Powerful stories can change the world.
When filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy’s decided to tell the story of Saba Qaiseran, a young woman who survived an attempted honour killing in the Pakistani province of Punjab , neither woman knew just how important Saba’s story would become.
Obaid Chinoy’s academy award winning documentary, A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness, ignited public outrage and political pressure in Pakistan, feeding a movement that eventually led to the banning of honor killings in the country. What started as a tale of one woman’s courage, resilience and strength in the face of terrible violence, became a symbol and rallying cry for those across the country and internationally campaigning to put such violence firmly in Pakistan’s past. This is the power of one story.
The Berlin Feminist Film Week is excited to partner with Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy and the global campaign organisation Purpose to provide a €10,000 grant for one filmmaker interested in engaging with German audiences to create a film to tell a story that needs to be told.
We are looking for global stories that touch on the themes of inequality, climate change, global health and/or gender inequality and that highlight women*, like Sharmeen and Saba, who are fighting for change.
The winning filmmaker will be supported to develop and build a public engagement campaign to accompany their film, creating ways for the film’s viewers to take action on the issues depicted in the story and help create meaningful change in the world.
UPDATE: Entries have now closed. We will need a little longer to process all application than announced, so please bear with us. All applicants have been notified. Please let us know if not.
Terms and Conditions for Filmmakers
- Entries close 7th December, 2018 midnight (23:59 CET time)
- One winner will be chosen from all entries received in accordance with the below Terms and Conditions. The winner will be notified by phone and email.
- The prize is for a film proposal that is in development and has yet to be finished, the prize money will be used as part of or as the complete budget for the proposed project
- The winner is permitted to accept funding from other grants/funds as long as this does not impact the due date
- The film can be partially completed or in initial stages of development at the time of submission
- Films have to have relevance to one of the following topics:
- Global Inequality
- Poverty
- Hunger
- Health
- Education
- Gender Equality
- Clean water and sanitation
- Clean energy and energy access
- Good jobs/Employability
- Sustainable Cities and Communities
- Climate Change
- Worker’s rights
- Oceans
- Wildlife protection
- Deforestation
- Peace
- Racism
- Sexism
- Discrimination
- Ableism
- LGBTQI Rights
- Civil Rights
- Human Rights
- Wherever possible, films should consider issues and topics from countries in the Global South or should present innovative perspectives
- All team members (producer, writer, director) should be over the age of 18
- At least one listed team member should be a woman* (*female identifying)
- We accept proposals for films from any genre and of any length
- The selected winner must commit to completing their film by December 2019 and must participate in regular mentorship sessions throughout the year
- The selected winner should be expecting to or be open to premiering their film in Germany
- Submission to the competition is not a submission to Berlin Feminist Film Week
- The winning proposal will not automatically be granted the right to screen at the Berlin Feminist Film Week
- Berlin Feminist Film Week and any selected partners has permission to share the selected winners submission video via social media and marketing channels
- The video to be uploaded does not have to be a finished trailer but a simple video presenting the idea will do. Be creative!
- The link can be for any website, a Vimeo-link, a YouTube-link, Tumblr-account etc. that will showcase your work philosophy or anything relevant to your proposed idea.