Calendar – Past Event

Call for proposals

Below ZERO 2012

- documentary projects on life above the Arctic Circle
Tromsø, Norway, January 18-21, 2012
Deadline: November 28, 2011

Below ZERO is an international pitching session for documentary projects focusing on life above the Arctic Circle. This event is initiated in order to bring together filmmakers, producers, financiers and organisations whose common interest is documentaries thematically rooted in the Northern Polar region. Below ZERO is set in Tromsø, Northern Norway, during the last days of the polar night. Below ZERO 2012 will be the 4^th edition of the workshop. 

Below ZERO seeks a wide range of documentary projects on all subjects related to life above the Arctic Circle. These can be projects focusing on culture, environment, resources, politics, climate changes and indigenous peoples as well as general human stories. Filmmakers from all over the World are welcome to submit projects for Below ZERO. Stories with a broad international market appeal are preferred. From the submitted project proposals a maximum of 12 projects will be selected for participation. The working language will be English.  

What do previous participants say about Below ZERO?

'Below Zero proved for me as a Director of the film Arctic Dreams invaluable in creating and understanding the needed financial structure of my film, in understanding how a co-production of a film shot in Canada, by a Swedish person working out of a UK based production company should look. As a forum for discussion and in helping you as a film maker to focus your project by conversations with tutors, other film makers and commissioners it helped me enormously in understanding the story I was telling and gave the project a great backing for getting the funding I was looking for as well as a very good introduction to several of the European commissioners.'

Marcus Werner Hed, director, Pundersons Gardens, UK
Below ZERO participant with the project ARCTIC DREAMS

The programme

The programme for Below ZERO will consist of:

- a pre-pitching workshop where the selected projects will be developed under guidance from experienced international experts from the documentary business. The workshop will focus on how the projects can be developed in the best possible direction and how the presentation of the project can be optimized

- a pitching session where each project will be pitched in seven minutes for a panel of international financiers and possible future collaborators. The pitch will be followed by a brief round of feedback from the panel and by extensive one-on-one meetings with financiers.

- networking events to encourage future collaborations between organisations, financiers, producers and filmmakers.

How to Participate

For guidelines on project submission and participation fees please refer to our EDN web site on Below ZERO.

http://www.edn.dk/activities/edn-activity-texts/edn-activities-2012/below-zero-2012/

Participation Fee

Each selected project pays a participation fee of 300 Euro, which includes one participating person. Every other member of the pitching team pays an individual fee of 200 Euro.

Participating as Observer

For Below ZERO a number of observer seats will be available. When participating as an observer you will take part in all sessions on equal terms with the pitching participants. Only exception is not having a concrete project developed and pitched. Observers pay 200 Euro for participating.

If you want to have further information or submit a project for Below ZERO, please get in contact with:

• EDN Head of Studies
• Mikael Opstrup
• mailto:Mikael@edn.dk
• T: +45 3313 1122

Below ZERO is organised by EDN. The event takes place in the framework of Tromso International Film Festival. Below ZERO is made possible by the support from:

• Nordnorsk Filmsenter AS
• Filmpool Nord
• Tromso International Film Festival
• Filmcamp