Deadlines:
Production funding (twice a year): Mar 10, 2011
Distribution funding: (bi-monthly) : Feb 25 / Apr 29, 2011
Downloads
Submission Forms (updated November 2010)
Download Submission Form Production, Englisch, Word (209 KB)
Download Submission Form Production, French, Word (181 KB)
Download Submission Form Distribution, English, Word (145 KB)
Detailed guidelines (updated March 2010)
Download Guidelines, English, PDF (96 KB)
Download Guidelines, French, PDF (92 KB)
Guidelines
The World Cinema Fund (after referred to as 'WCF') is initiated by the German Federal
Cultural Foundation (Kulturstiftung des Bundes). The Kulturveranstaltungen des Bundes in Berlin GmbH/division Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin (after referred to as 'IFB') is the legal entity of this initiative.
The purpose of the World Cinema Fund (WCF) is to support films from regions whose film
cultures are endangered by political and or economic crises. The World Cinema Fund is intended to help provide a higher profile and increased accessibility for these films in Germany and to enable their presentation to an international audience.
Projects eligible for funding should deal with the cultural identity of their regions and should contribute to the development of the local film industry.
The main criterion for selection is the quality of the projects. Special consideration will be given to projects which have good chances to succeed internationally and which promise to energize the local film industry as well as projects which are of particular cultural importance.
WCF entitled regions
Eligible for funding under these guidelines from August 2007: Latin America, Africa, the Near and Middle East/Central Asia, South East Asia and the Caucasus. A film will be considered to be from a particular region if it is shot there and if the director comes from that region.
WCF - Guidelines
The allocation of funds for the production of a film does not automatically include funding for the film’s distribution. Distribution support, however, can be allocated even if the production has not been supported by WCF.
Production Funding
The amount of funding should normally not exceed 50% of the total production costs. The maximum amount of funding per project is € 100,000.
Entitled Applicants and Recipients:
o Film production companies based in Germany and other such companies from EU countries who have a branch or a subsidiary in Germany and who can confirm collaboration with a director from a WCF entitled region
o World sales companies and distributors based in Germany and other such companies from EU countries who have a branch or a subsidiary in Germany and who co-finance the production costs and who can confirm collaboration with a director from a WCF entitled region
o Film production companies from WCF eligible regions who can confirm collaboration with a director from a WCF region. Collaboration with a German film production /world sales /distribution company can be confirmed after the funding has been applied for but must be verified, at the very latest, before the completion of the funding agreement, otherwise entitlement to funding is forfeited. The funding agreement can only be concluded with the German partner.
The funds must be used for the film project that has been earmarked to receive the funding and should be expended in the abovementioned WCF eligible regions. Exceptions can only be made with the prior written consent of the WCF. If the funding is not used for the project it was earmarked for, it must be paid back immediately. The affirmation of the funding normally expires if the complete financing of the project cannot be confirmed six months after the initial approval of the WCF. Discrepancies favoring the recipients of funding can be made when drawing up the funding agreement.
Payment of funding:
50% upon signing the funding agreement and after positive verification of the total film financing
42.5% upon submission of the rough cut of the film but no later than 12 months after commencement of shooting
7.5% upon approval of the examination of expenditures by an acknowledged auditing company, which must be in the hands of the WCF no later than 18 months after the signing of the funding agreement, otherwise entitlement to funding is forfeited.
Discrepancies favoring the recipients of funding can be made when drawing up the funding
agreement.
Repayment of funding:
After recoupment of the recipient’s own initial investment, the WCF will, for a period of 7 years, beginning with the world premiere of the film, participate in all proceeds received by the recipient of the funds arising from the exploitation of the film. Regarding the return on the investment of the German producer, general expenses of 7.5% of the total budget will recognized.
The WCF will participate according to its percentage of the German share of the film’s
total budget, pari passu until its funding is fully recouped. The participation in the
exploitation proceeds will be used by the WCF in the funding of future film projects.
Eligible to apply and receive funding are:
Distribution and world sales companies – in individual cases also production companies – based in Germany and in EU countries that have a branch in Germany, that are planning the theatrical release of a film from a WCF entitled region. Funding is to be used solely to cover the costs of the theatrical release in Germany.
Funding must be applied for in order to be received. Applications are to be submitted to the WCF including all documents mentioned in the application forms.
The WCF assembles a jury of independent film-related professionals who will make recommendations regarding the films to be funded. The international jury consist of the programme management team of the World Cinema Fund as well as three other members. The jury meetings will be convoked by the WCF. The jury will make its decisions in closed sessions. Its recommendations will be made solely on the grounds of artistic merit of the projects applying for funding. The WCF is solely responsible for adherence to all other requirements regarding funding and makes the final decisions.
The WCF reserves the right to grant a recipient a smaller amount of funding than applied for. There is no legal right to a WCF funding. Legal claims to payment can only enter into effect upon the signing of the funding agreement. The WCF is under no obligation to explain its reasons for declining.
In the opening and closing credits of the funded film, as well as in all promotional and advertising material, the WCF is to be named according to WCF as an initiative of the German Federal Cultural Foundation (Kulturstiftung des Bundes). Details will be listed in the funding agreement.