By applying for the SRCF Directing Grant (the "Grant"), you ( the "Applicant" or "you") agree that you have read, understand, and agree to comply with all rules & terms herein.
RULES
• ELIGIBILITY (GENERAL)
You must be at least eighteen (18) years of age and you/your film must adhere to at least one (1) of the following:
(1) Be a current resident of New York City;
(2) Be from New York City; or
(3) Your script must prominently feature, or be set in, New York City
• SUBMISSIONS
Please submit with the following:
ARTIST STATEMENT
A statement between 500-1000 words that expresses:
(1) How you describe yourself as an artist/filmmaker
(2) Your creative vision for your project
(3) How far along you are with the project (e.g. secured other funds, cast)
(4) How you intend to use the funds
(5) Why you believe you should receive the Grant
BIO
Must be under 250 words and included in your Project Information page
LOGLINE
Must be one (1) sentence UNDER twenty-five (25) words
SHORT SCREENPLAY
• Screenplay must be complete and may not exceed fifteen (15) pages
• Title page does not count against total page count
• Screenplay must be written by you or co-written by you with more than one (1) other writers
• All writers must be credited on the title page of Screenplay
• Screenplays must be written by humans; no AI or LLM assistance
• There are no requirements as to when the material was written
• Screenplay should be in standard screenplay format, inclusive of font, spacing, margins, and numbered pages
• Adaptations are ineligible unless the underlying rights are owned by Applicant or the work is in the public domain
• Screenplay must be submitted electronically as a PDF
• Screenplay must be in English; however, dialogue in other languages is acceptable, if subtitle translation is provided
• U.S. Copyright, or other international registration numbers, may be included on the title page.
** OPTIONAL MATERIALS
If you would like to provide additional materials supporting your submission, you may do so under the "Files & Attachment" section on the Project Information page. Additional materials, for the Screenplay you are submitting, may only include any of the following (but no more than one sample of each):
• a look book, mood board, OR pitch deck
• a production schedule & production budget
• a short film, under fifteen (15) minutes, that you directed
- Add link to "Article/Review" section on your Project Information page
- Title: SRCF_Work Sample1_LastNameFirstName
- Include any password to access link in the "Publication" line
• a short screenplay, under fifteen (15) pages, that you wrote without a co-writer and without any AI/LLM assistance
TERMS
APPLICATION DEADLINE
• Applications must be received on/before the deadline; no exceptions
• SRCF reserves the right to change deadline date at any time
APPLICATION FEE
• Fee must be paid in full at time of application submission
• Fee is non-refundable
APPLICANT VERIFICATION
• You verify that you are eligible – inclusive of age, residency, and general requirements – to apply for this Grant.
BREACH OF AGREEMENT
• This Agreement may be amended, so long as SRCF agrees, in writing, to any changes that Applicant, or Recipient (defined below), may seek to make.
• If Recipient fails to deliver the Completed Film in the timeframe specified herein, the Recipient will be deemed in breach of this Agreement.
• Any breach of this Agreement by Recipient will entitle SRFC to pursue any and all remedies under the law, including filing a legal action compelling Recipient to repay SRCF in full for all monies provided to Recipient, with associated costs paid by Recipient.
COPYRIGHT AND OWNERSHIP
• All material in application must be original, and all rights must be wholly owned by you
• There must be no dispute about the ownership of any material in your application or your right to submit it as part of your application
• In no instance will SRCF weigh in on a rights/ownership dispute
• SRCF, its employees, and directors associated with this Grant, claim(s) no ownership nor first right of option to any original screenplay submitted for this Grant
• SRCF, its employees, and directors associated with this Grant, claim(s) no ownership to any film completed by the Recipient of this Grant
CREDIT ON COMPLETED FILM
• SRCF is entitled to receive a credit line and logo placement in the completed film’s end titles as follows:
“This film was generously supported by
The Shawn Regruto Cinematic Foundation (SRCF)"
DISQUALIFICATION
• Failure to disclose a dispute about the ownership of material within your application or your right to submit materials within your application, whether it arises before or during the application process, shall disqualify your Application.
• If ownership is disputed, your Application will be disqualified from consideration for the Grant until the dispute is resolved.
• If at any point during the Application process any of your submitted materials are found to have been produced, either in part or wholly, with the use of Artificial Intelligence ("AI") or any Large Language Model ("LLM"), your application will be immediately disqualified.
• If Screenplay has been sold, is currently under option, is being produced, or is in any other way encumbered by a third party on the date of submission, the Screenplay is not eligible for this Grant.
• Employees, directors, and agents of SRCF, and their immediate families, are disqualified from applying for this Grant.
• Entries that fail to adhere to Grant Rules & Terms herein will be disqualified.
ELEGIBILTY (GENRE)
• Educational and promotional projects are not eligible for Grant consideration
• Student films are eligible for Grant consideration
ELIGIBILITY (PROOF OF)
• By applying, you verify that you are eligible to receive the Grant
• Recipient may be required to sign an affidavit of eligibility and proper tax documentation before Grant funds are released
• SRCF will verify all eligibility requirements at the Finalist stage of judging and before dispersing any funds
ELIGIBILITY (RESIDENCY)
(1) NYC Current Resident – If applying on/before 12/31/24, you must have maintained New York City residency for at least the last two consecutive years (2023 & 2024). If applying on/after 01/01/25, you must have maintained New York City residency for at least the last two consecutive years (2024 & 2025)
(2) NYC Raised – you must have been a New York City resident for at least three (3) consecutive years while you were between the ages of seven (7) and (18)
(3) NYC Film – your Screenplay must constitute being an "NYC film" in which at least 50% of the story features New Yorkers, in New York City situations, and must clearly be set in New York City locales.
FEEDBACK
• Applicant understands that individual feedback on submitted Screenplay will not be provided except when offered by SRCF
• Applicant understands that decisions by SRCF, as they pertain to the Recipient of the Grant, is final and binding
GRANT DISBURSEMENT
(1) The Grant will be delivered to Recipient in two disbursements:
a. The first disbursement will total nine thousand dollars ($9,000.00 USD) and is conditional upon:
i. Recipient going into production on selected project within one hundred and eighty (180) days from Notification Date AND SCRF receiving the following from Recipient:
ii. Reasonable Production Schedule of selected project
iii. Accurate Production Budget of selected project
iv. Crew List of selected project
b. The second disbursement will total one thousand dollars ($1,000.00 USD) and will conditionally be provided to Recipient within thirty (30) days of completion of the film upon:
i. Recipient completing production of selected project within two hundred and seventy-five (275) days from Notification Date AND SCRF receiving the following from Recipient within this period (via secure link, i.e. Vimeo):
1. An edited version of the produced film, of the selected Screenplay, that contains the film's key scenes in the right order, and its recognizable as a film, though may contain flaws still to be adjusted (the "Rough Cut")
2. An edited version of the produced film, of the selected Screenplay, that has been edited to near completion, incorporating all the necessary scenes and transitions while focusing on refining details such as pacing, audio, and visual elements (the "Fine Cut")
3. The final edited version of the produced film, of the selected Screenplay, in which there will be no further changes to the sound, picture, color, title, arrangement, soundtrack, credits, otherwise (the "Completed Film")
NOTIFICATION DATES
• Five (5) Finalists will be notified of their placement by 8:00PM EST on Monday, June 2, 2025
• Selected Recipient, chosen from among the five (5) Finalists, will be notified of their placement by 8:00PM EST on Monday, June 16, 2025
• SRCF reserves the right to change the Notification date(s) at any time
NOTIFICATION PROCESS
(1) Upon the conclusion of the submission period, Judges will review applicants' submitted material and select five (5) applicants (the "Finalists") as Finalists
(2) Upon notifying Finalists of their position, each Finalist will be interviewed by at least three (3) Judges in a virtual meeting (i.e. Zoom) which will last approximately thirty (30) minutes to one (1) hour.
(3) Finalists' interview period will be between Tuesday, June 3, 2025 through Friday, June 13, 2025
(4) Judges will review Finalists and select one (1) Finalist of whom to award the Grant (the "Recipient") in the period across Saturday, June 14, 2025 and Sunday, June 15, 2025
(5) Recipient will be notified on Monday, June 16, 2025
PUBLICITY
• Except where prohibited by law, participation in the Grant constitutes your consent to SRCF's use of your name, likeness, photographs, and/or biographical information for promotional purposes in any media, worldwide, without further payment or consideration.
• All uses of Applicant’s information are in accordance with SRCF's Data Management and Privacy Policy [below]
SIMILAR WORK
• Applicant understands that SRCF's judges, directors, officers, employees or agents may be exposed to or may develop materials and ideas that may be similar to those of Applicant's submitted Screenplay.
• Applicant understands and acknowledges that Applicant will not be entitled to any compensation from such similar material that is independently conceived and created.
• Applicant agrees that Applicant will never assert against SRCF (or any of its judges, directors, officers, employees or agents) any claim based on an assertion of plagiarism, idea theft, confidential or fiduciary relationship or any other theory relating to the submitted material, and hereby releases all such claims against SRCF.
SUBMISSION (EXCLUSIVITY)
• If the Screenplay you submit in your application has been submitted for other competitions, contests, or grants, it is still eligible for this Grant
SUBMISSION (PROCESS)
• Applications are accepted via electronic submission only
• SRCF does not permit the correction/change of any aspect of a submission once it has been submitted.
• Applicant assumes responsibility for complying with the Rules & Terms of applying and assumes responsibility for any errors or omissions in Applicant's application process (e.g., attaching wrong files, errors in answering application questions, etc.).
SUBMISSIONS (NUMBER OF)
• You may only submit one (1) application for the Grant
RULES CHANGES
• SRCF reserves the right to amend these rules at any time
DATA MANAGEMENT AND PRIVACY
• Applications for this Grant are managed on the submission platform, FilmFreeway, to securely manage your data.
• SRCF is not accountable for any data hacks (internal or external) or user errors that may release Screenplays, work samples, other materials you submit in your application, or your data, unintentionally.
• SRCF will not sell, or otherwise distribute, entrant's data without entrant's prior written consent.
• SRCF will retain the Applicant’s personal data for a reasonable period to enable it to send Applicant any notifications about the Grant, to verify that this Agreement, as presented on FilmFreeway, has been complied with, and for accounting purposes, which may be passed to a third party to enable such third party to fulfill any necessary requirements relating to the awarding of the Grant.
• Applicant’s name and email address will be added to SRCF's subscription list, which is used only for notices to subscribers of SRCF.
ENTRY CONDITIONS AND RELEASE
• BY SUBMITTING FOR THIS GRANT YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOU HAVE READ AND AGREE TO THESE CONDITIONS. You agree to release and hold harmless The Shawn Regruto Cinematic Foundation ("SRCF"), shawnregruto.org, SRCF's Grant contributors, judges, screenplay readers, sponsors, and any other organizations responsible for administering, advertising or promoting the Grant, and every one of their respective members, directors, employees, agents and representatives (collectively, the “Released Parties”) past and present from and against any and all claims, expenses, and liability, including but not limited to damages and negligence to property and persons, including but not limited to invasion of privacy, defamation, slander, libel, violation of right of publicity, copyright, infringement of trademark or other intellectual property rights relating to your Entry, participation in the Grant and/or acceptance or use or misuse of Grant funds; provided however, that such release will not apply to any commercial exploitation of the Screenplay by a Released Party in violation of your rights under applicable copyright law; and indemnify, defend and hold harmless SRCF and its sponsors, officers, agents and employees from and against any and all claims, expenses, and liabilities (including reasonable attorneys fees) relating to your participation in the Grant and/or Grant’s use or misuse of Prize.
• ENTRY FOR THIS GRANT IS VOID WHERE PROHIBITED or restricted by any Federal, State or Local law. Voided entries will be refunded. Recipients’ eligibility will be verified before the grant is awarded and Recipient may be required to sign an affidavit of eligibility.
• By submitting for the Grant, you authorize SRCF to use any trusted third-party online and cloud-based services and databases for hosting, managing and/or transmitting your application file(s).
