Cookies facilitate the provision of our services. By using our services, you agree to our use of necessary cookies. You can refuse the use of optional cookies or only allow certain cookies. You can find further information in our privacy policy.

  • Logo eGo Saarland
Your current search term: Apply for Federal Film Funding for the Screenplay or Treatment of a Children's Film
Return to your search results

 

Apply for Federal Film Funding for the Screenplay or Treatment of a Children's Film

As the writer of a children’s film, you can apply for federal film grants to write a screenplay or treatment. The grant is awarded as part of a collaboration between the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media (BKM) and the Kuratorium junger deutscher Film.

The project must not have begun at the time of application.

Children’s films include feature films, documentaries, and animated films that are specifically aimed at children up to 12 years of age—particularly through their themes, tone, and style—and are suitable for this age group.

Funding is available for

  • the creation of a German-language treatment based on original material for a feature-length children’s film (at least 59 minutes) or
  • the development of a German-language screenplay of artistic quality for a feature-length children’s film (at least 59 minutes).

You may receive funding in the form of a grant up to the following amounts:

  • for treatments: up to EUR 8,000
  • for screenplays: up to EUR 30,000; in a few exceptional cases, up to EUR 50,000.

Your project may also be funded in several consecutive stages, for example, first the screenplay, then the production.

  • Application for Funding for Screenplay and Treatment Development for Feature-Length Children's Films

  • Funding is available for

    • the development of German-language screenplays

      • of artistic quality
      • for feature-length children’s films
      • as a non-repayable grant
      • Amount up to EUR 30,000; in a few justified exceptional cases, up to 50,000 euros

    • for the creation of treatments

      • based on original material
      • for feature-length children’s films of exceptional artistic quality
      • as a non-repayable grant
      • Amount up to EUR 8,000

  • Funding provided as part of the collaboration between the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media (BKM) and the Kuratorium junger deutscher Film.

  • Point of contact: Kuratorium junger deutscher Film and BKM

  • Responsible for application submission, approval, and processing: Kuratorium junger deutscher Film

  • Treatment Funding:

    • A link or DVD to a feature-length film based on one of your screenplays
    • A synopsis of no more than three pages,
    • a writer’s note explaining why you chose this material,
    • your biography,
    • Details of your professional background and previous works as an author,
    • A statement regarding copyrights to the material and title

  • Screenplay Funding:

    • Synopsis of the film project, no longer than one DIN A4 page,
    • a brief description of the main characters and information on the target audience and market potential,
    • Treatment
    • A fully developed dialogue scene
    • Your biography,
    • details of your professional background and previous works as an author,
    • Statement regarding copyrights to the material and title
      • Alternatively: If you do not hold these rights, you must provide proof of the acquisition of these rights or an option to acquire them.

Your children's film project must meet the following requirements to be eligible for funding:

  • a German-language screenplay that is expected to result in a feature-length children’s film (at least 59 minutes), or
  • a German-language treatment based on original material for a feature-length children’s film,
  • exceptional cinematic quality,
  • A theatrical release is expected.
  • You have not yet begun the project at the time of application, and
  • you and the director must have your residence, habitual residence, or primary place of work in Germany.

For applications for treatment funding, the following additional requirement applies:

  • You must be able to demonstrate at least one filmed screenplay for a feature-length fiction or documentary film of any genre that you wrote yourself or with a maximum of two other writers.

As a public or private broadcaster, you are not eligible to apply for funding.

  • If rejected: none
  • If approved: an administrative fee equal to 2 percent of the grant amount. This amount will be withheld when the grant is disbursed. The fee is part of the costs of the funded project.

You must submit your grant application in writing and also by email:

  • Download the application form for children’s film funding from the website of the Kuratorium junger deutscher Film or the BKM.
  • Fill out the application and gather all the required documents.
  • Send the application and supporting documents in 11 copies by mail to the Federal Archives.
  • Additionally, send the documents as a PDF file via email to the Kuratorium junger deutscher Film ( antrag@kjdf.org ).
  • The selection committee of the BKM and the Kuratorium junger deutscher Film will review your application. The executive board will decide whether to approve or reject your application based on the selection committee’s recommendation.
  • You will then receive a grant agreement or notification that your application has been rejected.

If your application is approved:

  • You will enter into a grant agreement with the Kuratorium junger deutscher Film.
  • The grant amount will be paid out to you in two installments; further details are specified in the grant agreement.
  • The funded projects will be supervised and reviewed by a project coordinator in terms of both technical and organizational aspects.
  • Now, write the treatment or screenplay.
  • Afterward, you must provide proof that you have used the grant funds for their intended purpose.
  • For treatments:
    • Submit an industry-standard treatment—typically 15 DIN A4 pages—to the Kuratorium junger deutscher Film.
    • The Kuratorium junger deutscher Film will then assess whether your treatment is suitable as the basis for a screenplay that could be funded by the Kuratorium and the BKM under the children’s film funding program.
  • For screenplays:
    • Submit the completed screenplay to the Board of Directors of the Kuratorium based on the project advisor’s recommendation.
    • The Kuratorium will approve your screenplay.
    • When the film is produced, you must acknowledge the funding in the opening credits, closing credits, or both, and display the logos of the Kuratorium junger deutscher Film and the BKM.
    • After the film is produced, you must provide the Board of Trustees with a copy of the film.
    • You grant the Board of Trustees the right to use funded films free of charge for promotional purposes, either on its own or in collaboration with third parties.
    • You must comply with the embargo periods that apply upon conclusion of the funding agreement in accordance with the Film Funding Act.

It takes about 12 weeks from the time you submit your application until a decision is made on it.

You must submit your application before your project begins.

There are usually two submission deadlines per year. You can find the current dates on the websites of the Kuratorium junger deutscher Film and the BKM. The date of receipt by the Federal Archives applies.

Forms: yes

Online procedure: no

Written form required: yes

In-person appearance required: no

If the Kuratorium junger deutscher Film has previously rejected a grant application for your project, you must substantially revise and modify it before submitting a new application. You must then describe these changes in your application. As a rule, resubmission is only possible for feature-length film production grants. The Board of Directors of the Kuratorium junger deutscher Film decides on exceptions.

Redirect Service: Deep Link to the Original Portal

Contact person for questions regarding the procedure and the application process:

Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media
Division K 35f
Potsdamer Platz 1
10785 Berlin

Script and Treatment Funding for Feature-Length Children’s Films
Marian Tobsing
Phone: 030 1868143116
Fax: 030 18681543116
Email: marian.tobsing@bkm.bund.de

Mailing Address for Submitting Applications:

Federal Archives
Film Funding
Finckensteinallee 63
12205 Berlin

Additional email address for submitting applications:
antrag@kjdf.org

The text was automatically translated based on the German content.

Source: Serviceportal Saarland