Houston Filmmaker Grant

HOUSTON FILMMAKER GRANT 2015 GUIDELINES

Download (.pdf/.docx): Houston Filmmaker Grant 2015 Guidelines:
http://goo.gl/wgq1yq

Download (.pdf): Houston Filmmaker Grant 2015 FAQ Sheet:
http://goo.gl/yLpKzR

APPLICATION DEADLINE: MAY 1, 2015, 11:59 p.m.CST

Overview

The Houston Filmmaker Grant, initiated by the Mayor’s Film Task Force, is funded by the City of Houston through Houston Arts Alliance, Houston First Corporation, and Houston Film Commission, and administered in cooperation with Women in Film & Television Houston, and Houston Cinema Arts Society, to support and stimulate the growth of local filmmakers and narrative feature-length commercial motion picture production with films designed to be marketed and sold to a mass audience. The award is a $30,000 matching funds grant for a Houston filmmaker whose previous work shows excellence and promise in long-form narrative storytelling to be used for the production of a feature-length motion picture.

SECTION 1: General Information

A. The Grant will fund a filmmaker in the production of his or her narrative feature-length motion picture (live action or animation) with a production budget between $60,000 and $250,000.

B. This is a matching funds grant of $30,000 to be awarded to the recipient in three equal parts, as follows:
a. The first payment of $10,000 will be disbursed upon the public announcement of the recipient.
b. The second payment of $10,000 will be disbursed at the 2015 Houston Cinema Arts Festival in November 2015. A special public event will be held as part of the Festival, during which the filmmaker team will discuss the Project and present production clips, trailer, work in progress, and/or test screening.
c. The recipient will receive the final $10,000 upon completion of the Project and following submission of a Final Report by Women in Film & Television Houston for approval by Houston Arts Alliance (tentatively, Summer 2016).

C. Applicant may submit several grant requests for different projects, but each additional submission must meet full and complete requirements as if it were the only application.

SECTION 2: Eligibility Requirements

Applications must meet the following criteria:

A. Grant requests will be considered only for feature-length narrative (live action or animation) motion pictures (hereinafter, Project(s)”, of at least 70 minutes in length without credits. Documentaries and short films are not eligible.

B. Grant requests will be considered only from the director or primary producer (hereinafter, “Applicant”) or from two-person teams with equal responsibility, such as director-producer or co-directors (hereinafter, “Co-Applicants”) of Project.

C. Applicant or both Co-Applicants must be the creative author(s) and have total control of the Project.

D. Applicant or Co-Applicant must have been a resident of or must have a primary business location within Houston city limits for at least six months prior to application deadline. Primary base of business operations or residence will be verified. Proof of residency may be validated with a copy of any two of the following: a valid Texas driver’s license, utility bills, lease agreements, or voter registration certificates. Applications with P.O. box addresses will not be accepted. Proof of residency is required. This is not an option.

E. At least 60% of primary Project shooting locations must be within Houston city limits.

F. Grant and matching funds totaling $60,000 must be spent entirely within Houston city limits.

G. Grant and matching funds ($60,000) must be spent entirely to fund the production of the Project, excluding craft services and meals, in compliance with the City of Houston’s HOT (hotel/motel) tax requirements.

H. Project must be in development, pre-production, or principal photography phase at the time of application. No consideration will be given for applications requesting funding solely for post-production of Project.

I. Project must have a minimum budget of $60,000, with a maximum of $250,000, which includes the amount of Grant ($30,000) plus matching funds by the Applicant of at least $30,000, but not to exceed $220,000. Deferred compensation and in-kind services do not count toward matching funds required from the Applicant.

J. Applicant must provide proof that $30,000 of matching funds has been secured for production of Project by application deadline. Examples of proof include:
a. Letter of Credit
b. Receipts or bills of sale for purchases
c. Proof of foreign sales, or other contracts that equate to sales or licensing fees payable to Applicant or Project company
d. Qualified investor agreements between the parties
e. Two most recent bank statements in the name of the production company showing a current balance of an amount that when combined with other proofs of matching funds equal $30,000 as required from Applicant or Project legal entity

K. Applicant must provide proof of all funding for the production budget over the Grant award of $30,000 that has been secured prior to application deadline. For examples, see section J, a-e

L. Production budget must include mastering costs in High Definition (HD) 720 or 1080 format, music & effects (M&E) tracks, and all appropriate content licensing.

M. Project must contribute to the development of motion picture industry in the City of Houston by employing residents of the Houston city limits as key production staff and 60% of crew, and using facilities within Houston city limits as key production locations, when available.

N. Applicant must agree to acquire the standard production liability insurance and workers’ compensation, as required by Texas Law. Applicant must provide proof of insurance prior to the start of physical production by email to houstonfilmmakergrant@gmail.com, with the Subject Line of “Production Insurance” and applicant’s last name.

O. Projects must be independent productions.

P. Application must be true and complete.

SECTION 3: Application Review Process

A panel comprised of five independent and objective motion picture experts will review and score the applications based on the following criteria:

A. Artistic and production excellence (50 points)
a. Filmmaker’s vision
b. Screenplay
c. Artistic and professional quality of production team
d. Creative expertise of key production personnel
e. Production schedule feasibility based on demands of script, concept, and scope
f. Budget reflects and effective matching of concept and production requirements

B. Commercial Viability of Project (25 points)
a. Evidence of promoting City of Houston
b. Compliance with Hotel Occupancy Tax Regulations
c. Screenplay’s commercial appeal determined using studio coverage analysis

C. Financial Position (25 points)
a. Well-conceived production budget
b. Base of financial support of at least $30,000
c. Evidence of effectiveness of team delivery of services, based on experience levels of key people and assessment of the overall ability of team to meet the director’s vision
d. Formal plan or strategy dealing with existing or anticipated fiscal challenges

Once the Recipient has been selected, the decision is final.

SECTION 4: Application Procedure

A. Submit application(s), supporting documents (.pdf), and online reels (Vimeo, Youtube, etc.) as a registered Filmmaker through FilmFreeway.com.

Application(s) must be received on or before the deadline,
11:59 p.m. CST, May 1, 2015

B. NOTE: The title of the Project, document description, and file extension type must be included in all uploaded files. Examples: “filmtitle-applicationform.pdf”, “filmtitle-script.pdf”, “filmtitle-budget.pdf” To submit through FilmFreeway.com, create a new Script project for each .pdf submission with the Film Title first then the document description. Example: “Film Title - Application”, “Film Title - Script”, “Film Title - Budget”. To submit a sample reel through FilmFreeway.com, create a new Film/Video project for each link with the Film Title first then the video description. Example: “Film Title - Sample Reel 1”, “Film Title - Sample Reel 2”, “Film Title - Sample Reel 3”

C. Application must include the following materials:
a. The completed Application Form (3 pages)
b. Project Description (one page typed treatment of the proposed motion picture)
c. Production Expense Budget with the following supplemental materials:
i. List of secured sources of income (to be updated as they are secured)
ii. Copies of agreements with production financiers and/or investors
iii. List of potential sources of income
d. Professional biographies of Applicant or both Co-Applicants and key production personnel, including screenwriter, director, producers, director of photography, editor, and composer
e. Completed screenplay
f. Brief description of additional story elements including stylistic approach, visual elements, story structure, and thematic threads
g. Complete production schedule
h. Work samples of previous work(s) of Applicant or both Co-Applicants following these guidelines:
i. Applicant is encouraged to submit multiple work samples
ii. Links to work samples provided must be uploaded with completed online application as Vimeo, YouTube or Website files
iii. Work samples may be rough cuts or completed films
iv. Work samples must include a list of titles, completion dates, formats, and running times. ALSO, Applicant (or both Co-Applicants) must identify their role(s) in the production (e.g., producer, director, and etc.)
v. Work samples cannot exceed a combined running time of 30 minutes.
vi. Application must include a distribution agreement with a “best efforts” clause, or sufficient evidence of a realistic distribution plan. The distribution plan muse the name of the producer’s representative attached to the Project, if available.
i. Proof of standard production liability insurance and workers’ compensation insurance.

NOTE: The Mayor’s Film Task Force, Houston First Corporation, Houston Arts Alliance, Houston Film Commission, Women in Film & Television Houston, Houston Cinema Arts Society or other entities named herein, may not be held responsible for damage to or loss of any and all submitted materials.

SECTION 5: Restrictions

A. Applicant may not be a past Houston Filmmaker Grant recipient, nor a board member or employee of any affiliated entity.
B. Applicant may not be a full-time student.
C. Applicant may not be under 18 years of age.
D. Project may not be a work for hire.
E. Project may not contain obscene material as defined in Section 43.21 of the Texas Penal Code, and, by submitting the application, Applicant warrants that the Project will not contain any such material in its final version.

SECTION 6: Managing the Grant

A. Recipient of the Grant may request, by email, verification letters for presentation to other potential Project investors and funders, or for seeking additional Project funding. Requests may be made to the Grant Administrator, houstonfilmmakergrant@gmail.com.

B. The recipient of the Grant Award must begin using the Grant funds within four (4) months of receiving payment of the first Grant installment. The Grant Administrator must approve exceptions to this policy.
C. Final version of Project must include the following words in its credits: “Made possible in part through the City’s Initiative Grant Program of the Houston Arts Alliance.”
D. Final version of Project must acknowledge the following entities in its credits:

a. City of Houston through the Houston Arts Alliance
b. Houston First Corporation
c. Houston Film Commission
d. Women In Film & Television Houston
e. Houston Cinema Arts Society
f. Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs
g. Mayor’s Film Task Force

E. Final version of Project must display logos furnished by the City of Houston, Houston Arts Alliance and Houston First Corporation in its credits.
F. Copies of all receipts, invoices, and credit card expenditures with supporting cancelled payment checks must be provided for Final Report documentation.
G. The completed film must be provided to Grant Administrator.