Deadline: 15-Sep-2025
The International Film Production Fund New Dawn is striving for a vibrant, open and inclusive film industry with true diversity of perspectives, filmic expressions and relevance for everyone.
New Dawn is an initiative of public film funds that aims to open up the film industry to many voices and perspectives in their continuously changing society and has a responsibility to support talented film makers without prejudice or exclusion and to give ample opportunity for multifaceted, original and authentic film to flourish.
Applications for New Dawn can only be submitted by an independent production company that is a legal entity, produces and exploits films continuously, and is based in one of the participating countries of New Dawn. The production company must have a joint motivation by the producer, writer, and director reflecting on how they and the production connect to the fund’s mission.
Eligible films are feature-length live action, documentary, or animated fiction films with a runtime of at least 60 minutes. The objective is to reach an audience in cinemas, at home, and/or abroad. The producer, director, and/or writer of the production must originate from one of the participating countries by nationality or residency. The budget is a maximum of €3.5 million for fiction films and €800,000 for documentaries, while animated projects are not subject to a budget cap.
The project must be the director’s first or second feature-length film and have already been granted selective production support from one of the participating funds, based on artistic quality. At least 50% of the financing must be in place upon application. The applicant must hold the rights to the film and share pro rata in the worldwide proceeds. The production cannot have been submitted to New Dawn before. In the case of equal valuation by the committee, preference is given to projects where the producer, writer, and director are from equity-seeking communities.
The fund offers up to €200,000 for a feature film and up to €100,000 for a feature-length documentary. New Dawn films selected for an A-list festival can also apply for a promotional contribution. The next submission deadline is Thursday, September 15, 2025, at 17:00 CET. During the evaluation, the emphasis is on the creator’s voice and perspective, and secondarily on the subject matter.
A joint advisory committee of international advisers assesses applications and makes the final selection. The Netherlands Film Fund will administer and take the formal decision on applications.
For more information, visit Dutch Film Fund.
