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ABC / SBS funding initiatives for LGBTQI filmmakers

ABC & SBS open the call for filmmakers to mark the 40th anniversary of the Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras.

Both ABC and SBS have announced new funding opportunities for GLBTQI filmmakers to mark the 40th anniversary of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras.

ABC’s Love Bites initiative, jointly funded with Screen Australia at $100,000, is for 10 x 5min documentaries.

SBS has partnered with Create NSW for 15 min projects in drama, factual, animation or experimental, that are produced in NSW.

ABC:

In celebration of the 40th Anniversary of Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras in 2018, Screen Australia and ABC TV Arts are pleased to announce Love Bites, a brand new documentary initiative for LGBTQI filmmakers.

Love Bites will be a series of 10 x 5 minute documentary short films made by filmmakers from the LGBTQI community across Australia. The successful projects will provide an accessible, engaging and entertaining insight into the lives and interests of the LGBTQI community.

The content, tone and style of the short films are entirely up to the creator, so all interpretations of the medium of documentary are encouraged. All proposals will be assessed against the ABC TV Arts vision statement ‘Where Life and Culture Collide’.

The curated series of documentary shorts under the banner Love Bites will premiere on the ABC Arts channel on iview during Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras in March 2018.

“ABC Arts on iview seeks to reflect the great diversity of stories and storytellers that exist across the country,” said Mandy Chang, Head of ABC TV Arts. “Love Bites is a great opportunity for us to work with LGBTQI filmmakers in a pan ABC celebration of the 40th anniversary of Mardi Gras.”

ABC TV and Screen Australia will commit a total of $100,000 to this initiative, offering 10 filmmakers $10,000 each to make the short film for delivery in January 2018. Each team will be supported by a Screen Australia Investment Manager and an ABC Digital Arts Commissioning Editor.

“Last year’s milestone study Seeing Ourselves showed that we need to see Australians from all parts of our community both on screen and behind the camera,” said Liz Stevens, Senior Manager of Documentary at Screen Australia. “Our documentary unit is proud to partner with ABC TV Arts to offer LGBTQI filmmakers an opportunity to create short-form content for a premier online platform and work with a major Australian broadcaster.”

Applicant teams must consist of at least a director and a producer, one of whom identifies as part of the LGBTQI community and one of whom has at least one screen credit in their respective roles on a project that has already been publicly released.

Applications close August 6.

SBS:

Coinciding with the 40th anniversary of Mardi Gras, Create NSW and SBS today announced a funding initiative supporting emerging LGBTIQ filmmakers.

Create NSW and SBS will fund up to six short films in the lead up to Mardi Gras in March 2018, as part of Create NSW’s annual Generator: Emerging Filmmakers Fund.

Applications are sought for projects that explore LGBTIQ themes and issues, appealing to a wide audience, with at least one key creative on the project identifying as LGBTIQ.

The fund is open to drama, factual, animation or experimental projects of up to 15 minutes duration, and must be made entirely in NSW.

Successful applicants will receive $30,000 in production funding to realise their ambition; $15,000 from Create NSW and a $15,000 licence fee from SBS. Producers will need to raise any additional finance they require.

The initiative is part of Create NSW and SBS’s commitment to promoting greater diversity in the screen industry and providing opportunities which support increased participation from people from under-represented groups.

Applications open Tuesday June 23 and close Sunday 13 August. Projects need to be close to being production-ready at the time of application and be capable of being delivered no later than by 29 January 2018.

For guidelines and applications

One Response

  1. This is good to hear. The commercial networks ignore gay/bi issues and the ABC and SBS are the only ones catering to this sizable proportion of the population. I hope there will be less emphasis on the politics of the issue than there has been in the past. The ABC usually emphasises the political while SBS has been willing to explore gay fetishes and subgroups such as bears. Hopefully the productions will reflect this diversity.

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