Hubert Bals Fund focuses on script development in spring selection round

International Film Festival Rotterdam

PRESS RELEASE 22 February 2013

Hubert Bals Fund focuses on script development in spring selection round

This spring, the International Film Festival Rotterdam’s Hubert Bals Fund will be limiting itself to contributions for script and project development. During the coming autumn, applications will also be considered in the post-production & final finance categories. In this way, the Fund is anticipating the loss of its subsidy from the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs. During the years ahead, the Fund will continue to support filmmakers in developing countries and actively canvass new partners and alternative sources of finance.

The deadline for the submission of new applications for script and project development in the spring round has been extended to 7 March 2013; all information on this can be found on the IFFR website.

Since its establishment in 1989, the Hubert Bals Fund (HBF) has received support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Ministry will shortly be terminating its contribution. The HBF is actively seeking alternative resources from new partners, including within the context of the European Commission’s Creative Europe programme. New ways are also being sought of involving the loyal IFFR audience with the HBF; these include the patrons’ fund Tiger Film Mecenaat.

In 2013, the HBF is working with a budget of almost 500,000 Euros. In addition, the HBF wishes to make an even more targeted use of the resources it has at its disposal. The HBF’s contribution for script and project development has often proved a decisive factor for – in particular – new filmmakers starting out in developing countries. The HBF is often the first international financier to associate itself with a project.

Support from the Fund during a film’s development phase often has a catalysing effect in relation to attracting other finance, finding new co-producers and the launch of a project on the international film market. For this reason, the Fund wishes to continue implementing and improving its role as a catalyst during this phase, in part through the new Boost! coaching process (in cooperation with CineMart, Binger Filmlab and the National Film Development Corporation in India, supported by MEDIA Mundus), as well as the HBF Plus co-production programme (in cooperation with the Netherlands Film Fund).

The HBF has supported more than 1,000 projects by filmmakers from developing countries. Recently completed films that have come about with a contribution from the Hubert Bals Fund can be seen each year at the IFFR and at other leading film festivals worldwide.
IFFR 2013 screened twenty-five films supported by the HBF, including five in the Hivos Tiger Awards Competition. Of these, the jury awarded the Iranian HBF-supported film FAT SHAKER by Mohammad Shirvani. Haifaa Al Mansour’s film WADJDA, which received HBF support in the script phase, ended up number two on the list of audience favourites and was granted the Dioraphte Award for best HBF-supported film in the festival.

Support for filmmakers in writing, co-financing, producing, screening and distribution of their work is a leading tenet of the International Film Festival Rotterdam’s policy. In the new economic reality, the festival’s commitment in relation to the Hubert Bals Fund will remain unchanged.

The Hubert Bals Fund is supported by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, MEDIA Mundus, Dutch non-governmental development organization Hivos, the DOEN Foundation, the Dioraphte Foundation and Lions Club Rotterdam: L’Esprit du Temps.

(End of press release)

Note to the Editor:
Press information:
IFFR Press Office, Bert-Jan Zoet, [email protected], +31 10 8909090