Debut Support

Who is eligible to apply?

Stage 1: Professional screenwriters* and film school graduates with their primary residence, place of business, or branch office in North Rhine-Westphalia. Producers are also eligible to apply in collaboration with screenwriters or filmmakers. Film school students are eligible for graduation film funding.

Stages 2 and 3: Writers and filmmakers apply for funding jointly with producers. Applications must be submitted by producers with their corporate headquarters, place of business, or branch office in Germany.

• Filmmakers or screenwriters with a proven track record (typically 4 professionally distributed feature films or head-writing credits/creator credits, or alternatively, exceptional film and series successes) may apply for funding in Levels 2 and 3 without a production company. They must have their residence, place of business, or branch office in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW), or their project must be of particular interest to NRW. Relevant mainstream and high-end projects with a connection to North Rhine-Westphalia, including internationally oriented projects, may be submitted for Levels 2 and 3 by filmmakers and screenwriters based outside North Rhine-Westphalia, provided they meet the criteria outlined above.

Project Development and Screenplay Development:

Producers with their company headquarters in North Rhine-Westphalia are eligible to apply.

Funding Priorities for 2026/2027:

• Talent, Debut & Second Film
• Children’s/Family Entertainment/Animation
• Commercial Mainstream and High-End Projects
• Short-Form Content (High-End & Vertical Dramas)

The following application materials are required:

• Stage 1: Synopsis Funding
• Stage 2: Treatment Funding
• Stage 2: Project Development for Documentaries/Animation
• Stage 3: Screenplay Funding
• Stage 3: Screenplay refinement

What are the funding requirements?

• The total funding amount per project for Stages 1–3 may not exceed 45,000 euros (with the exception of complex documentary, animation, and international projects, for which producers may apply for funding for both project development and screenplay development).
• Project Development and Screenplay Development: The funding amount may cover up to 80% of the estimated project development costs, up to a maximum of 70,000 euros.
• Funding is provided as a grant.
• Implementation period: 6 months each for Stage 1 and Stage 2 || 12 months for Stage 3 (Stage 2 for documentaries) starting from the conclusion of the grant agreement.

Grant Amounts:

Stage 1: Synopsis grant €5,000

Stage 1: Synopsis grant (talents* without a production company) €3,000

Stage 2: Treatment Grant €15,000

Stage 2: Project Development for Documentaries/Animation with a Production Company up to €70,000¹

Stage 3: Screenplay Grant €20,000

Stage 3: Screenplay Further Development with a Production Company up to 70,000€¹

(Advancement to the next development stage is not automatically guaranteed. A separate application must be submitted for each subsequent stage, but the fundamental aim is to enable continuous work on the material.)

→ Note on funding: The funding is intended to support and cover the authors’ living expenses in order to facilitate more intensive work on a project during the development phase. Funding for an exposé and a treatment in Stages 1 and 2 does not constitute a screenplay fee and cannot be counted toward one.

*Talented filmmakers developing their first or second film (after completing their studies).

How does it work?

• No consultation is required for Stage 1. The application can be submitted independently via the application portal. A consultation is required for Stages 2 and 3. This must take place at least one week before the submission deadline. The appointment must be scheduled in a timely manner with the responsible program officer. Access to the application form on the online portal will only be granted after the consultation. Appointment requests received after this deadline cannot be considered.
• Please send your appointment request via email to the responsible program officer, along with a one-page summary of the project and, for initial contact, your resume and filmography.
• Add-ons: The relevant add-on option can be selected when submitting the application via the online portal.
• There are three submission deadlines per year.
• Funding decisions are made three times a year by the Film and Media Foundation and a team of experts.

Submission Deadlines

• Submission deadline: September 25, 2026
• Submission deadline: February 3, 2027

Other

• The Creative Development Grant is intended exclusively for the development of projects, covering potential costs such as writers’ fees, dramaturgy, research, travel, trailer production, the development of visual and technical narrative elements, and other costs related to development.
• Projects for which the Creative Development Grant is applied for may not subsequently be submitted for a comparable grant program offered by the Film- und Medienstiftung NRW (e.g., grants, MADE IN NRW, and Low-Budget). Rejected projects may only be resubmitted for the next stage upon recommendation.
• Projects not funded in Stages 1 and 2 will not receive an individual explanation for the rejection.
• Producers outside of NRW are eligible for funding only in the form of a conditionally repayable loan (proof of a connection to NRW must be provided).

Important application requirements regarding rights:

• International co-productions are eligible for funding only if the applicant is the majority rights holder.
• If producers submit an application jointly with writers, at least one option agreement regarding the development of the project must be in place for Stages 1 and 2 (the option should stipulate that, in the event of a failure to reach an agreement following the development stage, the rights to the project revert to the writer, provided it is based on the author’s original idea). For Stage 3, a screenplay contract must be in place.
• Adaptations: For pre-existing rights, an option must be secured for at least the duration of the funding period (6 months for Levels 1 and 2 and 12 months for Level 3), along with the possibility of extending the option for an additional 12 months.

*Authors or filmmakers must , prior to submitting an application, have at least:

• have developed a screenplay for a feature-length film or a series format, or a treatment for a documentary film that has gone into production and distribution.
• or have published a play, novel, or other long-form literary work through a publisher other than self-publishing.
• or be collaborating with a producer who intends to adapt the project for the screen (LOI). This producer must have already produced and distributed a feature-length fiction film, documentary, children’s film, or TV series format prior to submitting the application.
• or, in the area of talent development, can demonstrate a degree from a German film school in relevant fields such as screenwriting and directing.
• or have been nominated for or awarded a significant prize for a short or feature-length screenplay (e.g., Max Ophüls, FIRST STEPS, German Short Film Award, German Young Filmmaker Award, Screenplay Award, etc.) or have had a premiere at a major A-list festival.
• Other forms of evidence in the talent development category will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis by the responsible program officer.

→ Filmmakers and screenwriters participating in the talent development program who have their primary residence, place of business, or branch office in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) will receive special consideration for their debut and second film projects. Early collaboration with producers should be encouraged and supported.

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¹Cannot be combined with other funding levels. For complex projects, the possibility of combining funding may be discussed on a case-by-case basis.