NOUVELLES VAGUES - Fondation Barrière Grant

2024 Edition

Following a call for projects and the review – with the help of 9 readers – of the 84 applications received, 4 projects have been picked by a selection committee made up of three film professionals: Sarah Chazelle (distributor, producer et co-founder of Jour2Fête), Yohann Cornu (distributor, producer et founder of Damned Films) and Anne-Cécile Rolland (head of acquisitions for Pyramide Films).

The 4 finalists are the following:

> Les Filmeuses, a documentary film by Anna Salzberg produced by Massala Production and Temps Noir 
> Docile, a fiction film by Joséphine Darcy Hopkins produced by To Be Continued Productions and Kazak Productions
> Altxaliliak, a documentary film by Maia Iribarne Olhagarai produced by Gastibeltza Filmak
> Abi Musango, a fiction film by Josza Anjembe produced by Yukunkun Productions
 
The 4 producer-director duos have been invited to pitch their project on June 19, during the festival. Each project had 7 minutes to pitch, followed by a 7-minutes Q&A with the jury and the moderator François-Pier Pelinard Lambert.
This moment was an opportunity for the public to get an exclusive look at the films of tomorrow, and to find out more about the creation and production process, by listening to the presentation of films in the making

The jury was composed of 4 young people from the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region: Nina de Auraujo and Juliette Pontier (via the festival’s partnership with pass Culture), and Batiste Damongeot and Caroline Pires Alves (both students from the BTS audiovisuel de Biarritz).
 
Joy Desseigne-Barrière, representative of Fondation Barrière and Vincent Perez, actor, director and screenwriter, were both the mentors of this year’s jury.

The winning project has been chosen by the jury: Docile by Joséphine Darcy Hopkins, produced by Vincent Brançon (To Be Continued Productions) and Jean-Christophe Reymond (Kazak Productions).

During a ceremony on June 19, the project, represented by its producer Vincent Brançon, has been awarded a €10,000 development grant.

About the Grant

The NOUVELLES VAGUES – Fondation Barrière Grant is a new initiative of the Biarritz Film Festival – NOUVELLES VAGUES that aims to support a fiction or documentary feature film project at a development stage.
Improving the script and the dialogue, working on the film budget, handling the location scouting, mapping out the VFX or the soundtrack, beginning the casting process – those are only a few of the key steps to consolidate the project in its financing stage.  
 
The Grant is a three-step support process:
1/ The three finalist projects will benefit from personalized one-on-one consultation sessions. This mentorship is meant to identify and work on the projects’ strengths and weaknesses, in order to consolidate the projects and prepare them for their public presentation during the Festival;
2/ The winning project will be awarded a €10,000 development grant;
3/ This project will benefit from the support of the Festival and the Barrière Foundation from the production stage to the finished film’s promotion.

Eligibility Criteria

The project must:

• Be helmed by a producer-director pair
• Be a feature film for theatrical release only: fiction film or documentary, live-action or animation
• Have a French main producer
• Voice out the challenges of today’s and tomorrow’s world and put forward narratives and perspectives rooted in the young generations’ considerations
• The project’s connection with the Nouvelle-Aquitaine Region – through its topic or the filmmakers’ origins – is not a prerequisite but will be valued

The applicants must:

• Be able to show they are able to see a professional project through to completion by relying on previous experiences
• Be 18 or older on the date of application
• Special attention will be paid to applicants coming from disadvantaged neighborhoods

Films and documentaries made for TV, video games and sound creations, game & reality shows, corporate and promotional/commercial productions, event recordings and TV reports are not eligible. 

How to apply?

The call for projects is open from April 9, 2024 to April 30, 2024 at 11:59 PM.
 
Candidates must apply via the application form available here.
Applications received by any other means shall not be considered.
Only complete applications, with all the elements listed below, meeting the aforementioned criteria and received between April 10 and April 30, 2024, at 11:59 pm will be considered by the committee.

Supporting Material

Applications should not be more than 20 pages (excluding the script or treatment) and written in 12-pt font. They must include, in the following order:

MANDATORY ELEMENTS:

• A short synopsis (3-5 lines at the most)
• A long synopsis (1 page at the most)
• An artistic note of intent from the director(s) including an informal presentation exposing the project’s stakes and how it highlights the young generations’ hopes and concerns (1 to 5 pages, video format accepted)
• A note specifying the project’s status at the time of its submission, the provisional calendar and how the Grant will be used (2 pages at the most)
• Bio and filmographies of the writer(s), producer(s) and production company
• The script (preferably) or treatment 

OPTIONAL ELEMENTS:

• A moodboard or graphic references, casting ideas, etc
• The financing plan
• How the project is connected to the Nouvelle-Aquitaine Region – if applicable

Elements must only be sent in French.

Evaluation and Selection

1/ SELECTION OF THE FINALISTS

A committee made up of film and television industry professionals will pick three finalist projects that will be eligible for the Grant. The finalists will be announced in mid-May, 2024.

2/ MENTORING

In the weeks leading up to the Festival, all three finalist projects will benefit from personalized one-on-one consultation sessions with various industry professionals; the content of those sessions shall depend on the projects’ needs.

3/ PITCH SESSION

The project holders will be invited to pitch their project during the Festival. The pitch session will be held in public in front of a jury; the presentations must be given in French. The jury will deliberate following the pitch session and choose the winner.
The Festival will cover the stay of two representatives per project: transportation, accommodation for two nights and two all-access accreditations.

Previsional Timeline

April 10: Open call for projects
April 30: End of call for projects 
Mid-May: Announcement of the 3 finalists projects
May & June: Mentoring sessions
During the festival (June 19): Public pitch session

For more information please read the Rules & Regulations here.