CALL FOR ENTRIES: 2025 TWIN CITIES ARAB FILM FESTIVAL
Mizna
DEADLINE:
Early - May 11, 2025
Late - May 31, 2025
INFO: Mizna’s 2025 Twin Cities Arab Film Festival seeks films for our upcoming festival scheduled for September 24–28, 2025. We accept narrative, documentary, experimental, and animated films of feature and short lengths. We seek films made by filmmakers from the SWANA region and beyond, as well as films relevant to the social realities of the SWANA region.
This year, all accepted submissions will be considered for Audience and Jury Awards.
Mizna strives to make our film festival accessible to filmmakers of all financial backgrounds. Filmmakers in need of a submission fee waiver can email mizna@mizna.org.
https://mizna.org/event/call-for-submissions-2025-tcaff/
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Black Film Space Mentorship Program
Black Film Space
DEADLINE: May 14, 2025 by 11:59 PM ET
INFO: We're elated to launch our third mentorship cohort which offers emerging filmmakers an opportunity to build relationships and develop their skill set alongside seasoned professionals.
OVERVIEW:
The Black Film Space Mentorship Program will pair 10 mentees with 10 mentors from June 23rd to December 12th, 2025.
Mentees will have (6) 45 minute meetings with their mentor during the program to discuss their work, develop their projects, and careers as it pertains to their short and long term goals.
Mentors will give one round of feedback on the mentees work over the course of the program.
Each mentee will also have one-on-one, 30-minute meetings with the other nine participants throughout the program on a bi-weekly basis.
Mentees are selected based on: Quality of prior work, project goals, personal statement, career objectives and virtual interviews. Mentees must work towards a short term goal over the course of the program.
We are looking for mentees who are committed to developing their craft. Mentees are matched with mentors based on their expertise.
ELIGIBILITY: You must be a Black Film Space Member to apply.
TIMELINE:
Deadline: May 14 - 11:59 PM ET
Finalist Interviews: Mid June
Mentee Orientation: Monday, June 23rd, 9pm ET
Program Begins: Tuesday, June 24th
Program Ends: Friday, December 12th
Log into our membership portal to fill out the application.
Questions? E-mail us at mentorship@blackfilmspace.com
2025 MENTORS:
LAUREN BANKS - Actor
("Jennie Reeves" in Paramount+’s Lawmen: Bass Reeves and "Siobhan Quays" in Showtime’s City On A Hill)
CLIFF CHARLES - Director of Photography
(Season 5 of CBS’s The Equalizer , Season 1 & 2 of Apple TV +’s Swagger)
MIKE COOKE - Branded Content Director & Cinematographer
(Director of brand spots for Google, State Farm and Walmart.)
TRACI CURRY - Documentary Filmmaker, Showrunner, Producer & Writer
(Hulu’s Searching For Soul Food, ESPN+’s Vick, Showtimes’s Attica)
NAIMAH JABALI-NASH - Documentary Filmmaker
(Director & Producer of Hulu’s The 1619 Project
Producer, of Netlfix’s Crack: Cocaine, Corruption, Conspiracy)
SHANTIRA JACKSON - Screenwriter/TV Producer
(Producer on Amazon Prime’s Clean Slate, Co-Producer on Netflix’s Big Mouth)
ANGELA LATIMER - Editor
(Season 3 of The CW’s All American Homecoming, Season 2 of Apple TV +’s Swagger, Season 1 of Netflix’s Forever)
MAMOUDOU N'DIAYE - Screenwriter
(Writer on Hulu’s How To Die Alone, ABC’s Queens, and Netflix’s Space Force)
DALLAS RICO - Screenwriter
(Staff Writer on Hulu’s Reasonable Doubt)
MONICA SORELLE - Screenwriter/Director
(Co-Writer & Director of the indepdent feature film Mountains, which was awarded Special Jury Mention for U.S. Narrative Feature competition at Tribeca).
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2026 Development Track
Sundance Institute
DEADLINE: May 14, 2025
APPLICATION FEE: $45
INFO: The Development Track helps filmmakers find a visual language in an atmosphere where experimentation and risk-taking is encouraged. The development track has one open application that allows the artists’ work-in-progress fiction feature screenplay to be considered for programs, fellowships, and grants.
The development track has one open application that allows your fiction feature work-in-progress screenplay to be considered for the following programs, fellowships, and grants:
Screenwriters Lab (held annually in January)
Screenwriters Intensive (held annually in March, online)
Sundance Institute Alfred P. Sloan Fellowship (includes participation in either the Screenwriters Lab or Intensive) and Commissioning Grant
Our application includes questions to determine your eligibility for each program and fellowship, and you will automatically be considered for all programs and fellowships for which you are eligible. (There is no open application for the Directors Lab, which is typically populated by projects that have been supported through a previous development program.) For more information about each program and fellowship, please visit our website.
What you need to complete online IN ORDER by MAY 14, 2025, at 4:59 p.m. PT:
CONTACT INFO for the primary applicant, co-applicant if applicable (writers and directors only), and one additional member of the creative team, if applicable. (Please note that only the writer(s) and director(s) will attend the Screenwriters Lab.)
ELIGIBILITY QUESTIONS — A series of questions about you and your project that will determine your eligibility for all of the development track programs and fellowships.
SLOAN FELLOWSHIP AND GRANT QUESTIONS (Sloan applicants only) — If your project is eligible for the Sloan Fellowship and/or Commissioning Grant, you must complete follow-up questions regarding the scientific or technological content of the material. If your project does not contain scientific or technological content, please do not answer these questions — they are optional.
BIOS (150 words max each) for the primary applicant, co-applicant if applicable, and additional creative team member if applicable.
INTRODUCTORY STATEMENT (250 words max) — Briefly introduce yourself and your project. Let us know where you are in the creative process and why you think this is the right timing for a lab.
SHORT ESSAY QUESTIONS (150 words max each):
What are the key themes you’re exploring in your script?
How do you describe the intended tone, feel, and visual style of your script? We encourage you to include examples of other work as references or inspirations.
What do you most want to work on in your script? What needs the most attention creatively?
Why are you passionate about telling this story now? What gives it urgency?
Whom do you see as the audience for this film, and what do you want them to take away from it?
What is your personal connection to the material?
What steps are you taking to ensure that the characters and world of your film are authentically represented?
If this is a resubmission of material we’ve previously considered, how has the material changed since we last read it? (optional)
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY/RIGHTS — Please give us any insight into the current rights status of the project. This is only required if your project is based on true events or characters.
LOGLINE (75 words max) — a one- to two-sentence description of your story.
SYNOPSIS (750 words max) — a brief summary of the plot of your script. Please include all major characters and story points, including the ending.
FIRST 5 PAGES OF YOUR SCREENPLAY OR TREATMENT — You may submit a treatment for the Sloan Commissioning Grant ONLY. If a treatment is submitted and it is not eligible for the Sloan Commissioning Grant, the project will not be considered for any other development track programs or fellowships. Do not upload more than the first five pages.
Next Steps
Applicants will be notified on a rolling basis as to whether their application has progressed to the next stage of the selection process. Please be prepared to submit the following materials should you advance to the second round. You will be given approximately 10 days to two weeks from the date of notification to submit these materials and will be notified sometime in August 2025.
UPDATED SYNOPSIS — Since screenplays are often revised between the first and second rounds of our application, we request you submit an updated synopsis with the complete draft of your screenplay.
FULL SCREENPLAY OR TREATMENT — Upload a PDF file of the most current draft of your screenplay or treatment. You may submit a treatment for the Sloan Commissioning Grant ONLY. If a treatment is submitted and it is not eligible for the Sloan Commissioning Grant, the project will not be considered for any other development track programs or fellowships.
DIRECTING SAMPLE (optional) — If you are a writer-director or if a director is attached to the project, you will have an opportunity to submit a link to a directing sample or samples. Please include the title and run time for any sample submitted.
VISUAL MATERIAL (optional) — If you have visual materials, such as a lookbook or project deck, you may upload a PDF of no more than 40 MB.
All applicants will be notified about their status via email no later than August 29, 2025. Due to the high volume of submissions, we are unfortunately unable to provide feedback about individual projects. If you have additional questions, please visit the Development Track FAQ.
If you have further questions, please email featurefilmprogram@sundance.org.
Development Track Selection Process Timeline
April 15, 2025 Application Available Online
May 14, 2025 Application Closes (4:59 p.m. PT)
August 29, 2025 Second-round notifications complete
December 15, 2025 Final selection notifications complete
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call for mentors + mentees: Girls Write Now Summer Cycle
Girls Write Now
DEADLINE: Extended to May 15, 2025
INFO: Girls Write Now is a national nonprofit dedicated to connecting young women and gender expansive youth with mentors. For nearly three decades, they have broken down the barriers of gender, age, race, and poverty to mentor, teach, and connect writers and leaders across disciplines and around the nation.
They are currently seeking mentors and mentees for their Summer Cycle, which runs from July 1 to September 31. Girls Write Now hosts a number of Journeys, which are focused on topics such as Teleplays: Writing for TV and Book Club: Summer Read.
In these Journeys, women and gender expansive mentors work one-on-one with mentees aged 14-24 to set goals, write together, and form important connections.
You can find the complete list of Journeys here: https://girlswritenow.org/journeys/
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TV WRITING MENTORSHIP PROGRAM
Shore Scripts
DEADLINE: May 16, 2025
INFO: Our TV Writing Mentorship Program isn't your typical screenwriting contest. It's a game-changing experience that will level up your TV writing career.
8 Weeks of high-impact sessions with Showrunner Beth Schwartz (ARROW), Dev Exec Duane Luu (NBCUniversal), David Katsman (Sugar23) and more will help prepare you to get staffed, gain representation, and get your pilot in the marketplace while offering invaluable behind-the-scenes knowledge of working in TV.
shorescripts.com/tv-pilot-contest/
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Building Bridges Documentary Fund
Center for Asian American Media
DEADLINE: May 18, 2025 by 11:59pm PDT
INFO: The Building Bridges Documentary Fund provides funding for independent documentary films about the Muslim experience in the United States. The Fund’s goal is to support filmmakers and works that contribute to a fuller spectrum of narratives that need to be told in the context of what it means to be Muslim in the United States.
The Building Bridges Documentary Fund is supported by the Building Bridges Program of the Doris Duke Foundation. We are honored to be a part of this multi-year journey with our colleagues in the program: the Islamic Scholarship Fund (ISF), Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC) Hollywood Bureau, and Sundance Institute.
FUND APPLICATION:
We encourage filmmakers at all levels – emerging, mid-career or veteran–to apply with projects that are feature-length (60 minutes and over), shorts and episodic series. We fund the following project phases with the stated range of possible funding:
Research & Development ($10K to $25K)
Production ($50K to $100K)
Post-production ($50K to $100K)
For further assistance regarding the application process including any accessibility issues, interested applicants can email buildingbridges@caamedia.org with any questions not covered in our FAQs page.
ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS:
To be eligible, applicants must meet the following criteria:
Project must be about the U.S. Muslim experience. Note: There is no percentage of footage requirement that must be filmed in the U.S., but if your project is filmed predominantly overseas you must explain in your story summary why and how your international elements widen the aperture of the U.S.-Muslim point-of-view.
Applicants must hold artistic, budgetary and editorial control and must own the copyright of the proposed project.
Applicants must be 18 years of age, be citizens or legal residents of the United States or its territories.
All projects in the post-production phase or further must have a full-length rough or fine cut to be considered. All projects must include a maximum 15-minute sample of the project that is being submitted, with the exception of post-production projects that require a rough cut.
If this is your first media project, you must provide a video sample that demonstrates your ability to tell a story well through a visual medium.
In some cases, CAAM may require a Fiscal Sponsor, which is a non-profit 501(c)(3) IRS tax-exempt entity. Your sponsor would agree to accept funds from CAAM on your behalf and is responsible for redistributing funds to the project accordingly.
Only one proposal per applicant will be accepted.
Projects NOT eligible (See our Q&A page for further information):
Projects that do not center the U.S. Muslim experience.
Your project already has distribution and/or has been accepted into a festival.
Thesis projects or student films which are co- or solely-owned or copy-written, or otherwise editorially or fiscally controlled by the school.
Projects or production entities which are foreign-based, owned or controlled.
Industrial or promotional projects.
Our funding process will use the following guidelines in awarding funds:
Does this project focus on the experience of U.S. Muslims? Is the story idea compelling, engaging, original and well-conceived?
Is the visual/ stylistic treatment effective and distinctive?
Can the project be completed within a realistic timeline based on the applicant’s production and fundraising plans, personnel and budget?
Will the project appeal not only to U.S. Muslim viewers, but also to a broader audience?
Does the sample demonstrate the skills and/ or potential of the applicant to complete the proposed project?
What is the team’s connection to the film project and protagonists?
Why is the team best suited to tell this story and produce this project?
caamedia.submittable.com/submit
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2025 fall multi-disciplinary artist residency
Bethany Arts Community
DEADLINE: May 26, 2025 at 11:58pm EST
INFO: Bethany Arts Community (BAC) offers residencies to emerging and established artists for the development of both new works and works-in-progress. BAC welcomes artists working across any discipline and medium, including visual artists, sculptors, writers, playwrights, choreographers, musicians, composers, performance artists, filmmakers, and more to our Fall Multidisciplinary Residency. Any and all artistic mediums are encouraged to apply. Enjoy an environment where artists from different disciplines and walks of life can work in community and near each other, creating opportunities for generative collaboration and cross-pollination.
Residents will be surrounded by uninhibited creativity during their time at BAC, in the form of other Multidisciplinary Residents, local studio artists, BAC staff and board members, those presenting programs on campus, and more!
A unique component of residencies at BAC is Community Programming. As part of a residency, we ask each artist to develop and facilitate a Community Program related to their residency plan. This part of the residency is an opportunity for artists to engage with the local community in Ossining and Westchester County, and for the local community to engage with artists through their work.
The Fall Multidisciplinary Residency runs for two, two-week sessions, September 9 to 23, 2025 and September 26 to October 10, 2025, each with its own cohort. Artists are provided room & board, a private studio conducive to artists’ medium and/or project, 3 basic meals a day*, and a $225 stipend per week upon completion of the residency. Artist is responsible for transportation to and from BAC and any supplies or materials needed for their practice. We ask that you only apply if you can stay for the entire length of this residency.
*Please note for the 3 meals a day included during the residency, Bethany Arts Community is only able to accommodate for vegan, plant-based, vegetarian, dairy-free, and/or gluten-free diets. Please contact submit@bethanyarts.org with any questions or if you have any further allergies/dietary needs not listed.
Regarding Artist Teams/Groups/Collaborations: Artist team applications will only be considered for groups up to 3 members.
TIMELINE:
Application Deadline: May 26, 2025 at 11:58 PM EST
Letters of Recommendation Deadline: June 2, 2025 at 11:58 PM EST
As letters of recommendation (LORs) requests are sent out at the time of application submission, we give applicants another week to ensure that their LORs are in. Please ensure your LOR is submitted by this deadline to be considered for this residency.
There is one letter of recommendation and one reference (not the same person who wrote the LOR) required to be considered.
Your LOR and your reference should come from someone who can speak to your artistry, character, and integrity. LORs and References from relatives will not be accepted.
Notifications: June 25, 2025
bethanyarts.org/calendar/fall2025residency/
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CALL FOR FILMS BY WOMEN OF COLOR
Reel Sisters
DEADLINE: May 27, 2025
INFO: The Reel Sisters of the Diaspora Film Festival & Lecture Series is an annual film festival founded by African Voices magazine. Established in 1997, Reel Sisters (www.reelsisters.org) is dedicated to providing opportunities for women of color to advance their careers in the film industry.Reel Sisters accepts films written, directed, or produced by women/non-binary filmmakers of color.
Reel Sisters is the first Academy Qualifying Film Festival for short narratives devoted to women of color across the globe. Reel Sisters is an IMDb qualifying film festival. Reel Sisters celebrates our 28th Anniversary in 2025. Our festival includes in-person and virtual presentations. The films showcased virtually are in competition for all awards including our Oscar qualifying award. Please note other dates and venues will be added, our festival season begins with our Harlem kick off!
APPLICATION INFO: YOU MUST SUBMIT PRODUCTION STILLS/PHOTOS and a TRAILER for your submission to be ELIGIBLE AND COMPLETE. You can screenshot photos from your film if you were unable to hire a photographer.
Reel Sisters is a competitive festival and films are selected by an independent jury. Please submit films early as deadlines are final. The festival provides quality customer service and does not offer fee waivers. The fee covers a small fraction of the administrative costs for running a professional Oscar qualifying film festival.
Reel Sisters accepts all genres and formats with a special interest in submissions from animated and web series producers. Send us films that will make our audience “cry, dance, laugh, sing and explore." The festival curates events throughout the year so all entries will be considered for Reel Sisters Tea & Cinema series. Join our worldwide community of film professionals in celebrating stories produced, directed and written by women of color!
CASH AWARDS FOR 2025
Best Narrative Short - $1,000
Best Director - $500
Best Screenplay - $300
Best Animation - $200
GENERAL RULES:
TRANSLATION: Your film must be English dubbed or have English subtitles if it is in any other language.
PRODUCTION STILLS & TRAILERS: Please make sure you upload production photos with your submission and a trailer. If you do not have photos, you can screen shot a photo by pausing a scene in your film to create one. Your submission will not be complete without all promotional materials uploaded.
NO WAIVERS: Entry fees cover a small portion of the festival’s administrative costs for processing submissions and are non-refundable. We do not offer waivers.
OUR REFUND POLICY: Our entry fees are non-refundable. It is the responsibility of the filmmaker to read our guidelines and policies to ensure that they are eligible to submit to our festival.
TO SUBMIT A FILM to REEL SISTERS:
Please read our guidelines carefully before submitting your film as we do not issue refunds for entry fees. It is your responsibility to ensure your film meets our criteria and submission guidelines. We rarely accept films longer than 90 minutes. Your film must have a women of color as co-producer, co-director or co-writer, if the lead producer/director is male.
We only accept films via FilmFreeway. PLEASE DO NOT EMAIL US ANY VIDEO LINKS. If you submit to FilmFreeway via a Vimeo link, you must provide a passcode to view. You must make your film downloadable for our production staff if your film is accepted. If you do not make your film downloadable by the requested deadline, your film will not be eligible for consideration. We discourage Youtube links.
Please contact FilmFreeway staff if you have any issues uploading your film and making it downloadable for our production staff if you receive an acceptance letter.
We will need downloadable trailer links from FilmFreeway or Vimeo to help promote your film in our festival. You must submit the trailers and photos with your application. If your materials are not submitted with your application, your film will be disqualified.
Complete the details required, providing brief synopsis of the film, credits, production stills and trailers. We accept photographs in all formats including JPEGs, TIFFs and EPS (electronic photos must be 300 dpi resolution for promotional purposes).
All accepted films will be notified via email. Please make sure ALL of your Contact Information is up-to-date. If your email changed between the time you submitted your film and our Notification Date, please update it ASAP so we can correspond with you.
filmfreeway.com/ReelSistersoftheDiasporaFilmFestival
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2026 DET Writing Program
Creative Talent Development & Inclusion at Disney Entertainment Television
DEADLINE: June 2, 2025 by 11:59 p.m. PST
INFO: The primary goal of the 2026 Disney Entertainment Television Writing Program is to staff Program Writers on Disney Entertainment Television series as staff writers during the Program year. Staffing is not guaranteed.
The twelve (12)-month Program is tentatively set to begin in January 2026 and end in mid-February of the following year. Please note, time frames are subject to change.
For the first few months of the Program, Program Writers participate in a professional development curriculum designed to better prepare them for staffing consideration, including developing, writing, and polishing at least one (1) original pre-existing pilot script to be used as a staffing sample. The Program also aims to provide engagement with executives, producers and/or showrunners, which is designed to facilitate relationships that can prove invaluable in developing a television writing career.
Additional past activities have included: workshops led by veteran television writers, producers and Program alumni and networking mixers with executives.
SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS:
Applicants must be able to legally work in the United States and be at least twenty-one (21) years of age by December 1, 2025. Entertainment industry experience is not required but is strongly recommended. Those applying must fully complete an online application and submissions package, including uploading the following (2) items:
SCRIPT ONE: PRE-EXISTING ORIGINAL PILOT SCRIPT capturing the writer’s unique tone, style and point of view. This sample must be live-action content; animation samples of any form are not accepted. This sample should tonally translate to the type of programming broadcast, airing or streaming on DET. This will be the primary script for consideration of your application. It cannot be changed or replaced after submission. This sample must not have been submitted in a previous application.
SCRIPT TWO: SECONDARY PRE-EXISTING ORIGINAL PILOT SCRIPT capturing the writer’s unique tone, style and point of view. This sample must be live-action content; animation samples of any form are not accepted. This sample should tonally translate to the type of programming broadcast, airing or streaming on DET. This sample may have been submitted in a previous application and will receive the same score as before.
Please note that this submission request is not a writing prompt; it is a request to read pre-existing material. Any new material written for this submission will be returned unopened/unread.
NOTIFICATION:
Please check our website and Facebook page for updates.
For the 2026 Program cohort, semi finalist will be contacted in late Summer 2025, finalists will be contacted in Fall 2025, and Program Writers will be selected in December 2025 or January 2026, with an official press announcement in January 2026.
Due to the volume of submissions, those not accepted will not be notified. We will not respond to any inquiries regarding the status of the selection process.
Please note, these dates and timeframes are subject to change at DET’s/CTDI’s sole discretion.