filmmakers
Live Chat on DDF Funding
This year’s deadline for the Diversity Development Fund (DDF) falls on November 11. On Tuesday, November 1 at 1PM PT / 4PM ET, ITVS Programming Manager Karim Ahmad will be taking questions from interested applicants in a live chat on BTB.
The DDF provides up to $15,000 in research and development funding to independent producers of color to develop single documentary programs for public television. Projects should speak to the ITVS mission to serve underserved audiences with programs that take creative risks, explore complex issues, inspire dialogue and express points of view seldom seen on commercial or public television.
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New AIR Initiative Seeks Innovative Media Makers
Localore — a new initiative from The Association of Independents in Radio (AIR) — is recruiting innovative producers to lead public stations in ways beyond broadcast.
Calling all independent media makers (yes, we’re talking to you filmmakers!). Do you want to explore new ways of telling your story? Do you have an idea that takes advantage of both traditional and digital media? Then take a look at Localore, a new initiative from our friends at The Association of Independents in Radio (AIR), that’s designed to fuel public media’s capacity for innovative storytelling and journalism.
Through Localore, AIR will recruit talented radio, TV, film, and online producers to lead 10 public station-based projects, blending approaches to broadcast and digital platforms. This means mixing traditional media with mobile applications, online video, digital games, data visualization and maps — anything that will help to bring stories to the public in new ways beyond broadcast.
Interested producers are invited to submit proposals until November 10th at Localore.net.A second round of vetting in December will call on producers, matched with incubator stations, to submit final proposals.
Watch the station runway video (above) to see which public stations are interested in partnering with Independents. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to get your innovative project considered for this game-changing initiative.
ITVS Announces Funding for Eight International Productions through The Global Perspectives Project
ITVS has contracted with eight international documentary projects from its 2011 International Call. The next International Call Deadline is December 9, 2011.
- In the Shadow of the Sun by filmmakers Harry Freeland and Brian Hill are among the eight international projects slated to receive ITVS funding.
ITVS announced that it has contracted with eight international documentary projects from its 2011 International Call as part of the Global Perspective Project. This year’s selections provide extraordinary access and insight into the daily lives and struggles of people who live in Uruguay, Iran, China, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Myanmar, and India.
The productions were selected through a competitive application process, which resulted in 476 submissions from 118 countries representing 72 languages.
All eight documentary projects are slated for eventual broadcast, including primetime slots on the Emmy® Award-winning PBS series Independent Lens, P.O.V., and the international series, Global Voices.
Check out the complete list of funded projects after the jump >>
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Deadline for ITVS International Call on Dec. 9, 2011
ITVS International Call promotes the exchange of compelling documentary films between the United States and other nations, going beyond stereotypes and headline news.
ITVS International enables independent producers from outside the United States to create documentaries for U.S. television. Through International Call, global storytellers introduce U.S. audiences to their world, their neighbors, opening a window into unfamiliar lives, experiences and perspectives.
International Call provides production and/or post-production funds for single non-fiction television documentaries that bring international perspectives, ideas, stories and people to a U.S. audience. This initiative is for non-U.S. producers and filmmakers who live outside the U.S.
Please note: ITVS International Call 2012 will be an all digital submissions process.
For more information about guidelines, eligibility and how to submit, please visit www.itvs.org/funding/international
20 Years of ITVS and Independent Filmmakers Celebrated in SF
ITVS celebrated 20 years of support for independent filmmakers and documentaries last Friday in downtown San Francisco. Nearly 300 staff and filmmakers were on hand to celebrate public media’s independent voice. Enjoy photos from the event below and thanks to all for a wonderful evening!
Nearly 300 filmmakers, staff, board members, and friends rallied at 111 Minna on Friday, July 15 to celebrate ITVS's 20th Anniversary. — Photo by Tommy Lau
Get ITVS’s New A-to-Z Guide to Producing for Public Television
Calling all independent producers: The latest edition of the ITVS Production Manual is now available for purchase at www.itvs.org.
What kind of music rights do I need to clear for my film? What is E&O insurance and how do I obtain it? What do I need to consider regarding financials and reporting to funders? How do I use social media to do outreach for my film?
Attention all independent producers: Get the answers to these and other useful questions in the latest edition of the ITVS Production Manual: An A-to-Z Guide to Producing for Public Television, now available for purchase at www.itvs.org.
Learn about the process of getting your film to broadcast and beyond with sections on insurance and financial considerations, new media rights and clearances, public broadcasting distribution, publicity, social media, community engagement, and much more.
The 2011 edition of the manual is the culmination of years of industry experience — offering a collection of practical information contributed by ITVS staff and independent producers, as well as distributors and colleagues from media organizations and the public television field.
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Fighting for the Public Square
By Sally Jo Fifer
ITVS President & CEO Sally Jo Fifer explains why — now more than ever — our democracy depends on the in-depth, diverse, and nuanced stories of independent filmmakers.
Beyond the Box trumpets the work of independent filmmakers, and rightly so.
Amid the posts, an occasional report from the organization about the organization seems in order — and not just because ITVS is rolling into its 20th year. We all have a stake in the health of the public institutions that serve us and for which we fought hard to make possible.
Tribeca Film Festival Underway in NYC
The Tribeca Film Festival gets started today in New York and runs until May 1. The festival was founded in 2002 as a response to the events of 9/11, to help Lower Manhattan recover after the tragedy, and to celebrate the vitality and diversity of New York City through filmmaking.
Each year ITVS participates in the festival by meeting with filmmakers involved in the Tribeca All Access program. From April 22-28, ITVS’ Vice President of Programming Claire Aguilar will be in NYC to participate in the All Access development meetings with producers of color.
Three ITVS-funded films will also be on display at this year’s festival, including: Donor Unknown, Give Up Tomorrow, and When the Drum is Beating.
Plus, a special All Access screening of shorts from the second season of FUTURESTATES will screen on Saturday, April 23rd at 2:30PM at the Clearview Cinemas in Chelsea. This year’s selection, listed below, highlights Tribeca All Access alumni as well as emerging New York filmmaking talent:
Igniting the Classroom Through Film
This week, The San Francisco Film Society hosted an event that put filmmakers and educators in the same room.
ITVS has been in and out of the classroom all week. On Wednesday, we hosted a live chat with high school seniors and an Independent Lens filmmaker, and on Tuesday night we streamed video/live blogged from the San Francisco Film Society’s event: Igniting the Classroom. The event included a panel of filmmakers and educators, including ITVS’s Education Manager Annelise Wunderlich, who filed this report.
As Education Manager for ITVS, I often feel like a kid in a candy store. I am surrounded by incredibly rich content for the classroom — the work of all the independent filmmakers that receive funding from ITVS is truly an educator’s dream.
Notes from Orientation 2011: A Filmmaker’s Take
Doc filmmaker Reuben Atlas reflects on ITVS’ latest producers orientation for Open Call funding
Filmmaker Reuben Atlas
I heard the letters I-T-V-S for the first time about three years ago, sitting in the audience at a panel on documentary financing. One of the panelists, an Oscar winner, had just responded to the question of how he financed his film by holding up his MasterCard.
The moderator then asked, “Have any of you received funding from ITVS?” The crowd collectively gasped and all side conversations paused. A few people raced for the Q & A line. The young woman next to me flung open her Mac laptop and braced her fingers at the keyboard.
“What’s the acronym stand for?” I whispered. Keeping her shoulder’s facing forward, she swiftly turned her head towards me. “ITVS?” she said. “It’s the Holy Grail.” A man next to her immediately scoffed, letting us know he felt quite differently.
Four Open Call applications, many proposal revisions, and countless work sample cuts later, and here I am, a first time filmmaker at ITVS’ Open Call Producers Orientation.
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