Cultural Film Funding: Support for Script Development of Feature-Length Documentary Films

The federal cultural film funding supports directors nationwide who have already completed a feature-length documentary film and have a producer’s letter of intent in developing detailed project descriptions. As a grant program for companies and associations, funding of up to €20,000 is available to prepare innovative and artistically ambitious cinema documentary projects. The goal is to create high-quality project concepts that convince financing and production partners and enable the subsequent realization of deserving documentary films. The program strengthens the infrastructure of cultural media projects and promotes interdisciplinary approaches in culture, media, and urban development. The funding offer covers interfaces between culture, infrastructure, media, as well as urban planning and urban renewal. Applications can be submitted at any time before the project starts and are processed continuously.

Eligible expenses include reasonable author fees, rights acquisition and legal advice, as well as research and archive costs. Travel expenses according to the Federal Travel Expenses Act, participation fees for film trade fairs, translation services, teaser or trailer productions, dramaturgical consulting, as well as marketing and distribution concepts can also be subsidized. Projects with other funding or works created within academic education are not eligible. The evaluation process is transparent and considers thematic sophistication, innovation content, and an individual implementation approach. Additionally, aspects of ecological and social sustainability as well as diversity are included in the decision. Applications are reviewed year-round; no fixed deadline is set. After completion, all receipts must be submitted to verify the use of funds. Detailed information on application requirements and deadlines can be found in the guidelines of the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media.