FUNDING FILM FROM DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

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SØRFOND – THE NORWEGIAN SOUTH FILM FUND

Film is one of today’s most important cultural expressions. Film, as an art form and as cultural expression, combines in a unique way other art forms such as music, drama and moving images. Movies are, at one and the same time, entertainment, an independent ar-tistic expression, and a medium reflecting both our past and our future. Film is also about identity, community, freedom of expression and sense of belonging.

The Norwegian Film Institute and the Films from the South Foundation have recognised that it is difficult for filmmakers in developing countries to realise film projects that are locally based, despite the great demand for such productions. Filmmakers in developing countries have the need for both production capital and international professional net-works. It is in that spirit that SØRFOND was created.

SØRFOND IN BRIEF

Production support

Top financing

Projects from developing countries

Norwegian co-producer required

Fiction or documentaries

Minimum 50 min. running time

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FUNDING BY THE NORWEGIAN GOVERNMENTNOK 11,6 million (approximately € 1,4 million) has been granted for support from 2012 to 2015 and NOK 10,4 million (approximately € 1,25 million) will be granted for production support from 2016 - 2018 through an inter-departmental cooperation between The Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and The Norwegian Ministry of Culture. The Norwegian Film Institute and the Films from the South Foundation will jointly be in charge of the admin-istration of the fund.

OVERALL OBJECTIVEThe grant shall contribute to strengthen film as a cultural expression, to prome diversity and artistic integrity on the international film scene, and to strengthen freedom of expres-sion. The grant shall also contribute to an increased cooperation between Norwegian and international film industries. The purpose of SØRFOND grants is to stimulate the pro-duction of films in developing countries where such production is limited by political or economic causes.

PROJECTS FROM DEVELOPING COUNTRIESSØRFOND applies to grants for the production of films with a main producer based in a country on the OECD’s current list of countries and territories eligible to receive assistance (DAC-list). In addition, the director must have citizenship from, or be resident in, a country of the DAC-list. The film must, for the most part, be shot in a country of the DAC-list. In exceptional cases, derogations may be made regarding the establishment of the main pro-ducer in a country of the DAC-list, if, due to political reasons, the film cannot be produced in such a country.

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EUROPEAlbania, Belarus, Bosnia & Herzegowina,

Former Yugoslav Rep. Of Macedonia,

Kosovo, Moldova, Montenegro, Serbia,

Ukraine

ELIGIBLE COUNTRIES

LATIN-AMERICAAnguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Argentina, Belize,

Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba,

Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador,

Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras,

Jamaica, Mexico, Montserrat, Nicaragua, Panama,

Paraguay, Peru, St. Kitts-Nevis, St. Lucia,

St. Vincent & Grenadines, Suriname, Uruguay,

Venezuela

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ASIAAfghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh,

Bhutan, Cambodia, China, Georgia, India,

Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Korea

Dem. Rep., Kyrgyz Rep., Laos, Lebanon, Malaysia,

Maldives, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan,

West Bank and Gaza Strip, Philippines, Sri Lanka,

Syria, Tajikistan, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Turkey,

Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Viet Nam, Yemen

OCEANIAOceania, Cook Islands, Fidji, Kiribati, Marshall

Islands, Micronesia, Federated States, Nauru,

Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa,

Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu,

Wallis & Futuna

AFRICAAngola, Algeria, Benin, Botswana, Burundi,

Burkina Faso, Cameron, Cape Verde,

Central African Rep., Chad, Comoros, Congo Rep.,

Congo Dem. Rep., Cote d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Egypt,

Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia,

Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho,

Liberia, Libya, Madagaskar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania,

Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger,

Nigeria, Rwanda, St. Helena, São Tomé & Príncipe,

Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leona, Somalia,

South Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, Swaziland,

Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe

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NORWEGIAN CO-PRODUCER REQUIREDThe Norwegian co-producer must be a private and independent production company (Ltd) established in Norway that is not predominantly publicly owned, nor substantially related to a broadcasting organisation. The application for production support must be sent by the Norwegian co-producer. A list of Norwegian producers can be found at www.sorfond.com. The SØRFOND Pitching Forum in Oslo in October is a recommended place for meeting the co-producers.

FICTION OR DOCUMENTARIES, MINIMUM 50 MIN. RUNNING TIMESØRFOND supports fiction film or documentary with a minimum running time of 50 minutes, produced for screening in cinemas, on television, or on other audiovisual media platforms.

TOP FINANCING At least 50 % of the budget must already be confirmed at the time of submitting the application.

MAXIMUM SUPPORT NOK 1 MILLIONThe grant shall not exceed NOK 1 million (approximately € 130 000). Up to 10 % of the grant amount may be retained by the minority production company in order to cover its administrative costs.

PRODUCTION REQUIREMENTS AND SELECTION PROCESS

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ASSESSMENT AND SELECTION The assessment and selection of the applications shall be based on an overall assessment of artistic, production-related, economical and technical aspects of the project. Particu-lar emphasis is placed on the purpose of SØRFOND and the project’s cultural identity, including the use of local languages and local shooting locations. Emphasis is also placed on the director’s and the producers’ experience, as well as the representation of women in key positions.

A panel consisting of three to five members appointed by the Norwegian Film Institute processes the applications and nominates candidates to the Norwegian Film Institute, which holds the decision-making power. At least one member from a DAC-listed country shall be represented in the panel.

SØRFOND has one deadline a year.The online application form, detailed guidelines and dac-list are available at www.sorfond.com.

The Norwegian minority producer is responsible for sending the application.

HOW TO APPLY FOR SØRFOND

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SUPPORTED PROJECTS 2015

SELLING HUMANS

Director/script: Pankaj JoharCountry: IndiaMain producer: Pennywise Films PVT LTDNorwegian co-prod: Lightsource Film Productions AS / by Arne DahrAmount of support: NOK 300 000 / EUR 35 500

THE UNTAMED

Director: Amat EscalanteScript: Amat Escalante and Gibran PortelaCountry: MexicoMain producer: Mantarraya Producciones SA de CVNorwegian co-prod: MER Film AS / by Maria EkerhovdAmount of support: NOK 500 000 / EUR 59 200

LUXEMBOURG

Director/script: Myroslav SlaboshpytskiyCountry: UkraineMain producer: Garmata FilmNorwegian co-prod: DUOfilm AS / by Linda Bolstad og Marie FuglesteinAmount of support: NOK 500 000 / EUR 59 200

I HATE MY LIFE

Director/script: Kaouther Ben HaniaCountry: TunisiaMain producer: CinetelefilmsNorwegian co-prod: Integralfilm AS/ by Jørgen and Nefise Özkal LorentzenAmount of support: NOK 500 000 / EUR 59 200

SAMUI SONG

Director/script: Pen-ek RatanaruangCountry: ThailandMain producer: Bluering Company LimitedNorwegian co-prod: Tenk.tv / by Frode SøbstadAmount of support: NOK 400 000/ EUR 47 300

LA FAMILIA

Director/script: Gustavo RondónCountry: VenezuelaMain producer: La Pandilla ProduccionesNorwegian co-prod: Dag Hoel Filmproduksjon AS / by Dag HoelAmount of support: NOK 400 000/ EUR 47 300

CEMETERY LIFE

Director/script: Barbara PolitschCountry: PhilippinesMain producer: Southern Lantern StudiosNorwegian co-prod: Merkur Filmproduksjon AS / by Petter VennerødAmount of support: NOK 400.000 / EUR 47 300

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SUPPORTED PROJECTS 2014

CEMETERY OF SPLENDOURDirector: Apichatpong WeerasethakulScript: Apichatpong WeerasethakulCountry: ThailandMain producer: Kick the MachineNorwegian co-prod: Tordenfilm / Eric Vogel, Ingunn SundelinAmount of support: NOK 400 000 (EUR 50,000)

GITI – PARADISE IN HELL Director: Niyongabo Yves MontandScript: Niyongabo Yves MontandCountry: RwandaMain producer: Almond Tree Films Rwanda ltdNorwegian co-prod: Barentsfilm as / Ingrid Lill HøgtunAmount of support: NOK 300 000 (EUR 37,000)

MURDER IN PACOT Director: Raoul PeckScript: Lyonel Trouillot, Pascal Bonitzer and Raoul PeckCountry: HaitiMain producer: Velvet FilmNorwegian co-prod: Ape&Bjørn / Ruben ThorkildsenAmount of support: NOK 425 000 (EUR 53,000)

LAMB Director: Yared ZelekeScript: Yared ZelekeCountry: EtiophiaMain producer: Slum Kid FilmsNorwegian co-prod: Film Farms / Alan R. Milligan Amount of support: NOK 450 000 (EUR 56,000)

BLACK SUNSHINE Director: Akosua Adoma OwusuScript: Akosua Adoma OwusuCountry: Ghana/MexicoMain producer: Piano / Julio Chavazmontes, MexicoNorwegian co-prod: Barentsfilm AS / Ingrid Lill HøgtunAmount of support: NOK 425 000 (EUR 53,000)

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SUPPORTED PROJECTS 2012 -2013

LOS HEREDEROS (THE HEIRS) (FEATURE)Director: Jorge Hernandez Aldana, MexicoNorwegian co-producer: Tordenfilm / Eric VogelThe project received NOK 850.000 in grants (EUR 105.500)

FLAPPING IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE (FEATURE)Director: Diep Nguyen Hoang, VietnamNorwegian co-producer: Film Farms / Alan R.MilliganThe project received NOK 850.000 in grants (EUR 105.500)

ALGIERS BY NIGHT (FEATURE)Director: Yanis Koussim, AlgerieNorwegian co-producer: Pomor Film As / Knut SkoglundThe project received NOK 450.000 in grants (EUR 60.000)

A MAID FOR EACH (DOCUMENTARY)Director: Maher Abi Samra, LebanonNorwegian co-producer: Medieoperatørene TV / Ida Ven BruusgaardThe project received NOK 450.000 in grants (EUR 60.000)

THE PAST WILL RETURN (DOCUMENTARY)Director: Dina Hamza, EgyptNorwegian co-producer: Medieoperatørene TV/ Ida Ven BruusgaardThe project received NOK 250.000 in grants (EUR 33.000)

THE CHOSEN ONES (DOCUMENTARY)Director: Arman Yeritsyan, ArmeniaNorwegian co-producer: tenk.tv / Frode SøbstadThe project received NOK 150.000 in grants (EUR 20.000)

CHAR – THE ISLAND WITHIN (DOCUMENTARY)Director: Sourav Sarang, IndiaNorwegian co-producer: Cinema Oslo v/Jon JerstadThe project received NOK 200,000 in grants (around EUR 26,500)

CHAR – THE ISLAND WITHIN (DOCUMENTARY)Director: Sourav Sarang, IndiaNorwegian co-producer: Cinema Oslo v/Jon JerstadThe project received NOK 200,000 in grants (around EUR 26,500)

DESHORA (FEATURE)Director: Barbara Sarasola-Day, ArgentinaNorwegian co-producer: Faction Film v/Dag HoelThe project received NOK 679,000 in grants (around EUR 90,000)

KANDIRE – LAND WITHOUT EVIL (FEATURE)Director: Juan Carlos Valdivia, BoliviaNorwegian co-producer: PJB Picture Company v/Petter BorgliThe project received NOK 750,000 in grants (around EUR 100,000)

DUKHTAR (FEATURE)Director: Afia Nathaniel, PakistanNorwegian co-producer: Indie Film v/Carsten AanonsenThe project received NOK 750,000 in grants (around EUR 100,000)

PALESTINE STEREO (FEATURE)Director: Rashid Masharawi, PalestineNorwegian co-producer: Ape&Bjørn v/Silja Espolin Johnson and Ruben ThorkildsenThe project received NOK 750,000 in grants (around EUR 100,000)

WAKOLDA (FEATURE)Director: Lucía Puenzo, ArgentinaNorwegian co-producer: Hummelfilm v/Gudny HummelvollThe project received NOK 750,000 in grants (around EUR 100,000)

WHEN HARRI GOT MARRIED (DOCUMENTARY)Director: Ritu Sarin, IndiaNorwegian co-producer: Cinema Oslo v/Jon JerstadThe project received NOK 121,000 in grants (around EUR 16,000)

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THE PURPOSE OF THE SØRFOND PITCHING FORUM

The Films From the South Foundation organises the SØRFOND Pitching Forum in connection with the annual Films from the South festival in October in Oslo, Norway. The purpose of the SØRFOND Pitching Forum is to give potential main producers the op-portunity to present their projects to potential Norwegian minority producers, in order to enter into a co-production agreement and apply for support from SØRFOND.

APPLICATIONSThe main producer may apply to participate in the SØRFOND Pitching Forum through the application form at www.sorfond.com. A travel grant is provided to the forum’s participants.

Deadline for applications for the Pitching Forum: August 15th Application form at www.sorfond.com

SØRFOND PITCHING FORUM OCTOBER 12TH - 14TH 2015

Photos: Johnny Vaet Nordskog

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For more information about SØRFOND: Visit www.sorfond.com

For specific questions related to the Pitching Forum: sorfond@filmfrasor.no

For specific questions related to the applications for production support: sorfond@nfi.no