Apply for funding for the production of full-length children's films and children's short films

You must submit the application for funding in writing to the Federal Archive:

• Download the application form Antrag auf Gewährung von Zuwendungen aus Mitteln für den Bereich Kinderfilmförderung Produktion from the BKM website on the Federal Government's website or from the website of the Kuratorium junger deutscher Film.
• Complete the application form in full and enclose the required documents.
• Send the complete application to the post office of the Federal Archives and send a complete copy of the application with the required documents in PDF format by e-mail (antrag@kjdf.org).
• The Federal Archives will forward your application accordingly.
• The decision on funding will be made after evaluation by a jury.
• If your application is not approved, you will receive a rejection notice.
• If the requirements for funding are met, you will be notified by the BKM and further processing of your application will be carried out by the Filmförderungsanstalt (FFA).
• If all requirements are met (such as securing the overall financing of the film project), you will receive a notification of funding from the FFA and the funding will be paid out in installments as the project progresses.
  
  

You as the producer are eligible to apply for funding for programme-length children's films or children's short films. A producer is someone who is responsible for the realisation of the film project.

• You are a producer with your place of residence or business in Germany.
• If your place of residence or business is in a member state of the EU, the EEA or Switzerland, you must have a branch office in Germany.

The production of your film project can be funded if the following conditions are met:

• It is a full-length children's film (screening time of at least 59 minutes) or a short children's film of no more than 30 minutes.
• The film has a significant German cultural impact within the meaning of the BKM's film funding guidelines.
• The production costs of the full-length children's film do not exceed EUR 5,000,000, unless this is a justified exceptional case.
• The funding should not exceed a total of 80 percent of the eligible production costs estimated in the preliminary cost estimate
• You contribute to the financing of the film with an appropriate share of your own according to the scope of the production, your capital resources and your previous production activities as defined by the German Film Subsidies Act. The own contribution must amount to at least 5 percent of the approved costs. In the case of international co-productions, the financing share of the German producer is to be taken as the basis for calculating the own contribution.
• The majority of the financing for the film must be German within the meaning of the BKM's film funding guidelines.
• You may not begin shooting or animating the film until you have been granted funding, unless you have agreed an exception with the BKM.
• You will produce at least one final version of the film in German, apart from dialogue passages for which another language is stipulated in the script. In the case of documentaries and short films, a German subtitled version suitable for cinema screening is sufficient.
• They will have at least one final version of the film by the time the regular theatrical release begins in a version
  • with German subtitles for people with hearing disabilities and
  • with German audio description for people with visual impairments
  • in marketable and cinema-suitable quality.
  • Their costs for this are recognised by the BKM and are to be taken into account in the calculation. In particularly justified cases, exceptions may be permitted upon application by the producer.
• if one or more television broadcasters are involved in the production of your film project:
• Proof that in the exploitation contract with the television broadcaster a reversion of the television exploitation rights to the applicant, in accordance with the regulations of the FFG and the guidelines issued on the basis of the FFG, has been agreed. The same applies to television exploitation rights which the producer has granted to a distributor or sales agent.

The decision on funding is made by a jury. In addition to the primary criterion of artistic quality, the feasibility of the project within a reasonable period of time as well as the expected distribution of the film, especially in the case of theatrical exploitation, are taken into consideration.
If you receive funding, you must also fulfil a number of conditions after completion of the film, otherwise the funding may be reclaimed:

• Compliance with blocking deadlines:
  • You must ensure regular initial theatrical exploitation. Under certain conditions you can apply for a reduction of the blocking period.
• Registration and archiving in the Federal Archives:
  • Within 12 months of the first public screening, you must register your film in accordance with the Federal Archive Act. At the time of registration, but within 12 months thereafter at the latest, you must notify the Federal Archives of the location of a technically sound archivable copy of the cinema film.
  • No later than 12 months after the first public screening of your film, you must provide the Federal Archives with a technically flawless copy of the film in an archivable format free of charge. Further details, in particular the technical specifications of the archivable copy, are governed by regulations of the Federal Archives.
• Document and notification obligations at the BKM:
  • After completion of the film, you must provide the BKM with two voucher DVDs and inform them immediately of the distribution title, date of theatrical release, participation and, if applicable, awards at German and international film festivals as well as other nominations and prizes.

Notes:

If, in the case of a co-production, several producers meet the requirements for approval, the application may only be submitted by one of the producers.

The resubmission of an unsuccessful project is only possible once. The prerequisite for this is that the project has been substantially changed from the project already submitted for funding. A change is not required if formal reasons for the rejection were decisive and no longer exist.

• Short description (maximum 1 page)
• Screenplay, for animated films also storyboard (enclose separately, screenplay printed on both sides)
• Proof of the closed chain of rights (contract on the acquisition of the filming rights to the book, material, title, etc.)
• Company profile with details of previous films by the production company, producer or producer's wife)
• Details of the director's career to date (filmography, details of nationality)
• Staff list including details of residence (letter of intent from director, camera)
• Cast list, including declarations of intent from the lead actors/key supporting actors.
• Financing plan, including status of financing, meeting dates of grants and calculation of own contribution, as well as proof of financing
• Pre-calculation in the form customary in the industry, the maximum fee rates are based on the guidelines of the German Federal Film Board for project film funding
• Presentation of distribution plans/exploitation concept or distribution contract
• Explanations of the changes made to the project in the case of a resubmission
• If applicable, samples of the director's work or completed films as a link or in DVD format (fifteen copies).

In the event of a fundamentally positive funding decision following the vote of the selection jury:

• Preliminary project certification from the Federal Office of Economics and Export Control (BAFA) that the film is majority German financed. The final BAFA certificate must be submitted before the final instalment is paid.
• In the event that one or more television broadcasters are involved in the production of the film project, you must provide evidence that a reversion of the television exploitation rights to you has been agreed in the exploitation contract with the television broadcaster that complies with the regulations of the FFG and the guidelines issued on the basis of the FFG. The same applies to television exploitation rights that you have granted to a distributor or sales agent.
  
  

You do not have to pay a fee to apply for funding.

Funding for your film must have been applied for and approved with a grant notification before filming or animation work begins. The first day of shooting is considered the start of shooting.

The current submission deadlines (usually twice a year) can be found on the BKM website.

From the submission of the application to the decision as to whether your film project is eligible for funding, the processing time is approximately 11 weeks. The German Federal Film Board then requires additional time for processing. This depends largely on when all the requirements for issuing the decision are met.

• §§ 3 bis 4, 14, 16 bis 17 der Richtlinie für die kulturelle Filmförderung der BKM
• § 51 Filmförderungsgesetz

Lawsuit

- Form: yes

- Online procedure possible: no

- Personal appearance required: no

- Written form required: yes

• Antrag für den Bereich Kinderfilmförderung auf der Internetseite der BKM