VENICE PRODUCTION BRIDGE
Venice Gap – Financing Market
CALL FOR PROJECTS
The Venice Production Bridge is launching the Call for Projects for the fourth edition of the Venice Gap-Financing Market, which will take place onSeptember 1 to 3, 2017, during the 74. Venice International Film Festival (August 30 – September 9, 2017).
The Venice Gap-Financing Market is a platform to support the European and international producers to secure financing for their projects (Fiction, Documentaries, TV and Web Series and Virtual Reality) through one-to-one meetings with potential and pertinent international professionals (producers, sales agents, distributors, financiers, broadcasters and funds). All the invited professionals are decision-makers.
This call is open to 40 European and International projects:
- Film: 15/18 feature films from all over the world. There is no genre limitation and animation feature films are welcome
- Documentary: 7/10 international narrative or creative feature documentaries
- TV Series: 4/5 European projects
- Web Series: 3 European projects
- Virtual Reality: 7/8 VR projects from all over the world
The 3-day event will present a total of 47 selected European and International projects including the seven VR films developed through the Biennale College Cinema-Virtual Reality.
A tailor-made initiative of this kind requests a real confidentiality for the producers and the partners already in place and a first Project line-up will therefore be sent to selected potential financiers and professionals in order to allow them to register to this co-production market.
The catalogue detailing each film project will then be emailed to the registered professionals by the beginning of July 2017 to entitle them to request 30-minute one-to-one meeting with the producers of the selected projects. The Venice Gap-Financing Market will set up these meetings in accordance with the availability of the participants and meetings slots. Each participant will receive a personalised meeting schedule a few days before the event.
SUBMISSIONS AND REGULATIONS
The Venice Gap-Financing Market terms and conditions are:
GENERAL ELIGIBILITY
For Feature Films and Documentary projects
o The project must be a fiction feature film or a long feature documentary with a running time above 60minutes and intended for theatrical distribution.
o The project must be looking for a maximum of 30% gap financing.
o There is no budget or genre limitation but each project must have secured 70% (seventy per cent) of its budget and must prove that this financing is in place. The film can be in development, partly or entirely shot.
The Project Team
- Directors must have previous directing experience (short films, features, TV movies, series).
- Producers must have a track record in production and international co-production.
For TV Series and Web series
o The projects must be fictional dramas without any genre, tone or content restriction regardless of whether the content is intended for linear or non-linear viewing.
o The projects can be both original concepts and adaptations. Only the fictional dramas will be accepted, including animation series, but not documentary series.
o There is no budget limitation. Each project for TV or Web Series should be in development and eventually have secured 30% (thirty per cent) of its budget and must prove that this financing is in place.
The Project Team
- Directors must have previous directing experience (short films, features, TV movies, series…).
- Producers must have a track record in production and international co-production.
For Virtual Reality Projects
- The VR film projects must be fiction, documentary, series, animation film or other interactive installation based experiences.
- The minimum length must be 10 minutes.
- The projects can be both original concept and adaptation.
- There is no budget limitation. Each project should be preferably in a development phase but films already partially or totally shot are also acceptable.
- All submitted projects should have secured 30% (thirty per cent) at least of their budget and must prove that this financing is in place.
The Project Team
- Directors must have previous artistic or directing experience in their field (short films, features, TV movies, series, visual arts, performing arts, sound, installation, performance…).
- Producers must have a track record in production and international co-production.
PROJECT SUBMISSION DEADLINE 3rd of May, 2017
Submission is done in two steps:
- Fill in the Venice Production Bridge Online Entry Form that will be available from the end of March on our website http://www.labiennale.org/en/cinema/vpb-74/
- Upload the materials listed below to complete your submission. All documents must be in English or have an English translation.
For all projects
1. A synopsis of 1-2 pages
2. Full treatment and concept (8-10 pages for Feature Films, Documentary and Virtual reality projects and 4-5 pages for TV Series and Web series)
3. Director’s biography and filmography or track records
4. Producer’s biography and filmography or track records
5. Director’s statement and visual concept
6. Production company’s profile
7. Budget Outline
8. Financing Plan with all relevant documents showing that 70% of the budget is in place for Feature Films and Documentary projects and the 30% for TV series and Web series and Virtual reality projects
9. Specific goals at the Venice Gap-Financing Market
10. All contracts, agreements and deal-memos have to be signed by all parties:
– Between the producer and the author
– Between the producer and the director
– Between the producer and the co-producer(s), if any
– Between the producer and the main cast(s)/agents
– Between the producer and the funds, financial partners that appears in the financing plan
– Between the producer and the national distributor(s) if any
– Between the producer and the international sales agent, if any
11. Links with passwords to director’s previous works (one feature film or two shorts)
Please note that incomplete applications will not be considered.
Please note the following specifications:
– For TV Series and Web series
- Candidates must submit a concept of maximum 5 pages for a season TV series (the project must include a minimum number of 4 episodes between 26′ and 59′ each) or for a Web Series (at least 10 episodes between 5′ and 12′ minutes). Concepts for mini-series (2 to 4 episodes) will be accepted.
- Each project must be submitted by a company (producer, distributor, TV Channel). In any case a free application from private screenwriters or directors will be taken in consideration. (Priority will be given to projects supported by a TV broadcast or by other forms of financing).
– For Virtual Reality Projects
o Candidates must submit a concept and treatment of 8-10 pages on the overall story, visual approach, user experience or interactive experience design.
o Each project must be submitted by a production company (producer, distributor, TV Channel) who own full rights to develop and produce the project.
CONDITIONS OF ATTENDING THE VENICE GAP-FINANCING MARKET
Once the selection has been made, the selected producers are contacted to confirm their participation and asked to provide updated material for inclusion in the Book of Projects, which is going to circulate to professionals and financiers before and during the festival.
Participation in the event entitles the project team (the delegate producer and the director) to the following services and facilities:
o Travel and accommodation;
o Extensive networking opportunities and one-to-one meetings;
o Project promotion;
o An Industry Gold badge for the access to all the services of the Venice Production Bridge.
In return all the selected project teams are required to:
- Include the following line and the authorised logo in the credits when the film is completed “Presented at the Venice Production Bridge 2017”. Logo will be provided electronically;
- Attend the activities of the Venice Gap Financing Market;
- Attend all the pre-organized one-to-one meetings during the event.
By accepting the invitation to participate to the Venice Gap-Financing Market, you are also agreeing to follow and satisfy the above conditions.
Venice International Film Festival, 30th August – 9th September, 2017
Venice Production Bridge, 31st August– 5th September, 2017
Venice Gap-Financing Market, 1st – 3rd September, 2017
