Break into the industry with Together TV’s Diverse Film Fund 2022 focussing on LGBTQ+: Queer Lives Today
Together TV is offering five emerging filmmakers up to £20,000 each to produce a 20 minute documentary on Queer lives today, a five month mentorship scheme and broadcast on television. The Diverse Film Fund is a unique opportunity to support developing filmmakers and showcase LGBTQ+ stories yet to be told.
Last year’s Diverse Film Fund filmmakers produced stunning films on Black, British and Breaking Boundaries that went on to be shared by ITV and Sky. The filmmakers benefited from expert training on film production, including workshops on Legal Compliance and Ofcom with Lara-Lee Green (ITV) and Production Management with Helen Landeau (Rogan Production). They received mentoring from industry leaders at ITV, Naked Productions and Zeppelin Films. The final films won awards including Best Short Doc at Five Continents Film Festival.
"I’d like to share my utmost thanks and gratitude to everyone for this opportunity. I can’t even begin to imagine the organisation that this took. From raising the funds, to organising the fantastic webinars and giving us access to amazing mentors. Every step of this process was simply brilliant." - Jason Osborne, 2021 Diverse Film Fund Filmmaker
“I would say my experience on Together TV's Diverse Film Fund has been liberating because it’s given me the opportunity to take ownership of my work. It’s amazing to be part of an opportunity where so much trust and support was given to first time filmmakers. Together TV provided so much support at every stage of the programme." - Ikram Ahmed, 2021 Diverse Film Fund Filmmaker
“The Together TV Diverse Film Fund was an amazing opportunity for my film and for my personal development. The well-curated webinars and the incredible exposure this grant gave me was invaluable. I’m very grateful to Together TV and to my fellow grantees who continue to be a supportive network.” - Alex Genova, 2021 Diverse Film Fund Filmmaker
“My experience with Together TV’s Diverse Film Fund was completely invaluable. I learned so much about the industry and the mentorship was amazing. It was challenging because I hadn't been in that position before, but the support I got from Together TV was so encouraging. My advice to those applying for this year’s fund would be to think outside of the box in terms of your contributors. There are some extraordinary stories in the Queer community and I think you could find somebody that's doing something totally outlandish, occupying a space that maybe you wouldn't have thought of.” Sheila Kayuma
Webinar with BFI Flare
As part of the BFI Flare Festival, Together TV is co-hosting a webinar so you can hear more about the fund and as any burning questions to our panellists of industry experts, alumni and our team.
When?
- Thursday 17th March at 1.30pm-2.30pm
Who?
- - Kit Morey, Commissioning Editor (VP) Unscripted Channel 5 / Paramount +
- - David Clews (he/him), Creative Director for Twofour
- - Sheila Kayuma (she/her), Diverse Film Fund alumni and director of The Black Equestrian. Sheila is a recent Film MA graduate from Queen's University Belfast and a winner of the BBC Two Minute Masterpiece.
- - Janet Olaofe (she/her), Head of Content at Together TV and Diverse Film Fund
- “I’m thrilled to be working with the Diverse Film Fund and exciting new LGBTQ+ filmmakers. We all need to see ourselves represented onscreen so it’s vital queer filmmakers get the chance to tell their stories. This is how the industry will finally change.”
- David Clews, Creative Director for Twofour
As featured by:
What you need to know:
1. We will ask for your:
- a. Your film title (50 characters) and your film's logline (up to 200 characters)
- b. Your film's treatment (up to 2000 characters describing your film and why you think your film reflects LGBTQ+ communities in the UK today)
- c. Your director's statement (up to 1000 characters describing your vision for the film, how it delivers impact for Together TV)
- You can find all the questions we will ask in this downloadable PDF.
2. You will need to be over 18 and based in the UK to apply.
3. You can apply as an individual or production company so long as you have not had more than three TV or film directors’ credits.
Applications will close midday (12pm BST) on 31st March 2022
Applications for Diverse Film Fund 2022 are now closed.
Thank you to everyone who applied, you will hear from our team soon.
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FAQs
If you are working in TV, film or video, and not an established filmmaker or have multiple producer, director broadcast credits, you can apply. As the successful applicants will be responsible for creating their documentary, some filmmaking experience is required.
You have to be residing and living primarily in the United Kingdom at the time of submission to apply.
There is no fee to apply for Together TV’s Diverse Film Fund.
You can apply as a production company so long as you have not had a multiple previous TV broadcast credits as Producer/Director.
Yes, you can! Bear in mind you can only submit each idea once.
The documentary should be 20 minutes long.
We are looking for documentaries that reflect Queer lives in the UK today. Therefore, the content needs to be factual and non-fiction.
We will aim to premiere all five documentaries on Together TV’s channel through the month of November 2022. Please refer to our terms and conditions for additional information on the broadcast terms.
Together TV needs you to develop, produce, oversee the edit of your film and deliver your finished documentary. We will offer mentoring and industry expert workshops as part of the Diverse Film Fund, you can use the funds to hire the crew you need to make your documentary a reality.
The judges will be evaluating how the documentary reflects Queer lives in the UK today, the originality of the concept, the creativity of the execution, the effectiveness of the proposal to create positive change, the ability of the film to impact audiences and how the filmmaker adapts the project to Together TV’s viewership. The judges will also evaluate whether applicants demonstrate prior filmmaking experience and an understanding of narrative and contributors.
After the closing date, there will be a pre-selection round where 10 applicants will be invited to expand on their ideas. The five successful candidates will be notified in April 2022.
Yes, the filmmaker will retain the ownership rights of the documentary after an agreed term.
If you require an alternative submission process for accessibility purposes, please reach out to our team via phone (020 3196 1562) or [email protected].
You can read Together TV's Diverse Film Fund's full terms and conditions here.
The form will ask you to submit the following information:
About your film:
- a. Your film title (50 characters) and your film's logline (up to 200 characters)
- b. Your film's treatment (up to 2000 characters describing your film and why you think your film reflects LGBTQ+ communities in the UK today)
- c. Your director's statement (up to 1000 characters describing your vision for the film, how it delivers impact for Together TV)
Your experience:
- Your experience in filmmaking and TV production (100 words max)
- A link to showcase any work
You will have the optional choice to upload a CV, which will not affect your eligibility. It will give us a better understanding of your experience and film idea.
Together TV will close submissions for the Diverse Film Fund at 12 pm BST on Thursday 31st March 2022. We will not accept any application submitted after this time.
