EURODOC

CALL 2022

 

 

 

Since more than 20 years, EURODOC is one of the leading training program for producers with a creative documentary project in the development stage

 

 

 

 

OBJECTIVES

 

 

 

         EURODOC is an association with a focus on creative documentary. It represents an observatory on the panorama of contemporary creative documentary production in Europe and beyond. It is a privileged platform that provides constant updates on creative documentary film and production system. It represents a network of more the 1000 professionals all around the world.

 

        

 

         EURODOC’s main activity is the organization of a yearly training programme designed for producers and filmmakers/producers who want to enhance the development stage of their creative documentary project internationally. The training is organized in 3 one-week sessions spread over 8 months.

 

 

 

         The training is mainly addressed to European professionals working in the field of documentary production. The main objective is to improve their knowledge in terms of European and more largely international co-production, reinforcing their skills and putting them in contact with the large network of graduates and experts that in the 20 years of its existence, have been participating in EURODOC’s activities.

 

 

 

Since its creation 22 years ago, EURODOC represents a privileged platform providing constant updates on creative documentary, its production and co-production in order to understand the needs of the industry and provide a support in a steadily transforming system.

 

 

 

The main goals and objectives of the program are:

 

·     To improve the development of documentary projects with international potential, to help plan their financing and management more efficiently;

 

·     To provide a deeper insight into the technological changes affecting the development, production and distribution of documentaries;

 

·     To reinforce the international potential of small and medium-sized companies;

 

·     To encourage transnational cooperation and provide a clear general picture of the international film market;

 

·     To foster sustainable networking between professionals and decision makers in the sector;

 

·     To consider the specific needs of professionals in European countries with low audio-visual production capacity and to provide them with useful tools.

 

·     To contribute to the exchange of ideas and the sharing of good practices in terms of fair co-production, diversity, inclusion.

 

 

 

 

SKILLS DEVELOPPED

 

Project development, coproduction, legal & financial aspects, management, etc.

 

 

 

Throughout the 3 sessions, all of the fundamentals of production are covered. Topics addressed include the analysis of the artistic quality of the project, the relationship between the director and the producer, the negotiation and clearing of rights, the financing of the development, production methods, budgeting, the identification of potential international partners, the drafting of different co-production agreements, the production of trailers and preparation of the pitch, the management of a production company, traditional and alternative methods for the promotion and distribution of the finished film, and the documentary film market. In addition to addressing all these topics the program also enables participants to interact in individual meetings with major players in the documentary field (commissioning editors, programmers, distributors, curators, producers).

 

 

 

 

METHODOLOGY

 

 

 

·     Group work:  2 working groups are created, an English-speaking and a French-speaking group. Each group includes up to 14 producers with projects and up to 2 participants/observers

 

 

 

·     A 3rd group, composed of up to 14 producers from the host country joins the program at each session to attend a 5 days’ intensive workshop on international co-production

 

 

 

·     Expert appraisals: In each session, experts hold individual meetings with the participants to analyse their projects. During the first session, an appraisal is made of the scripts and during the second session the budget and the production strategies are analysed. During the last session, over 400 individual meetings are organized between the participants and the experts (approximately 20/25 meetings with commissioning editors, distributors, sales agents, film fund representatives, festival programmers and curators, producers and filmmakers)

 

 

 

·     Plenaries: The plenary sessions cover different topics ranging from artistic to financial development and include storytelling, editing, author’s rights, funding schemes, production, co-production, pitching, company management, distribution, sales, environmental producing, gender and diversity issues.

 

 

 

·     Case studies: Screenings of creative documentaries are followed by a Q&A with the filmmaker, the producer(s) and the main funders of the film. During the discussion, the co-production process and the artistic approach are analysed

 

 

 

·     Masterclasses: well-known personalities of the documentary world are invited to discuss about their cinematographic vision and about their carrier.

 

 

 

 DESCRIPTION OF THE SESSIONS

 

 

 

EURODOC training is organized in 3 one-week residential sessions (in 3 different European venues) spread over one year. Additional online activities are proposed in-between sessions. 

 

 

 

During the first 2 sessions, participants work within the groups (2 International groups and 1 local group for each session) and with experts on analysing the scripts and discussing development, production financing, legal aspects of co-production, marketing, pitching, packaging, and more.

 

 

 

In the third workshop, 25/28 Experts (commissioning editors, festival programmers, fund representatives and sales agents) meet the participants in one-to-one meetings of 45 minutes to discuss the projects. 1 group with local producers works alongside the two international groups.

 

 

Session 1: Development / 6 days / March 2022

 

 

 

The first session focuses on analysing each of the participants’ projects in terms of script and development to consolidate their overall consistency. Individual meetings with experts support this group work.

 

During this session, filmmakers can take part in the individual meetings and discussions of their projects in the working groups together with their producers. The plenary sessions cover issues such as storytelling and narrative structure, the relationships between the editor, filmmaker and the producer. Two case studies are organized.

 

 Session 2: Coproduction, Financing & Packaging / 6 days / June 2022

 

 

 

During session 2, participants finalize the packaging of their projects and start preparing the pitches to the decision makers which takes place during the third session. Activity focuses on budgeting, financing, packaging, co-producing, trailer preparation and improvement, and the project pitch. Individual meetings with experts are provided to complement this group work. Two case studies are proposed. Plenaries focus on coproduction, packaging, and environmental friendly production.

 

 

Session 3: Meetings with the Experts / 6 days / October 2022

 

 

This session is mainly dedicated to the one-to-one meetings with experts. For 3 days, individual meetings of 45‘ each are organized for the participants with the experts whose profiles are considered most relevant to provide an appraisal of their project and advice for its development. Around 400 one-to-one meetings are organized between the Tuesday and the Friday. These meetings are intensively prepared during the first 2 days of the session in the groups with the tutors.

 

All the decision-makers invited present the editorial lines and eventually the funding capacities of their channels. Two case studies are presented. Plenaries focus on new models of production, and current trends in the documentary film market, and new distribution models.

 

 

 

After each session, participants are requested to send an evaluation of the organization and the tuition. At the end of the training Program, participants receive a Eurodoc Program Graduation Certificate.

 

 

 

Online activities: Masterclasses and one-to-one meetings / in-between sessions

 

 

 

In between the 3 workshops, in April, May and July, the training offers online activities such as masterclasses, consultations, individual meetings with analysts, group presentations.

 

The participants are also required to elaborate specific tasks and are demanded to update the files of their projects as well as the trailers, their financing plans and budgets.

 

 

 

Masterclass: A renowned filmmaker is invited as mentor of EURODOC22. She/he will hold a masterclass on her/his carrier, with a particular attention to the way she/he has been able to maintain the artistic integrity and finance the film.

 

 

 

Production Landscape presentations: During the production landscape, participants do a presentation on the production landscape of her/his country, prepared before the session, eventually together with the other participants of her/his own country.

 

 

 

Individual meetings: The group leaders of the international group provide individual online feedback on the first draft of the Minikits that participants are demanded to prepare for the meetings of WORKSHOP 3.

 

 

 

 WHO CAN APPLY ?

 

 

 

·       Project holders: 

 

Producers or filmmaker-producers, professionals who usually have prior experience as producers, who are ready to embark on a new stage in their career (i.e. they have recently created their production company). Experienced producers may also follow the training program to widen their network and strengthen specific skills. These producers generally have experience as production managers and come to acquire skills to help them in the creative development of projects, as well as to gain heightened legitimacy in their relations with the film directors they support. We also welcome junior producers.

 

 

 

·       Professionals from the documentary industry:

 

Commissioning executives from the documentary departments of TV channels, representatives from film funds or institutions that fund documentary projects, all of whom are usually already quite experienced but also wish to gain more in-depth knowledge about coproduction systems.

 

 

 

 WHAT KIND OF PROJECTS ?

 

 

 

EURODOC fosters the development of feature-length and medium-length documentary film projects with high standards of quality and creativity. We accept all documentaries, essays and experimental films that reflect a diversity of genres and different forms of cinematic approaches. The projects are evaluated based on their artistic content and their state of development. Projects must be in development, preferably at an early production stage so that the participant can benefit fully from the training. Projects must also be suitable for a co-production and present guarantees in terms of feasibility. 

 

 

 

SELECTION

 

 

 

Up to 30 participants are selected each year:

 

 

 

·       70% are European citizens (or citizens from member countries of the Creative Europe Program*);

 

·       30% are non-European citizens;

 

·       10% are citizens from Low-Capacity Countries group B ** ;

 

·       80% are project holders (producers or filmmaker-producers);

 

·       20% are professionals in the documentary industry

 

 

 

Special attention is paid to the following criteria: 

 

·       Quality of the project and its international potential;

 

·       Quality of the candidates and their track records;

 

·       Evaluation of language skills (English and French);

 

·       A good balance between the different European countries.

 

·       Gender and diversity

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The selection is made to ensure a precise balance between the profiles of the applicants and the projects. The projects are appraised for their artistic contents and for their state of development. Projects must be in development, preferably in an early production stage so that the participant can benefit fully from the training, and they must be suitable for co-production with some guarantee of feasibility. The language of documentary is developing in scope, and the boundaries with other genres are becoming less marked. Authors have always explored different ways of portraying and interpreting reality; however, the development of new technologies and techniques brings new inspiration, and as a result, new tools for producing documentaries. It is essential that we transmit in-depth knowledge of the use of these important new tools.

 

 

 

 SCHEDULE

 

 

 

·       Call for applications opens on August 4th, 2021

 

·       The deadline for applications: October 29, 2021

 

·       Selection results (participants will be informed by email): mid-January 2022

 

·       Final selection announcement: mid-February 2022

 

·        

 

 REQUIRED MATERIAL

 

 

 

Applications will only be considered if all of the following are attached in 1 pdf-file (10mb max) in English:

 

·       COVER PAGE with title of the project / name of the director / name of the applicant (producer) / short synopsis

 

·       TREATMENT

 

·       DIRECTOR’S NOTE

 

·       BUDGET & FINANCING PLAN (in Euros)

 

·       PRODUCTION STRATEGY

 

·       DIRECTOR'S RESUME (with links and passwords to previous films)

 

·       PRODUCER'S RESUME & COMPANY PROFILE

 

·       COVER LETTER OF THE APPLICANT

 

NB: The dossier must not exceed a total of 15 pages, otherwise the application will not be accepted.

 

 

 

STRUCTURE OF THE TRAINING

 

 

 

The programmer consists of 3 residential one-week sessions, spread over an eight-month period (150 hours / participant):

 

·       Session 1: Development

 

From March 6^th to 12^th, 2022 in France (Ajaccio, Corsica)

 

·       Session 2: Coproduction, Financing & Packaging

 

From May 29^th to June 4^th, 2022 in Spain (Mallorca) TBC

 

·       Session 3: Meetings with the Experts

 

From October 2^nd to 8^th, 2022 in France (Hauts-de-France)

 

Exact dates of sessions to be confirmed.

 

 

 

Languages spoken during the training:

 

·       English in plenaries (masterclasses and case studies) and individual meetings

 

·       English or French in work groups (selected participants will be split between 2 groups).

 

 

 

PEDAGOGICAL TEAM

 

 

 

The members of the pedagogical team are internationally acknowledged professionals, with different profiles covering a wide range of activities (programming, distribution, production).

 

 

 

·       Maria Bonsanti, Head of the Eurodoc program:

 

Maria Bonsanti, Italian, has long collaborated with film festivals. Among them, the Locarno Film Festival, for which she has been in charge in particular of the coordination of the videoart section. Since 2000, she collaborated with the Festival dei Popoli in Florence, of which she was appointed as codirector in 2011. In 2012, she was nominated Artistic Director of Cinéma du Réel in Paris, of which she has been in charge for 5 years. She has acted as a member of the jury in several festivals: Berlinale, Busan International Film Festival, Karlovy Vary, CPH:DOX, Locarno Festival, Torino Film Festival, IndieLisboa, DocAviv, RIDM, Punto de Vista, Dokufest. She has participated as a teacher and expert to several workshops and programs as FilmUp in Naples, Laboratorio Filmmaker in Milan and Eurodoc. She is currenlty a member of the CNC commission, Aide au cinema du monde, after having served on commission for CNC avance sur recette après realization, Ile de France, Regione Toscana- Region Sud, Provence Alpes Côtes d’azur, Kanaldude.

 

 

 

·       Jacques Bidou, tutor of the French-Speaking group:

 

Jacques has produced more than 120 films, both documentaries and fiction which have been presented and received awards at the some of the most important film festivals worldwide. His filmography includes Chroniques Sud-Africaines, Diario en Medellin and Carnets d’un Combattant Kurde. As a producer of fiction, he has revealed talents such as Rithy Panh, Merzak Allouache or Pablo Agüero. A graduate of INSAS in Brussels, he has been the administrator of the FEMIS school and is a founding member of EURODOC, of which he has been the Head of Studies for 15 years. He has been Director of Studies for Docmed, a Group Leader for EAVE Greece, and for 8 years now has presided over the Ateliers Varan.

 

 

 

·       Heino Deckert, tutor of the English-Speaking group:

 

Heino is a producer and the managing director of Ma.ja.de. Filmproduktion and Ma.ja.de. Fiction. He is also a shareholder of Blinker Filmproduktion and manages Deckert Distribution. He has produced more than 100 award-winning documentaries with directors such as Victor Kossakovsky, Sergei Loznitsa and Thomas Heise. Having been in the business for years, he has acquired extensive knowledge of the documentary market from the inside. He regularly gives lectures on production and distribution and was the chairman of the European Documentary Network (EDN) from 2006-2008.

 

 

 

COST OF THE TRAINING

 

Fees:

 

The tuition fees are 3,000 € for European participants and member countries of the Creative Europe Program participants *, and 1,500 € for non-European participants.

 

Accommodation and travel for the three sessions are at the expense of participants (estimated cost: 1,000 Euros per session).

 

 

 

Scholarships:

 

EURODOC allocates scholarships to at least 10% of the total number of participants each year, covering either the tuition fees and/or accommodation expenses.

 

 

 

Scholarships are granted in priority to participants from Low Capacity Countries, group B or third countries considered as Group B ** ; participants from a country not providing scholarships for this kind of training or participants in any other proven situation of need for financial support.

 

 

 

We encourage all participants to apply for financial support with their national/regional funding bodies first. EURODOC is at their disposal to provide letters of reference to help participants apply for funding.

 

 

 

 

 

APPLICATION AND CONTACT

 

 

 

Online application: https://project-eurodoc.festicine.fr/

 

Application deadline: October 29th

 

 

 

By submitting my application, I authorize EURODOC to store my contact details in order to be informed of their activities. 

 

 

 

EURODOC

 

26 rue du Chalet

 

75010 Paris, FRANCE

 

Tel.: +33 1 48 74 70 12

 

Email: contact@eurodoc-net.com

 

www.eurodoc-net.com

 

 

 

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EURODOC is supported by the Creative Europe Program of the European Union, the Centre National du Cinéma et de l’Image Animée (CNC), PROCIREP and the partners hosting the sessions.

 

 

 

 

* The 28 European Union member countries (Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, United-Kingdom - until December 2020 -, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden) and countries participating in the Creative MEDIA Programme (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iceland, Georgia, Macedonia, Moldavia, Montenegro, Norway, Serbia, Tunisia, Ukraine).  

 

 

 

** Low Capacity Countries:

 

Group A: Czech Republic, Estonia, Romania, Greece, Croatia, Portugal, Poland

 

Group B: Bulgaria, Luxembourg, Slovenia, Lithuania, Slovakia, Hungary, Latvia, Cyprus, Malta.

 

Third countries considered as Group B, subject to the conditions being fulfilled for their participation in MEDIA: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina,Georgia, Iceland, Lichtenstein, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Republic of Serbia, Ukraine