Applications open for Story Camp Aotearoa (New Zealand)

Story Camp 2024 seeks feature film projects ready for an in-depth development process. Up to eight selected writers or teams will participate in a rigorous four-day experience designed specifically to meet the development needs of their project.

Story sessions between advisors and participants form the backbone of the week, with advisors chosen based on the development needs of each selected writer or filmmaking team. This tailored development process can also include project-based group workshops; workshopping with actors; strengthening the director’s vision, and making good decisions together under pressure.

Stages

• The stages are:
  • Advanced Development: The film is nearly production-ready: the script is well-developed, there is a writer, director and producer attached, there is a realistic plan in place for financing your film, and you are very close to market-ready or already have market partners attached.
  • Development: If you are not at the Advanced Development stage, then you are in Development. If you are a writer without other team members attached, you are eligible to apply under Development.

Eligibility Criteria

• You must be a NZ citizen or permanent resident to apply.
• Copyright ownership.
• When you apply for Story Camp one of your team will need to own the copyright of the project you apply with. It is important to note that there has been no establishment of copyright for any works written by an AI programme. You will be putting your Chain of Title at risk when you use material generated by AI.
• It is unfair for their limited funding to be spent on developing a project that may never be able to prove Chain of Title; therefore it is ineligible for Story Camp.
• Who attends?
  • Development: the writer(s) must attend. Other key creatives will attend on a case by case basis depending on their role within the process and the needs of the project.
  • Advanced Development: the writer(s), director and producer must attend. Other team members such as additional producers, the DoP, lead actor, or editor may join some or all of the process on a case by case basis depending on the needs of the project.

Submission Criteria

• What you’ll need to submit
  • Development
    • 1-2 pages on what your story is about and why you want to tell this story.
    • 1-2 page synopsis or outline of what happens in your film.
    • Up to 1-page on where your project is at in its development trajectory.
    • The full script or a treatment (10-30 pages) and a scriptwriting sample (up to 20-pages). Your writing sample could be the first 20 pages of the script or of a different feature film script, first 20 pages of a play you’ve written, a short film script).
    • A short biography of you and of the director and/or producer.
    • Who in your team owns the copyright of the project?
  • Advanced Development
    • 1-2 page synopsis.
    • Script.
    • Up to 2 page personal statement on why you want to tell this story.
    • 1 page on where the project is at in its trajectory, including finance and key team and/or talent secured.
    • A short biography of the writer, the director and the producer.
    • Links to the director’s prior screen work.
    • Who in your team owns the copyright of the project?

For more information, visit Script to Screen.