CMCS Fellowship for Early Career Film Makers

The Centre for Media and Cultural Studies, Tata Institute of Social Sciences announces a fellowship for film-makers at an early stage of their career. The fellowship is designed to provide the resources and environment for films that are innovative, relevant and contribute to the growing body of documentary and short film work in India.

The fellowship consists of:

• A stipend of Rs. 15,000 per month for a maximum period of
  five months.
• The provision of in-house HDV equipment including camera and editing facilities.
• Reimbursement of actuals of production expenses on the basis of a pre-approved budget. These expenses are expected to be in the region of Rs. 1 lakh to Rs. 1.5 lakhs, depending on the logistics of the specific project.

In order to be considered for the fellowship applicants are required to provide:

• A detailed curriculum vitae
• Up to two non-returnable samples of work on DVD/VCD
• An essay outlining the film proposal in not more than 2000
  words. This essay should include: a working title for the film,
  language, the central theme of the film, approach to the content and narrative style, possible visual segments.
• A production schedule with a detailed time frame for: research and script, cinematography, editing to rough cut, editing to final cut, submission of all material.
• A budget for other production expenses (e.g. travel, field
  expenses, payments to other professionals etc.). Please note that the fellowship does not support any infrastructural costs such as setting up of an office, buying of equipment, or per diem costs.
• Names and contact details of two referees, preferably from the field of media, whom we will contact for a reference if needed.

The fellowship is open to all Indian nationals. An early career filmmaker is defined as someone who has completed her/his media education not more than 5 years ago. In case of applicants without a media degree, they should have made not more than 5 documentary or short films already.

Only one fellowship is available based on the quality of applications.
Short-listed candidates may have to come for an interview in  the second half of August 2009. Travel will be reimbursed at the rates of three tier non-AC train fare against valid tickets.
All proposals must be submitted as hard copies and signed by the film maker.

For any queries please contact: cmcs.fellowships@gmail.com

More Details here


Terms of the fellowship:

• The selected fellow will be paid her/his fellowship amount on a monthly basis and for production expenses in instalments as and when needed.
• The footage and final film produced will remain with the
  Digital Archive of the Centre. However, the fellow might retain a copy of the same, for her/his personal use. The copyright will be held jointly by the fellow and the Centre. The film will be distributed by the Centre as a part of its catalogue of productions. The fellow may also distribute the film. The Centre will be cited in the credits as the Producer of the film and the fellow will be cited as Director of the said film.
• The fellow is expected to adhere to the time schedule s/he
  proposes. Any changes should be notified in advance.
• There will be a small advisory committee for each project.
  The committee will facilitate the work of the fellow. S/he is
  expected to keep in touch with the committee on a regular basis and discuss and share her/his work at every stage (shooting script/ rough edit and final edit).
• The fellow is expected to begin work by October 2009 and
  complete their films by February 2010, but these dates are negotiable.

Past Projects

My Name is Basheer

Directed by Anushka Meenakshi
2009, 66 minutes, Malayalam and English, with English subtitles

In October 2007, a group of people from PERCH, a Chennai based theatre collective, traveled to Kozhikkode, Kerala, to rediscover the world of the Malayalam writer Vaikom Muhammad Basheer. The people we met, and the sights, smells, tastes, and sounds of Kozhikkode were the source of inspiration for two plays in English based on several of Basheer's stories.

Many of Basheer's stories reveal something of the writer himself - his incredible humanity, his experiences of love and poverty, his criticism of politics and war, his eclectic taste in music, his love of nature, and his radical beliefs about the society around him.

'My Name is Basheer' is a film that weaves scenes from the two plays – 'Sangathi Arinhya! (Have you Heard!)' and 'Moonshine & Skytoffee' – with interviews of his family and others who knew him closely. Sharing their memories of Basheer are, his brother Abu Backer, wife Fabi, children Anees and Shahina, M.K Sanu who was Basheer's biographer, Punalur Rajan who photographed Basheer over several years, and M.A Rahman who made the award-winning documentary 'Basheer the Man'.

About the Director

Anushka Meenakshi started off studying Mathematics, but found her way into making films. Her work mostly involves documenting true stories, but she loves to read, watch, and listen to stories of every kind. In 2006, she co-directed 'c/o Platform', a film about pavement dwellers, which was produced by the Public Service Broadcast Trust. She has also worked as a community video trainer for Nalamdana, an NGO in Chennai.

Anushka is a member of PERCH, a performance collective in Chennai. anushka.meenakshi@gmail.com

 

Flex n' Faces

Directed by Shrikant Agawane
2009

Mr. Shrikant Agawane has made a film entitled ‘Flex and Faces’, on how flex banners have changed urban landscapes and local politics.