Free to submit your ideas and you can submit more than one. For ages under 25, who are living in Somerset.
Thanks to support from BFI Film Academy South West and Watershed, we are pleased to announce we will be commissioning another young filmmaker to produce an original short film!
If you are aged under 25 then you are invited to pitch your idea to be made into a short film. This must be a narrative fiction piece i.e. comedy or drama (not documentary). By ‘short’ we mean a maximum of five minutes*. It is free to submit your ideas and you can submit more than one.
The deadline to apply is 5pm on Monday 30th September 2024
Who Can Apply
You must live in the county of Somerset and be aged under 25 years by the entry deadline date. You don’t need to have any previous experience in filmmaking or scriptwriting to apply but you must be committed to seeing your idea through to completion.
What Ideas We Are Looking For
We are looking for ideas that are achievable on the budget and timescale available. We are particularly interested in ideas that explore the current climate crisis or that reflect life in Somerset in some way. These can be serious, comedic, absurd, challenging or provocative but they must be your original idea. Unfortunately we are unable to feedback on work that is not selected.
The Commission
If your idea is successful you will be provided with a producer mentor, access to Somerset Film equipment and a cash budget of £500. The budget can be used for costs relating to the production of the film e.g. travel, crew, actor or location fees, costume hire, music etc
The film must be completed by Monday 31st March 2025. The film will be showcased at a Somerset Film short film night. The film will be required to credit both Somerset Film and the BFI Film Academy South West Network including Watershed, Bristol. Other conditions such as the use of copyright-free music or licensed music only will apply. Full guidelines will be given to the successful filmmaker.
How to Apply
Complete an online application form and attach either a script or an outline of your idea (sometimes called a treatment**) by September 30th 2024.
If the script idea is properly formatted then one page of scripted dialogue is typically one minute of screen time.
** this should include a summary of the story and key characters. It should be no longer than two pages.
Please label your file with the script title and nothing else. Don’t include your name on the script as these will be sent to the judges for them to read and they will not be told who has written it. Only the idea is judged and on the following criteria.
The originality of the idea.
The strength of the idea.
- How achievable is it, based on the timeframe and budget available.
- Does it meet one of our preferred themes: Life in Somerset / Climate crisis.