07 August 2018
S4C, BBC ALBA (with funding from MG ALBA), TG4 and Northern Ireland Screen’s Irish Language Broadcast Fund (ILBF) are delighted to announce the launch of the ‘Celtic International Fund’ which will run a yearly joint-commissioning round between the indigenous Celtic language television broadcasters and funders of Scotland, Wales, Ireland and Northern Ireland
The aim of the ‘Celtic International Fund’ is to promote co-development and then co-production through Scottish Gaelic, Welsh and Irish, and to encourage a broader European and worldwide internationalisation of productions which are originally conceived in those Celtic languages. The Celtic International Fund hopes to provide film-makers with an opportunity to co-develop and coproduce distinctive, ambitious works to enrich primetime programme schedules, to have a national impact with audiences in the territories of Scotland, Wales, Ireland and Northern Ireland and seek to reach audiences worldwide.
This initial call-out encompasses three genres, Factual, Drama and Animation. For all projects, we envisage a development phase where funding would be provided to develop ideas but also to develop the co-production framework which must have a production element in Scotland, Wales and either Ireland or Northern Ireland. Feedback from producers regarding genres to be included in ensuing Celtic International Fund call-outs is welcome.
The Celtic International Fund will be administered by a joint commissioning team drawn from the Celtic language broadcasters and funders who are partners in this scheme. Submissions must be made electronically using a single pdf document for ideas and visuals and a single excel document for budgets. The ‘lead’ company in a co-development project must first register with the TG4 ecommissioning portal http://update.tg4.ie/ecomm/login.php and upload their submissions by the relevant submission deadline into the relevant section, ‘Celtic Factual 2018’, ‘Celtic Drama 2018’ or ‘Celtic Animation 2018’. Initial decisions on submissions will be communicated to the submitting company within two months of the relevant submission date.
Development funding will be re-payable if the submission progresses to production, re-payment due on commencement of production. Intellectual Property will reside with the co-developing production companies in a co-sharing manner to be agreed between themselves.
SUBMISSIONS TO THE CELTIC INTERNATIONAL FUND 2018
Factual Development. We welcome the submission of ideas aiming to create substantial popular and/or critical impact with audiences in Scotland, Wales, Ireland and Northern Ireland. Ideas which could be coproduced with European or worldwide broadcasters are especially welcome. Acceptable projects: 1) Creative factual feature-length documentaries (c.75 minutes duration) 2) Creative factual series (between 3 and 6 programmes of one-hour duration) Level of development funding available: Up to €18,000 or £16,000. Who can apply: Production companies who have expertise in working in factual programming in at least one of the relevant Celtic languages and who are willing to codevelop with production companies working in the other partner territories. What to submit: 1) Short summary (up to 30 words), 2) Synopsis (up to one A4 page), 3) Notes on how co-development with other companies will be achieved, 4) Development budget, 5) Projected outline production budget including sources of funding. Deadline for submissions: Wednesday 19th September 2018 Submission section: Celtic Factual 2018
Drama Development. We intend to develop a new model for scripted drama co-production between the Celtic language broadcasters, such as back-to-back production in all 3 languages, delivering three separate language versions from a single scenario. Additional language partners would also be welcomed. Acceptable projects: TV Movie projects (c.110 minutes duration). Projects may be genre based (excluding crime genre) and should be intended either for a post-watershed audience or for a family audience. Level of development funding available: Up to €60,000 or £53,000. Who can apply: Production companies who have expertise in working in drama production in at least one of the relevant Celtic languages and who are willing to co-develop with production companies in the other partner territories. What to submit: 1) Short summary (up to 30 words), 2) Synopsis (up to one A4 page), 3) Story Outline (4-6 pages) and sample visuals 4) Notes on how co-development with other companies will be achieved, 5) Development budget, 6) Projected outline production budget including sources of funding. Deadline for submissions: Wednesday 24th October 2018 Submission section: Celtic Drama 2018
Animation Development. We intend to develop feature length animation projects based on themes from Celtic storytelling (mythology or more recent storytelling). We would expect that these would be modern interpretations of Celtic stories, capable of connecting easily with a modern family audience in the Celtic nations and worldwide. Acceptable projects: Animated feature films (c. 90 - 110 minutes duration). Projects should be intended for a family audience and ideally have appeal beyond the Celtic territories. Level of development funding available: Up to €60,000 or £53,000. Who can apply: Production companies who have expertise in working in animation production in at least one of the relevant Celtic languages and/or territories who are willing to co-develop with production companies in the other partner territories. What to submit: 1) Short summary (up to 30 words), 2) Synopsis (up to one A4 page), 3) Story Outline (4-6 pages) and sample visuals 4) Notes on how co-development with other companies will be achieved, 5) Development budget, 6) Projected outline production budget including sources of funding. Deadline for submissions: Wednesday 24th October 2018 Submission section: Celtic Animation 2018
For queries regarding the submission process to the Celtic International Fund, please contact Anna Marie Nic Dhonnacha Anna.Marie.Nic.Dhonnacha@tg4.ie
For broader queries regarding the Celtic International Fund please contact one of the broadcaster/funder executives. BBC ALBA – Margaret Cameron Margaret.Cameron@mgalba.com S4C – Llion Iwan llion.Iwan@s4c.cymru TG4 – Mary Ellen Ní Chualáin maryellen.ni.chualain@tg4.ie Northern Ireland Screen/ILBF – Áine Walsh Aine@northernirelandscreen.co.uk
For production companies seeking to partner with other companies in the Celtic territories, the ‘CMF Connect Directory’ is a useful tool http://www.celticmediafestival.co.uk/connect/directory and registering with the Directory is a recommended first step.
