Discovery Days, formerly the International Project Discovery Forum (IPDF), is a Los Angeles pioneer in the promotion of international independent film development. It is the industry section of the Los Angeles Greek Film Festival. Utilizing the innumerable cinematic resources in Los Angeles, we aim to create a bridge between two very different worlds – those of American and European independent cinema.

Our forum includes a 4-day development lab in Los Angeles with 6-8 selected filmmakers, as well as a series of roundtables, workshops, and masterclasses. For the participating filmmakers, the development lab culminates in an audiovisual presentation by each project’s representative(s) before a jury of film industry professionals.

We look for fiction feature films that have an original approach and are made by independent filmmakers with unique voices. Our workshop has supported many projects that have gone onto international acclaim. Past projects include INSIDE (dir. Vasilis Katsoupis, starring Willem Dafoe | Focus Features, Berlin Film Festival), SON OF SOFIA (dir. Elina Psykou | Best International Film Award - Tribeca Film Festival), SMUGGLING HENDRIX (dir. Marios Piperides | Best International Film Award - Tribeca Film Festival), BROADWAY (dir. Christos Massalas | Rotterdam International Film Fest), and NOAH LAND (dir. Cenk Erturk | Best Screenplay, Best Actor | Tribeca Film Festival).

The stage of development of the selected projects varies from inspiring and promising treatments or scripts in the early stages – which we nurture through their journey – to more advanced projects with complete scripts. We connect the selected participants with producers, distributors, sales agents, or programmers that can actively offer support. We wish to create a network of creative professionals from Europe and the US that share the desire to preserve film as an artistic expression, always searching for new and inspiring ways of telling stories through sight and sound.

https://www.lagff.org/discovery-days

To submit a completed film to the Los Angeles Greek film festival go to:
https://filmfreeway.com/LosAngelesGreekFilmFestival

Awards & Prizes

A $1,000 prize is awarded to the project determined to be the most promising by the Discovery Days jury. The award is presented during the Los Angeles Greek Film Festival's Closing Night Orpheus Awards.

Housing accommodations in Los Angeles are provided for one (1) non-local representative of the film during the lab. If there are more than one representatives attending, we will try our best to accommodate, but can not guarantee additional housing.

Additionally, a travel stipend is provided to each selected project.

Rules & Terms

Our focus is on new voices and film projects with ties to Southern European and Balkan countries. Past selected projects have included filmmakers (Directors, Writers, Producers) from these regions. The films are required to be set in or concerning these regions: Albania, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Greece, Italy, Kosovo, Malta, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain and Turkey.

We only accept live action, fiction feature films. We currently do not accept submissions for shorts, documentaries, or animated projects.

APPLICANTS MUST SUBMIT THEIR MATERIALS VIA THE FORM BELOW.
PLEASE COPY AND PASTE THIS LINK TO ACCESS THE GOOGLE FORM:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf2GakxWHutRwKWVcoY2Rzeeqzl6pXcmBBGW_ON-NiSLmgg7A/viewform?usp=header

SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS
- Logline
- Synopsis (1 page)
- Treatment (12 pages maximum)
- Directorial Intention Note (2 pages maximum)
- Director’s FIlmography and bio
- Materials informing the audio-visual approach: still pictures, video mood board, etc.
- Link(s) (with password if needed) to previous audio-visual works
- 15 Script pages of the project in development (optional)
- Submission Fee

FILMMAKER PARTICIPATION RULES:
1. If the project is selected, at least one representative of the film must attend Discovery Days at the Los Angeles Greek Film Festival, during the period May 28 to June 1, 2025.
The lab is geared toward directors. If the director of the film can't attend, please notify us as early as possible to discuss whether the project can be presented only by the producer.
2. The filmmaker will include “Produced with the support of Discovery Days and LAGFF” in the film credits if/when the film is eventually produced, together with Discovery Days and LAGFF’s logos.
3. Applicants agree to allow the Discovery Days team to share the latest version of their project materials with select professionals participating in the Forum.
4. Applicants agree to allow the Discovery Days to use certain material(s) provided for promotional purposes in relation to the 2025 Los Angeles Greek Film Festival and Discovery Days.
5. Applicants may be contacted for an interview.