Following the success of
the inaugural scriptwriting residency, Realness is thrilled to announce the
call for submissions for the 2017 edition.
Realness is a pioneering
residency that provides filmmakers with the opportunity to hone and develop
their creative scriptwriting skills. It serves to address the need for
promising African film projects to be supported in their development phase to
be able to realistically compete in global film markets.
This year five filmmakers
Amirah Tajdin (Kenya), Hiwot Admasu (Ethiopia) Luck Razanajaona (Madagascar), Sheetal
Magan (South Africa) and Wim Steytler (South Africa) spent six weeks at the
Nirox Artists’ Residency in the Cradle of Humankind under the mentorship of
script consultants Selina Ukwuoma and Nadja Dumouchel, including attending the
Durban FilmMart and Talent Campus at the Durban International Film Festival.
“The success of this
residency is not only evident in the encouraging feedback from the
participants, who welcomed the opportunity to be in a quiet headspace to tap
into their creative sources, but it is also evident in the numerous awards they
have received and the progress made following the residency,” explains Elias
Ribeiro, Creative Director of Realness. “Luck, for example, had a project
selected for the Durban FilmMart prior to the residency, where we met and
worked with participants as a precursor to programme. Here he walked off with
awards from CineMart (International Film Festival Rotterdam) and the
International Organisation of La Francophonie to further develop his
script. Hiwot has since
won an award to participate at another residency programme in Switzerland,
the Internationale
Kurzfilmtage Winterthur, and two of the projects have signed coproduction
agreements since
completing the residency.”
As a result of the Realness
programme, Ribeiro has,been invited to present the initiative at five major
international festivals since starting it earlier this year, namely Berlinale,
Cannes, Locarno, Venice and Torino. “The continued interest is very encouraging
and serves as a platform for the residents to maintain the momentum towards
getting their films made. We have structured Realness in a very holistic and
strategic way, engaging with heavyweight partners and advisors in developing
the framework for the programme. It is rewarding to see the genuine interest in
developing synergy between African cinema and the rest of the world.” Amirah
Tajdin said “Realness made me realize that…time and space really does make all
the difference during script writing.” Wim Steytler said that Realness gave him
the courage to “throw my script and 8 months of work into the bin.
I gained important
insights into how to take my story from decent to good. After Realness my goal
is to take the project from good to great.”
Realness is proud to
announce that the partnerships established in 2016 will continue into the
second edition, which means that the 2017 residents will also have the
opportunity to further develop their projects through the awards offered by the
Durban FilmMart, Locarno Filmmakers Academy, Torino Film Lab, Midpoint, EAVE
and La Fabrique des Cinema du Monde.
The submission window closes on 31 January 2017:
Applicants must submit ONE
PDF dossier containing:
• a
motivation for wanting to participate in REALNESS (1 page)
• a
synopsis of the proposed feature project (1 page)
• a
narrative treatment of the proposed feature project (6 pages)
• a draft
of the screenplay (if available)
• a
writer's note of intention (1 page)
• a short
biography (1 paragraph)
• two links
to samples of previously produced work, uploaded to vimeo.
If selected, residents
will be required to donate one copy of their previous work to the Nirox film
library. The call is open to screenwriters from across the African continent
and selection will be based on artistic merit. REALNESS will hold no legal
claim over the work once the residency is completed.
All submitted material
must be in English. A committee appointed by the Realness team and their
partners will read the project entries and conduct interviews with a shortlist
of candidates in April. The REALNESS selection will be announced at an event
hosted by the pavilion Les Cinemas du Monde in Cannes, 2017.
For more info and to
download the application form go to www.urucumedia.com/realness.
