff will details about stylistic approach, visual
works. TV or Web series are not eligible at request before expenditure of grant funds.
be available by appointment to review your elements, story structure, and thematic
this time. Approval isn’t guaranteed. New Texas Voices Grant (New for 2018) - Cash
Stuck On On DCP - In-Kind Grant application and provide feedback in advance of threads. (Recommend 3 paragraphs)
• Project must be in production, post Grant the deadline. Applicants must send in a draft
The Stuck On On DCP grant awards one • Description of your production plan, creative
production or distribution stages. Projects in IV. AFS Grant Awards: What You Can Apply For Affirming its ongoing commitment to of their materials at least 1 week in advance of
theatrical digital cinema package (DCP) for team, and information about project status
development are not eligible. Applicants can apply for any and all of the supporting diverse voices and growing the scheduled review, so the last date you can
two different features. The project may to date. (Recommend 2 paragraphs)
following cash and in-kind awards offered as new talent, AFS is offering $10,000 as the contact us for a consultation is actually May
be a theatrical documentary or narrative • Information about your target audience and
II. Eligibility for Previous Recipients part of the 2018 AFS Grant, noting that cash New Texas Voices Grant to filmmakers 18th, but don't wait that long, as appointment
feature up to 100 minutes each. This grant distribution plans. (Recommend 1 paragraph)
If you have already received an AFS Grant the grants will be awarded up to but not exceed who identify with a community of color slots fill up fast, especially at the end of May.
includes one 2K DCP creation and a 20% • Details regarding your fundraising strategy
following applies to you: $15,000 per project. Please note that some traditionally underrepresented in Phone appointments are available for out-
discount on a CRU formatted hard drive. and how AFS Grant funds will be used.
• You cannot apply if you received two previous cash grants and in-kind grants have their own independent film. This new grant will be of-town applicants. Contact artistservices@
Prices may vary on hard drive depending (Recommend 1 paragraph)
AFS grants for the same project. This does eligibility requirements, so please read over the accompanied by specialized mentorship austinfilm.org to schedule.
on time of request. All other fees will be
not include AFS travel grants. requirements for each grant carefully. for the awarded filmmakers. Filmmakers
waived. Delivery requirements and scheduling PROJECT BUDGET (Required, Submit Online)
• If you have only received one AFS grant, you wishing to be considered must have a first
for the DCP creation can be coordinated VI. Application Preparation Project Budget should include the following
can reapply as long as you are in good AFS Grant - Cash Grant feature film in early to mid-production and
directly with Stuck On On. Please allow ample Applying for the grant is an online process. required documents, and be very specific
standing on your contract with us. You • Projects may apply for up to $15,000 cash must provide race data in the application.
turnaround time during the busy January to Applications and all supporting materials must about the applicant's plans to seek funds from
must include a written progress report that through the AFS Grant fund. All other regular eligibility and application
April film festival season. Stuck On On must be submitted online at www.austinfilm.org sources outside the AFS Grant.
shows your project’s status has advanced requirements for the AFS Grant must be
be acknowledged in the film’s credits. (including video sample submissions). Please
significantly since the last time it was • Total cash support from the AFS Grant fund met.
refer to the application form instructions for BUDGET SUMMARY FORM (Required, Submit
awarded funding. (Listed in the Required will not exceed $15,000. However, applicants more information on the required materials.
MPS Camera and Lighting Austin - Grant Online)
Attachments section). can receive in-kind support valued in excess The Harrison McClure Endowed Film Fund - Cash For advice on how to best approach each of
The MPS Camera and Lighting Austin Grant • You must use AFS’ Budget Summary form,
of the $15,000 cash grant (in other words, Grant these sections, you can refer to our Grant
is a credit from Austin-based MPS Camera available for download on the AFS Grant
All applicants are required to do the following applicants can apply to receive the MPS or The Harrison McClure Endowed Film Fund, Writing Tipsheet.
for up to $10,000 in production services. home page.
after submitting their grant application: Kodak in-kind grants on top of $15,000 cash). $2,500, goes to an undergraduate student This includes camera, lenses, lighting/grip • For "EXPENSES," summarize your
• You must notify AFS immediately of any for the making of a film that will complete and electrical, among other services. The Application Form Instructions expenses by production phase (pre-production,
significant changes to your project that North Texas Pioneer Film Grant (New for 2018)- a course or degree requirement. Students grant does not apply to post-production Go to the grant section of our website www. production, etc.) from your detailed budget
occur after you submit your project. eligible to receive the grant must be rising
Cash Grant services. This grant comes in the form of austinfilm.org (it's under the "Artist Services" • For "RESOURCES", list out all of the income
• If you are awarded an AFS grant, you juniors or seniors and must be enrolled as
AFS has partnered with Oak Cliff Film a certificate from MPS Camera Austin, section if you don't find it on the home-page). sources including your own contribution,
are required to carry out a project that is full-time students in a four-year college or
Festival (Dallas), Sailor Bear film collective which is disseminated in early September. in-kind donations, grants, individual and
consistent with the proposal you submitted. You will need to register on our website and be
and Tango Entertainment to offer $30,000 university located in Texas. The selected film An awarded certificate must used on the
GRANT WRITING TIPSHEET
• Your sample link doesn’t work
corporate donations, sponsors or investors, satisfy the following requirements: O K , N OW YO U ’ VE R EA D important to make the case about why the treatment or screenplay to tell the whole story.
and fundraising. AFS Grant will make a difference. Get a friend who doesn’t know the story to read
the guidelines, you’ve visited the FAQ, it’s time
• Total Resources should equal Total Expenses. • The video sample must be 6 minutes or less Questions? PROJECT DESCRIPTION your description and see if they can follow it.
Check the FAQ on our website: www.austinfilm.org to begin. A word to the wise, give yourself
in length that showcases your best work. In the first round of review, the project
plenty of time to complete the application. It’s
DETAILED BUDGET (Required, Submit Online) The sample can include: a scene from the description is the most significant written
• Provide a detailed budget that includes pre- proposed project or prior work. For more • Questions regarding the application will be not something you can complete in one day, and part of your application. Think of it this way - The “Why”
production, production and post-production information, check out the Grant Writing answered during regular business hours, Mon- Fri, if you try to, it’ll probably show. you’ve got three pages to make a summation Recognize that the panel may want to know why
costs. You may use your own budget sheet or Tipsheet. 10am - 6pm at artistservices@austinfilm.org. No of your entire proposal. The other materials you, in particular, want to tell this story, or why
download our form from the AFS grant site. • Online video links must NOT be replaced or phone calls please. If you'd like to speak with us (the budget, the timeline, the personnel page, you are the best person to do so. If it’s based
PROOF OF RESIDENCY
changed during the application review period by phone, please send an email request with the the video sample, etc.) are there to expand on a personal experience, let them know, or if
You must have been a resident of Texas since
PROJECT TIMELINE (Required, Submit Online) (June - September 1st) best number to reach you and times that you are in more detail on what you’ve laid out in your the subject matter is something you have some
June 1, 2017. A “resident” means someone who
• In bullet points, list the key stages of your available. 1-3 page project description. familiarity with, describe how that came to
has lived in the state of Texas for one full year
production, with the time allotted to each PROOF OF RESIDENCY be. Especially if your story or subject is rather
at the time of application to the AFS grant. If
and anticipated dates. Award Announcements will be posted on our Make sure your project description does ALL heady or abstract, putting a little bit of yourself
(Required, Submit Online) you are a permanent resident of Texas but are
• Timeline should cover the project from pre- You must have been a resident of Texas since website at the conclusion of the panel session of these things: into your proposal helps the panel see the
attending a college or university outside of the
production all the way through distribution. June 1, 2017. by early September. Follow-up letters are sent person behind the project.
state for the past year or more, you would not
• Project timeline should not exceed 1 page. to all applicants. Applicants whose projects are be eligible. The Grant is intended to support • Describes the STORY OF THE FILM,
• Acceptable forms of proof of residency not selected or a grant may request written the artist community in Texas and keep it with details on the stylistic approach,
The “Look”
PROJECT PERSONNEL (Required, Submit Online) include: feedback on their application by emailing thriving. As such, we are not able to award visual elements, story structure,
Let the panel know how you’re going to
• Write up to 1 page detailing the bios of your o A recent utility bill or receipt in your name artistservices@austinfilm.org. Notifications will grants to previous Texans or Texas-based characters, and thematic threads.
translate this story into visual language.
key creative team. with your Texas address. go out by September 1, 2018. projects where the director is residing out of Clearly state the format, including
If your project is a documentary about a
o Current student registration at a Texas state. whether it is a short or feature,
historical event, you can explain it perfectly
TREATMENT OR SCRIPT (Required, Submit Online) college or university documentary or narrative, or a specific
with statistics, anecdotal evidence and pleas
• Write a treatment (1-10 pages) that focuses CASH REQUEST AND BUDGET INFORMATION genre, early in your description.
for justice, but the panel wants to know what
entirely on the story and the characters. STATUS REPORT The Total Cash Cost will come out of your • Describes the production plan and
(only for projects previously funded by AFS, Submit Online)
they will actually see in the finished film.
• For narrative projects, a full script is completed budget and should only include your provides information on the project
For those applicants seeking a second round of Expert interview “talking heads”? Or have
preferred to a treatment. This is not a out-of-pocket (Cash) costs. status to-date, as well as your unique
funding for a project already awarded an AFS you uncovered an incredible wealth of archival
screenplay competition and so early drafts approach to the material.
grant (not an AFS travel grant), we require a material that is going to bring a 75-year-old
are fine. You can indicate how many rewrites The Cash Request should not include in-kind
1-page status report. This report should detail • Provides information about your goals, story to 21st Century life? Likewise, if you’re
you plan to do in your project description or values you are requesting. Note: While you can
how the previous grant was used and where the target audience and distribution plan. making a narrative, describe your visual
timeline. apply for multiple grants for which you are
project is on its road to completion. This will be strategy with your film. Lots of long takes
eligible, the total of the award allotment will not • Details your fundraising strategy and
filed with your previous application. with graceful dolly moves? Or a fast- paced
ADDITIONAL SUPPORT MATERIAL exceed $15,000 in total. Be specific about how how AFS funds would be used.
energetic shooting style with a restless hand-
(Required, Submit Online) cash funds requested would be used towards held camera swirling around the actors? Feel
• In digital format, reviews, articles, images or ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS
your project. Fill this in after you've completed free to name-check your influences here if you
For applicants requesting distribution funds: The Story
letters of support that show your project in your full budget. This will help to show that
• Applicants requesting funds for distribution Of these four elements, the first one is the can avoid sounding too derivative of work that
a favorable light. you've thought through your project.
must provide footage from the submitted most important. The story of your film is already exists. What films inspire you when you
• Additional video samples, such as a link to a Regardless of what phase of funding you are
project in their video sample. what will make it interesting and unique. Do think about how you want your film to look?
full feature or full short, are encouraged. applying for, include budget amounts for pre-
your best to describe the story in clear but
• Additional support material must not exceed production through distribution. Not all line
VII. Sending Applications evocative language. Don’t be afraid to give
5 pages. items will apply to your project. The Production Plan
Once you submit your online application and away the ending – this isn’t a DVD box cover,
• Letters of support are encouraged but not Now that you’ve laid out your story, its themes
supporting materials, you'll receive a it’s a grant proposal. Your “audience” (the
required. You may submit up to two Be sure to double-check your math and balance and its visual style, describe how you’re going
confirmation email from us. If you do not panel) needs to know what story they’re
letters of support with your application. See your budget. “In-kind” refers to anything that to pull all this off. Chances are you have more
receive a confirmation email within the hour funding.
“Grant Writing Tips” for advice about is donated outright. For example, if a friend is ambition than you have cash in the bank, so
letters of support. after submitting, it is possible that we did In describing the story, take the advice of what specific resources do you have to bring to
loaning you a camera for the shoot, you would
• All materials must be uploaded to your online not receive your application, OR your email Strunk and White - “omit needless words,” bear that the average filmmaker doesn’t? Are
place a value on the use of the camera and list
application as a single PDF, video samples preferences need to be adjusted. Please email and “use the active voice.” Identify who in you attending a well-funded film school where
it in the in-kind column--likewise with donated
must be submitted as links in the designated us right away at artistservices@austinfilm.org your story (whether it’s a documentary you can get all the lights, dolly tracks and free
time on the part of your cast and crew.
space on the application. so that we can correct the problem. or a narrative) is active and is striving for student labor you need? For your documentary
Be sure that the rates you list are in scale with
• Additional support material must not your budget. For example, if your actual out-of- something and describe in clear terms about Irish mine workers, do you have a kindly
exceed 5 pages. Please note that AFS staff will NOT contact you what they’re doing and how and why they’re aunt in Dublin who will let your entire crew stay
pocket costs are $8,000 and you are not paying
• Do not send: any hard copy material, actor for replacement materials if: doing it. Describe their obstacles and how with you for 3 months?
your actors or crew, list their services “in-kind”
headshots or DVDs. • You fill out your budget coversheet or budget they overcome them (or don’t!). Then, tie
not at SAG or full union rates, but at a rate in Also, be sure to let us know where you’re at in
incorrectly. We will use what you submitted this story to the themes you’re hoping to
scale with your budget (say $50/day). this process. Have you raised $45,000 of your
VIDEO SAMPLE as-is. explore or what ideas or issues you’re hoping
• Your project descriptions seems incomplete. $50,000 budget and secured all your cast and
(Required. Submit video link and password in application.) Note: While there are no hard budget to illustrate or critique by making this film.
crew and are ready to go once you get that last
We do not accept DVD submissions for video limitations, remember that we are looking to Avoid getting bogged down in superfluous
Staff will contact you if: chunk of funds in? Are you fourteen weeks in
samples. Password-protected video links are fund projects where the AFS grant will make a detail that will lose your reader. If you
• There is any piece of your application missing to your post-production schedule but need to
accepted as part of the video sample and must difference. If your budget is over $500,000, it is have a complex plot with many twists and
• Your proof of residency is invalid shoot for one more week with the subject of
turns, don’t try to explain it all – submit a
your documentary to finalize the ending of materials (budget, timeline, personnel page, have a special and unique vision, the jury will
your story? etc.) are all working together to make it clear be creative enough to see how that will apply
Target Audience and Distribution Plan that you have thought this project through in to your next project, but only if you make a
You need to make it clear that you’ve given full. You don’t want to lay out a proposal in the great case for this transition in your project
some thought to how you’re going to get project description that your other materials description. If your very best work is a very far
your film out into the world, including your do not support. If you describe a Stanley cry from what you are doing now, but you also
back-up plan if the best-case scenario of Kubrick-like cinematic vision, with lots of dolly have a short sample of something closer in form
premiering it at Sundance and selling it for shots & crane shots & Steadicam moves all or genre, you can submit several select scenes
$1 million doesn’t work out. Think about the over the place, but the budget has none of in that 6-minute timeline to make your case.
communities that you engage with who would those items priced out, it will look like you don’t 2015/17 Recipient: THE SENSITIVES Do not randomly select the first 6 minutes of
have an interest in the project. Are there know what you’re talking about. your feature film unless that is definitely your
any specific niche audiences that would be And vice-versa – don’t reference things in your strongest work. We recommend preselecting
pre-disposed to like or identify with your supplemental materials that aren’t addressed the strongest scenes for your 6-minute sample.
project? How are you going to reach them? in your project description. For example, if you
Say you’re making a documentary about drag identify in your project timeline that you will be First time filmmakers & the video sample
racing, perhaps you’ve come from that world traveling to Australia for six weeks of shooting
yourself and you know that if you make a a complex plot with many twists and turns, If this is your first film ever, and you haven’t
DVD and advertise it on drag racing websites don’t try to explain it all – submit a treatment shot anything yet, you still need to submit a
you could sell a few thousand copies? Or say or screenplay to tell the whole story. Get a work sample. You can submit a previous work
you’ve made several short films that have friend who doesn’t know the story to read your from one of the key players on your production
done well on the festival circuit and you’ve description and see if they can follow it. team. Again, any resemblance to the proposed
made friends with programmers at some big project makes it easier for the panelists to
European festivals and you have a reasonable 2017 Recipient: 1985 (feature) assess.
expectation they’ll look at your first feature The Video Sample Use the descripton of video sample area to
with some heavy interest. Or, you know of In the final round of review, the video sample is indicate anything that is incomplete about your
certain film focused websites who love to the most important part of your application so work sample - if the sound levels haven’t been
discover new artists. Which communities will think carefully about what it will be! mixed, if you’re using temp music or a temp
get behind this film? AFS requires a 6-minute or less video sample narrator or uncleared music, if the image is
submitted via online link (No DVDs). We suggest low-resolution, whatever the issues may be.
using a password protected Vimeo link but will You might know that the Rolling Stones song
Fundraising Strategy accept links from other platforms as well as you’re using is a temporary placeholder, but
You also need to make it clear that you’ve got long as they work—be sure to test your link if you don’t tell the panelists that and your
a plan to pay for all this stuff. Describe how before submitting. You want the video sample budget doesn’t reflect the costs for copyright
much money you’ve raised and from what to give the panel a sense of what the completed clearance, they may question the thoroughness
sources. Describe the sources of funding, proposed project will be like. In descending of your application.
2016 Recipient: THE SECRET LIFE OF LANCE LETSCHER
which you are going to go after in addition to order of preference, the best way to do that is: You should be ready now. Daunting? Perhaps.
the AFS grant. Plausibility is important! If you 1. Submit material from the proposed successful work samples have included a few Impossible? No. And here’s a final bit of advice: if
are a first-time feature filmmaker and you project selected scenes followed by the rough cut in you don’t apply, you definitely won’t get a grant.
haven’t raised a dime yet for your $300,000 its entirety as additional supporting material. We look forward to reviewing your proposal!
budget, you better make a convincing case 2. Submit a previous project you directed
Just make sure you use the written description
that you have another source to supplement 3. Submit a project from someone on of your sample (Section H) to explain and give
the $15,000 you’re asking for from AFS. your production team (if you have never context for what you are showing. Feel free to G O O D LU C K!
It is important to be realistic about your directed something yourself, consider also use brief title cards between segments to
crowdfunding goals. While crowdfunding is submitting several examples of work explain what you are showing.
now essential to almost every independent from members of your production team;
project at some phase of production, it we recommend samples from your DP,
Previous projects
is not a given that every project will be creative producer or writer)
It is always best to submit your very best
successful. Our juries tend to be critical of previous work as your sample in order to
overly ambitious crowdfunding aspirations demonstrate your filmmaking ability. Most
Material from the proposed project
particularly when they are unarticulated successful projects will have an older piece
in this section of the application. You must Ideally you can submit a polished scene or two
similar in style and/ or subject matter to the
demonstrate that you have a thoughtful and that will give the panel a good sense of what
proposed project, which makes it easier for
researched approach to your campaign: in the this project will be like. Even if you just have
the jury to envision the approach to the new
amount of money you plan to raise, the team raw footage, choose some select moments
project. For example, If you’re making a cinema
assembled, and the timeline. that highlight your best stuff. Avoid sending in
verité documentary about migrant farm
a trailer for your film. While trailers can show
workers and all of your previous work was in
off your production value and the scope of
the vein of Mel Brooks- style comedies, it’s
Project Description vs. Other Materials your project, they won’t necessarily convey the
going to be a bit of a stretch for the panelists
As stated above, make sure that your project real substance, the pacing or the character
to envision where you’re going with the new
description and the rest of the application development of your piece. Some of the most
film. However, if those previous films show you
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES PREVIOUS GRANT RECIPIENTS
Following is a sampling of organizations that
can assist you in the grantwriting and planning
2017 GRANT RECIPIENTS of passage during senior year Access producers from Austin, JUNE
process: celebrate children growing up TX, the nation's longest running
and prepare them for a better Huay-Bing Law– Austin, TX
Arts Management And Technology Lab FEATURE NARRATIVE Public Access Television station.
life elsewhere. $5,000 cash for Post-
www.artsopportunities.org 1985 Production
NARRATIVE SHORTS
Chicken & Egg Pictures Yen Tan– Austin, TX THE TROUBLE I SEE An immigrant Chinese wife
$10,000 cash for Post- does her best to fit in at her
www.chickeneggspics.org Sally O’Grady– Austin, TX BAD THINGS husband's graduation ceremony
Production
$5,000 cash for Post- Mira Lippold-Johnson– Austin, in 1950's segregated Texas.
Cinereach Kodak Film Award (in-Kind): Production TX
www.cinereach.org 35mm exhibition print
THE TROUBLE I SEE $2,000 cash for Post- MAUDE
A terminally ill young man explores the impact of mass
Creative Capital visits his hometown in Texas Production Anna Margaret Hollyman–
incarceration on three families Austin, TX
www.creative-capital.org and struggles to disclose his in Richmond,Va. Using the When her older sister gets
dire circumstances to his annual Father-Daughter Dance unjustly suspended from school, Stuck On On DCP Grant
Film Independent conservative family. at the City Jail as the catalyst, eight-year-old Sue Ellen starts (in-Kind): one theatrical digital
the film examines the realities to doubt that brains and hard cinema package
2015 Recipient: SOUTHWEST OF SALEM www.filmindependent.org THE TEXAS HIGH SCHOOL work are enough to keep her
of life in the corrections system MAUDE is a comedy about a
REGIONAL THEATER for Joey, Andre and Rashaan. out of trouble. Bad teachers,
Ford Foundation prejudices, a bully: there are woman named Teeny who is
There is no right way to seek funding—your The Independent Film and Videomakers Guide FESTIVAL MURDERS impediments to success. So Sue surprised to learn that she is
www.fordfoundation.org Clayton Liford– Austin, TX Ellen takes a drastic, violent babysitting the daughter of
approach will be dictated by your material. THE TROUBLE WITH RAY – a former college classmate,
Travis Johns– Houston, TX step to take control.
And there is no magic list of sources of funds. The Foundation Center $5,000 cash for Production Priscilla, a successful Gwyneth
A comprehensive line of publications on Paltrow-esque lifestyle guru.
www.foundationcenter.org After witnessing a murder at $5,000 cash for Post-
Here are some of the resources that we find practical issues of indie production is available Production CALLING Over the course of the day,
a prestigious theater festival,
ourselves recommending over and over: The Funding Exchange a down-on-her-luck theater Artemis Anastasiadou– Austin, Teeny begins to take on the
from Michael Wiese Productions. Check out THE TROUBLE WITH RAY other woman’s identity with
teacher and her star pupil must exposes the wild, untold history TX
Shaking the Money Tree: How to Get Grants and Film and Video budgets and www.mwp.com www.fex.org decide what to do in order to hilarious consequences.
of LGBT activism in ultra- $1,000 cash for Distribution
Donations for Film and Video still win. conservative Texas and its
The Ultimate Film Festival Survival Guide The Grantsmanship Center After a violent event comes to
impact on the national stage THROUGH A CITY
Morrie Warshawski Chris Gore www.tgci.com WHAT BREAKS THE ICE – as told by the movement’s an end, a mother struggles to SHOESTRING
Rebecca Eskreis– Austin, TX ultimate outsider, Ray Hill: a keep on being a caregiver to her
www.warshawski.com Hatchfund handi-capable son. Kent Juliff– Austin, TX
FILMMAKER MAGAZINE $10,000 cash for Production labor activists’ son, ex-con, and
“loud-mouthed queer,” whose $1,000 cash for Post-Production
43 Ways To Finance Your Feature Film: A www.filmmakermagazine.com www.hatchfund.org During the summer of 1998, 50 years of fearlessly protesting THE CHEAP SEATS On a lazy summer, two lifeguard
Comprehensive Analysis Of Film Finance Sammy and Emily both 15 years for LGBTQ equality energized friends get caught up in a small
IFP Humanities Texas old, strike up a quick and deep a grassroots movement to Brittany Reeber– Austin, TX town mystery after their boss is
John W. Cones IFP's Guide to Granting Organizations www.humanitiestexas.org friendship, in spite of their take powerful, political action. kidnapped.
disparate backgrounds. But Kodak Film Award: $5,000 in
IFP.org/resources/IFPs-Guide-to-Granting- Ray has broken every rule film stock
Spike Mike Reloaded: A Guided Tour Across A Independent Television Service (ITVS) what should have been the best of acceptable behavior in his
Organizations summer of their lives takes an journey for equality and as MPS Camera and Lighting
Decade Of American Independent Cinema www.itvs.org unexpected turn when they Award: $5,000 in camera DOCUMENTARY SHORTS
a result, he and his heroic
INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY ASSOCIATION become accidental accomplices associates built a blueprint for package & equipment rentals LET ‘EM KNOW YOU’RE
John Pierson Independent Feature Project in a fatal crime: the murder of
International Documentary Association changing the world. Donna and Julianne search THERE: THE STORY OF BIG
www.ifp.org Sammy's brother, Travis. for ancestral connection in JIM & THE TRIPLE DOUBLE
Rebel Without a Crew: Or How a 23-Year-Old www.documentary.org a place where consumerism Field Humphrey– Austin, TX
Filmmaker with $7,000 Became a Hollywood National Endowment For The Arts UNTITLED JENNIFER LAUDE has replaced culture and life’s
FEATURE DOCUMENTARY DOCUMENTARY
Player sweet moments tend to be at $2,500 cash for Post-
arts.endow.gov Production
P.J. Raval– Austin, TX the bottom of a cheap drink.
Robert Rodriguez LOVE IS A SENSATION The fictional script is set in the
P.O.V. $15,000 cash for Post- A forgotten basketball pioneer
Yaphet Smith– Round Rock, TX very real Cassadaga Spiritualist and NBA record holder, Jim
www.pbs.org/pov/ Production Camp, a small community in
$3,000 cash for Post- Tucker reveals what is truly
Grassroots activists in the central Florida dedicated to worth remembering as he
Roy W. Dean Film and Video Grants Production Philippines are spurred into Spiritualism and “mediumship”, struggles with Alzheimer's
www.fromtheheartproductions.com Oprah Winfrey hails from action when a local transgender or the ability to communicate disease.
Kosciusko, Mississippi, but woman is found dead in a motel with the dead.
Sundance Institute most pilgrims trek there to room with a 19-year-old U.S. THE SHAKE-UP –Benjamin
visit The Unusual Artist Ms. L.V. marine as the leading suspect. Altenberg– Austin, TX
www.sundance.org Hull at her outlandish home. As they demand answers and HAO’S NAILS
Now, as L.V.’s health fails, only a just trial, hidden histories of Nazanin Shirazi and Katja $5,000 cash for Production
Texas Commision On The Arts (TCA) one visitor would make her life U.S. colonization come bubbling Straub– Austin, TX Mental healthcare patients
complete: Blues legend B.B. to the surface. and providers in New Mexico
www.arts.state.tx.us King. Will The Artist meet The $5,000 cash for Production
struggle to find a path forward
King before time runs out? Every two weeks 65-year-old after the state government
Texas Film Commission WHEN WE WERE LIVE Cindy searches for a moment of makes false accusations of
www.governor.state.tx.us/film John Moore– Austin, TX intimacy at Hao’s Nails. Medicaid fraud that result in
PAHOKEE widespread closures of clinics
Stuck On On DCP Grant
Tribeca Film Institute Patrick Bresnan– Austin, TX (in-Kind): one theatrical digital CHICLE and the disruption of life-saving
cinema package services for thousands.
$15,000 cash for Post- Lizette Barrera– Austin, TX
www.tribecafilminstitute.org Production WHEN WE WERE LIVE is a $4,000 cash for Post- THINGS WE LEFT BEHIND
In the shadow of slavery and Jim feature documentary about Production Amy Bench– Austin, TX
Crow, and beset by the loss of the heyday of Public Access
jobs to mechanized agriculture, Television in the 1980's and 90's, An ill-tempered teenager MPS Camera and Lighting
the citizens of Pahokee, FL look and how it shaped the culture of attempts to find peaceful Award: $5,000 in camera
to their youth for meaning in a pre-internet America. The film solitude on the day of her package & equipment rentals
the present and hope for the weaves together hundreds of grandfather's passing until an THINGS WE LEFT BEHIND is a
future. Annual rituals and rites hours of archival footage to tell estranged friend pays her a visual diary film that touches on
the stories of five former Public visit. the refugee experience, through
the objects that connect them
to their former lives. It is aPREVIOUS GRANT RECIPIENTS
series of portraits of women Frameline Film Festival
living in the United States, who
came to this country with no
more than a carry-on bag or a Patrick Bresnan, THE RABBIT
couple of suitcases. This film HUNT
investigates the relationship we
have to objects, how objects are Sundance Film Festival
a physical gateway to memory, Berlin International Film Festival
and how the objects serve to
stand in for the loss, or propel
the owner beyond it, into a new Bob Byington, INFINITY BABY
life.
San Francisco International Film
Festival
ANIMATED SHORT
RENEEPOPTOSIS Sam Douglas, THROUGH THE
REPELLENT FENCE
Renee Zhan– Katy, TX
MoMA Doc Fortnight
$5,000 cash for Production
RENEEPOPTOSIS is a fifteen
minute fantasy autobiographical David Fenster, OPUNTIA
animated short. It follows the
adventures of three Renees at Los Angeles Film Festival
various points of their lifespan
as they go on a spiritual journey
to find God (who is also Renee). Jose Luis González, ENSUEÑO
Along the way, the Renees San Francisco International Film
discuss and experience in full Festival
glory the trials, tribulations, and
wonders of being Renee.
Kent Juliff, LAST NIGHT
SPECIAL GRANTS Slamdance Film Festival
DJI Grant Recipient:
Daniel Laabs, JULES OF LIGHT
Derek Allison
AND DARK
IFP Rough Cut Labs
Harrison McClure endowed
grant for an undergraduate
filmmaker: Joel Pena, PEDAZOS
Outfest
PERDÓNAME
narrative short, $2500 in grant PJ Raval, Untitled Jennifer
support Laude Documentary
Filmmaker: Tani Shukla Sheffield Doc Fest Lab
A Catholic woman is put at odds
with her faith when her cancer-
afflicted sister asks her to Todd Rohal, THE SUPLEX
commit the ultimate sin. DUPLEX COMPLEX
Seattle International Film
2017 TRAVEL GRANT Festival
RECIPIENTS
15 Recipients Brittany Shepherd, EYE,
12 prestigious film festivals CAMERA
including Sundance, Berlin,
Tribeca Hot Docs, San Hot Docs Film Festival
Francisco, Los Angeles, MoMA
Doc Fortnight and Slamdance,
Drew Xanthopoulos, THE
2 Development labs
SENSITIVES
Tribeca Film Festival
Micah Barber, INTO THE WHO
KNOWS!
Sarasota Film Festival
Lizette Barrera, MOSCA
NALIP Latino Media Festival
Robin Berghaus, STUMPEDYou can also read
