Deadline: 20-Oct-2025
The Teledoc offers filmmakers the opportunity to develop layered documentaries with a universal and urgent theme, relevant to a broad Dutch audience.
A Teledoc is a layered documentary with a screening time of 75-90 minutes with a universal and urgent theme, touching on a social undercurrent and a topic relevant to a broad Dutch audience. Directors are challenged to develop an author’s vision for a film that is cinematically distinctive, innovative, and ambitious. This collaborative project between public broadcasters, NPO, COBO, and the Film Fund is aimed at directors and producers who have proven themselves in the field of independent feature-length author documentaries. Artistic freedom, ambition, trust, and short procedures are central to Teledoc.
Film proposals, after selection by public broadcasters and the Film Fund, can receive a grant for development: for research, test recordings, and the writing of a documentary film plan. Both producer-director teams and directors without a producer can apply for development. Directors who submit a development application without a producer will collaborate with a producer at the start of the development phase.
After the selected film plans have been developed, public broadcasters and the Film Fund will again select potential projects for realization. Only producers can apply for realization. The length of the films is between 75 and 90 minutes, the contribution for development included test recordings are a maximum of €45,000 and for realization a maximum of €425,000 for a maximum of 4 projects per year. A film plan should, in principle, be feasible within the available resources. If the content, form, impact, or outreach necessitate the involvement of a third party, it is possible to provide additional funding of up to 10% for its realization. Financing plan is part of the implementation application. A maximum of six grants for development and a maximum of four grants for implementation of Teledocs are awarded annually. There are three submission rounds per year, or, depending on the number of grants awarded, four, spread throughout the year (February, June, October, and possibly December).
After developing a script, filmmakers can submit an application for a production grant, with the documentary plans presented to a meeting of the Film Fund and participating public broadcasters under the chairmanship of CoBO. A Teams call of up to 15 minutes may form part of the selection process, giving filmmakers the opportunity to explain their plan, present required footage including test shots, and engage in a question-and-answer exchange with the committee. The public broadcasters and the Film Fund then make the selection for realization, although the broadcaster involved in the project has no voting rights in the assessment.
The meeting determines which developed plans are eligible for implementation, whether conditions are attached, and approval of the budget is always required before realization support is granted. Depending on the project, it may also be decided to organize screenings prior to television broadcast, outreach, or an impact campaign, for which an additional contribution can be requested. After the meeting, CoBO informs all applicants by telephone of the outcome, either granting or rejecting realization support, and for awarded films, the producer organizes an initial meeting with the director, producer, broadcaster, and the Film Fund.
Applications are submitted to COBO and must consist of 2 A4 pages with the synopsis of the intended Teledoc, plus 2 pages of explanation including at least a motivation and vision on the direction, and CV/filmography of the director and, if already a team, of the producer. The CV must show whether the applicants meet the criteria, and the filmography must include the lengths, broadcaster and date of broadcast, cinema circulation data such as number of screenings, theatres, visitors, and any festival selections and prizes. Pages must be easy to read and include a working title, date, and page number. Relevant previous work should be viewable via a hyperlink in the CV. A signed declaration of consent or cooperation must be included with any film plan if the documentary requires the cooperation of a person or access to the subject.
This declaration may not result in any substantive influence on the documentary but must sufficiently guarantee cooperation. The entire application, excluding declarations, must not exceed four pages. Film proposals that do not meet the aforementioned requirements will not be considered. Proposals previously rejected by the Film Fund or Teledoc are excluded unless granted permission for resubmission, and those already subsidized by another fund are also excluded, except in cases where an Oase contribution has been granted. Submission dates are listed on the CoBO and Filmfonds websites, and submissions must be made digitally before 5:00 PM.
COBO assesses the applications based on the conditions and, after consultation with the Film Fund, submits approved applications to the Teledoc meeting. As part of the selection process, a Teams conversation of up to 15 minutes can be included, where creators may indicate their preference for this option when applying. This meeting allows creators to clarify issues, while committee members can also ask questions. The committee consists of the public broadcasters and the Film Fund, under the technical chairmanship of CoBO. A project is jointly committed to by the Film Fund, CoBO, and a public broadcaster. After the meeting, COBO will inform all applicants by telephone of the result, and no further communication can be made about rejections. The deadline for applications is 20 October 2025.
For more information, visit Dutch Film Fund.
