Lübeck Launches a Screenwriting Residency
Starting in 2023, two grants will be awarded annually to bolster the screenwriting talent pool in Lübeck and its surrounds.
Lübeck, 26 April 2023. Beginning in the autumn of 2023, the Nordic Film Days Lübeck will award two grants for German-language script development. One will go to an established writer for a new theatrical film project, and one will go to a writer with a Lübeck connection for an open-format visual story for any platform (i.e. series, VR experience, 360° Fulldome). The grants, of € 35,000 each, are funded by the Possehl Foundation for an initial period of three years. In addition to the yearly grant, the foundation will also provide the recipients with individualised advice, including script counselling, as well as residency, research, and networking opportunities in Lübeck and at the Nordic Film Days Lübeck festival. The recipients will be chosen by an independent jury based on their script proposals and will be announced at the opening of the 65th Nordic Film Days Lübeck (Nov. 1-5, 2023) on November 1, 2023.
“I am excited about this new initiative in support of a vigorous local creative scene”, said Lübeck’s culture senator Monika Frank, “In the last few years, a number of new film production companies have set up in Lübeck. The grant enriches the German film subsidy landscape with an element that specifically targets the creative talent at the beginning of cinema’s value chain. It strengthens Lübeck as a centre of culture in the north.”
The concept sprung out of the “Lübeck Film Klatch”, where for years the film trades have gathered for informal conversation and networking. The idea was then developed by Thomas Hailer, artistic director of the Nordic Film Days Lübeck, writer and producer Martin Rehbock (“Bonn”, “Human Factors”), and film broker and producer Stefanie Reis. The grant recipients will be hosted by the Nordic Film Days Lübeck, in cooperation with the non-profits “Kino Koki” repertory cinema and the “Waldzimmer” cultural association, as well as the Lübeck municipal library. The Lübeck script development grant is marked by the fact that it will have an open exchange and communication with the city’s public. Anyone who is interested can attend workshop discussions, curated film series, and script readings, participating directly in the creative process. The recipients will also be actively networked with local filmmakers and players in the cultural scene.
Beginning on May 2, 2023, writers can submit an exposé for consideration. The deadline for submissions is August 31, 2023. A three-person jury will select the two projects.
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Kristian Müller & Dr. Kathrin Steinbrenner
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