First Cut Lab Canada 2025 is a consultancy program designed for 2 feature films in editing phase from Canada. The selected teams (director/producer/editor) are offered a creative framework, both benevolent & challenging, where to open up new perspectives and to explore the whole artistic potential of their films.
The lab will be conducted online, and schedules will be adjusted to meet the needs of the selected projects, withing the period from December 2, 2024, to January 31, 2025. Participants will screen their rough cuts in private sessions and receive expert feedback from three international film industry advisors and tailored advice from a consultant editor. The consultants and advisors will be chosen based on the profiles of the selected films. An overview of regular consultants can be found here.
Once the workshop is over, the participants receive a report & a roadmap that can serve as guidance for further editing.
The main goal of First Cut Lab is to foster the artistic potential of the selected rough cuts and, at the same time, to increase the sales, festival and circulation potential of the completed films.
For any further information, you can contact us via email at:
julie.marnay@firstcutlab.eu
Submission deadline:
15. November 2024
DATES
Submissions are now open.
The deadline for submitting the entry form is 15. November 2024.
The workshop will take place online with possible dates between 2. December 2024 to 31. January 2025.
Each film is accompanied by First Cut Lab for a period of roughly 6 weeks, even though the core of the Lab takes place over two consecutive days.
The exact dates of the Lab will be chosen in agreement with each selected team to best answer the needs of their films. A preferred period for the Lab should be mentioned in the application form.
1. GENERAL GUIDELINES
Please note: the deadline for submitting a project to First Cut Lab Canada 2024 is 15. November 2024.
In order to submit your application and the required material, you need to complete the submission form. All application materials and subtitles should be in English.
Applications must be sent to:
Julie.marnay@firstcutlab.eu
2. SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS
Submissions should include:
- A complete online submission form in English
- Video material with a minimum duration of 30 minutes and with English subtitles
Incomplete applications will not be taken into consideration.
The video material submitted can be selected scenes, first assembly, or rough cut.
The video is mandatory to be available via a streaming service password protected (e.g. Vimeo). No transfer services or cloud storage is accepted.
3. SELECTION & ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
The project should be a feature film with international potential – minimum length of 75 minutes. First Cut Lab has no specific fixed criteria in terms of content and each project will be considered on its own merits. The main criteria for selection are the artistic & audience potential of the film, corroborated with the specific needs identified by the organizers in each project in regards to the specificity of the First Cut Lab workshop.
Projects should be new or recent. Projects should not have been presented at any public screenings. The project can be in different stages of post-production, though it is highly recommended to be in early editing phase.
To be eligible for the Lab, the project must:
- Be produced by a production company that qualifies as a Canadian-controlled corporation as determined under sections 26 to 28 of the Investment Canada Act.
- Be a narrative feature length film financed in production by Telefilm Canada Feature Film Fund.
- Be in post-production stage.
- Be directed by a Canadian citizen within the definition of the Canadian Citizenship Act or a permanent resident within the definition of the Canadian Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.
- If the film is a coproduction, be recognized as a majority treaty coproduction by the Minister of Canadian Heritage.
4. SPECIFIC CONDITIONS
Once a project has been selected, both director and producer should be available during the days of the Lab. The presence of the editor is recommended, but not compulsory.
Finished films that participated in First Cut Lab should mention First Cut Lab and display its logo in their credits. The following sentence should be mentioned in the credit list: “This project participated in First Cut Lab Canada 2024″ together with the First Cut Lab logo and the Telefilm Canada logos.
The First Cut Lab logo pack can be downloaded here
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