Never before have so many films been produced in North Rhine-Westphalia. Tom Tykwer, Sönke Wortmann, David Cronenberg and Stephen Daldry came to Cologne, Duesseldorf and Essen for shooting. Directors including Lars von Trier, Oskar Roehler, Sherry Hormann, Hans-Christian Schmid, Philip Gröning and Stephen Frears have filmed on location in the Rhine and Ruhr with support from the Filmstiftung NRW. New productions are in preparation. Support is available for the development and /or production of feature-length cinema films, short films, and a range of projects from productions costing millions to low-budget.

From the very beginning we discuss with producers the possibilities of shooting their films in NRW. Consulting the applicants and monitoring the productions are as much a part of the day-to-day activities as the financial support. A producer who manages to convince the Filmstiftung with his or her script and financing concept receives our support. The heart of the support is the so-called “NRW effect”: producers must spend at least 1.50 Euro in the State of North Rhine-Westphalia for every Euro granted by the Filmstiftung in the course of production. This condition binds a growing amount of investment capital to the film industry in the region of North Rhine-Westphalia. Over the 19 years since its foundation, the Filmstiftung has supported more than 1400 films with a budget totalling over 480 million Euro according to this principle. Only this combination of professional advice and financial support enables us to achieve our goal: creating jobs by making good films.

Who can obtain support?

Producers are eligible to apply. Their place of residence does not necessarily have to be in North Rhine-Westphalia or in Germany. But the Filmstiftung looks for projects that meet the following criteria:

· German films from inside and outside the NRW region
· Films with a likelihood of commercial success after their cinema release
· TV projects of particularly high quality
· Films co-produced with international partners
· Other productions of special interest to the State of North Rhine-Westphalia.

How are films supported?

Applications must be submitted eleven-fold together with eleven copies of the script. The application form can be re quested from the Filmstiftung North Rhine-Westphalia or can be downloaded here.

The jury of the Film Funding Committee makes decisions (at sessions that are usually held every two months) based on recommendations by the Chief Executive Officer.

How high is the level of financial support?

The amount of support is calculated according to the “NRW effect”. For every Euro granted by the Filmstiftung in the form of a non-recourse interestfree loan, the producer must spend 1.50 Euro in the State of North Rhine-Westphalia in the course of production. The amount requested should not exceed 50% of the producer’s contribution to the budget. Five percent of the production budget is considered the minimum amount to be invested by the producer. Funds repaid to the Filmstiftung by the producer from the film’s revenues can be allocated to the producer for the next project.

Watch a list of previously funded films