“Film Mosaic 2024: Leave No One Behind” Fellowship

Copenhagen Architecture Festival (CAFx) has teamed up with partners Tbilisi Architecture Biennale, Tekla Film, Queer Art Fest Baku, and Pink Armenia to organise the film & architecture project, Film Mosaic x 2024: Leave No One Behind across Denmark, Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Armenia focusing on socially and ecologically inclusive design.

Pressed by the urgencies exposed in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, CAFx has chosen to investigate the role architecture and design can play in reducing inequality in all its forms and fulfilling the UN’s commitment to ‘Leave No One Behind’ (LNOB). Bridging education, digital media, and creative labour and youth culture, the project facilitates the production and exchange of knowledge using film to explore social and environmental justice in the capital cities of Georgia, Denmark, Azerbaijan and Armenia.

Five fellows working with film and spatial issues will be selected in each country to partake in the Film Mosaic Fellowship Programme, which will provide funding and mentorship for the production of films about pressing issues of the city in question. Participants will travel across countries, learning from each other and disseminating their work. In total four groups of five fellows each (one group in each country) will explore their city in depth and investigate local socio-ecological challenges, with a focus on bio-inclusivity in Tbilisi and Copenhagen, and LGBTQI+ rights and queer theory in Baku and Yerevan.

In Copenhagen the fellowship investigates urban ecosystems, sustainable resources, and cross-species equality in the built, grown and planned environment. Participants will seek positive design solutions within the theme of bio-inclusivity and produce individual short films of maximum 13 minutes that synthesise the results of their research and communicate it artistically and effectively.

The project offers an opportunity to develop your skills within filmmaking and spatial exploration through a series of workshops guided by professional mentors and lecturers. The final films will be presented in Copenhagen and Tbilisi, where you will have the chance to show your work to a wide audience and engage in an international network of creatives.

The Fellowship Programme provides funding and mentorship for the production of films and covers the expenses for travel and accommodation for the premiere in Tbilisi, Georgia.

Funding Information

• All fellows will receive a stipend of 15.000 DKK + travel and accommodation for the premiere in Tbilisi, Georgia.

Workshop Programme

• Through lectures, workshops, and group exercises, you will learn about the potential of architecture and design to further the LNOB agenda, and apply this knowledge to create your own film documenting or addressing non-discriminatory design solutions found in the built, grown, and/or planned environment of Copenhagen.
• During the fellowship, you will explore the process of filmmaking, gaining concrete knowledge about conceptualising, organising, filming and editing your work, as well as creating a relevant, dramaturgically well-functioning story. Professional filmmakers and editors will instruct you and assist you in the production of your short film.
• The first part of the Fellowship programme will be devoted to on-site research, online and offline meetings and spatial exercises aimed at expanding participants’ knowledge of the urban issues at stake and of possible architectural solutions to these issues. From here, participants will have to choose a topic for their individual film and develop a compelling storyline.
• A series of physical workshops will be arranged in each country during the programme to guide them in this process. Two plenary digital workshops will be planned for participants from all countries to meet online, share ideas, chat, exchange knowledge, follow each other’s work and give each other feedback. Lastly, they will be shooting and editing their films, supported by a professional editor.
• Spring 2024 will be dedicated to the physical exchange between countries and the dissemination of participants’ work across borders. Public premiere events of the films will be organised in each country. These will be opportunities to spread the knowledge produced during the Fellowship with local audiences, debate the topics addressed in the films and discuss them with fellows from other partner countries. Only the premieres taking place in Georgia and Denmark will be attended by project participants from all countries, because of the travel bans in effect between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
• After these in-person activities, the Film Mosaic 2024: Leave No One Behind will continue its life in the digital realm. All the films and other relevant material about inclusive and sustainable urbanism produced throughout the project will be made accessible online, becoming part of the global Film Mosaic of everyday voices from different geographical and cultural contexts, available for researchers, educators, laymen and decision-makers.

What to expect?

• Over the course of seven weeks they will conduct a series of weekend workshops and lectures to learn about the thematic scope and how to use the medium of film to address it. This includes time for feedback on ideas and the films in production. In between workshops, they expect the fellows to work on their films and finalise them by the beginning of April 2024 before their public premieres in Georgia and Copenhagen, after which the films will be made available on CAFx’ online Film Mosaic platform.
• By connecting with other like-minded emerging or trained professionals, fellows will gain exposure to different cultures, perspectives, and ways of thinking, which can inform and enrich their creative work. The international network built through the Film Mosaic x 2024 also represents a great opportunity for career development.
• Networking with international partners and organisations will help participants discover new possibilities for collaborations and ways to showcase their work to a broader international audience, expand their horizons, build their skills, and open doors to new and exciting possibilities.

Who can apply?

• The fellowship programme is open to anyone with a passion for social and environmental justice and experience in relevant fields such as filmmaking, architecture, and planning. The long workshop format caters to young, driven creatives who would like to expand their knowledge and practice across disciplines.
• Applicants are expected to have a basic knowledge of film production and access to relevant equipment for shooting and editing.

For more information, visit CAFx.