Deadline: 06-Oct-2025
The NPO and NPO Fund, the Netherlands Film Fund, and CoBO are committed to developing documentary talent in the field of youth documentaries through the collaborative project Zappdoc Campus.
At Zappdoc Campus, they welcome high-quality youth documentaries with a cinematic and unconventional approach. They want to offer teams of aspiring directors and producers the opportunity to gain experience, potentially leading them to feature-length productions. These filmmakers now have the chance to develop their talents within the same frameworks—television and cinema—in which they will later operate. Children want to see reality, real stories. Zappdoc shows high-quality youth documentaries and series that broaden the world of children (focusing on the 9-12 age group). They show how other children approach life and foster understanding. A Zappdoc addresses (social) themes that are important to children, in which they can identify with themselves or others, and which they enjoy discussing. A Zappdoc has an impact; it opens your eyes. Zappdoc takes children seriously and challenges them, both in terms of story and format. In the (narrative) format the creator considers the interests, perspectives, and expectations of children. This target audience often has a short attention span and is accustomed to a fast pace due to their regular media diet of social media and YouTube. A Zappdoc accommodates this without compromising the artistry and richness of the documentary. Zappdoc offers children just as powerful—sometimes funny, compelling, or exciting—storytelling as fiction, and can easily be an original visual spectacle. Therefore, Zappdoc almost always has a maximum length of 15 minutes.
Filmmakers living in the Netherlands are eligible to apply if they meet specific criteria. These include having previously made at least one short documentary broadcast on national or regional television, shown at a national festival, or screened in cinema circulation, or having completed audiovisual training or another course of study in which a documentary was realized. Directors may also qualify if they have successfully completed an inclusive or regional talent program. In all cases, a director may have made a maximum of three short documentaries, excluding those created within a training or talent program. Directors must not be affiliated with a broadcaster, and projects must be submitted together with an independent producer. The director and producer cannot be the same person, and preference is given to emerging producers with relevant training or prior short film experience.
The program provides two phases of support. In the development stage, selected film plans can receive up to €5,000 for research, test filming, and scriptwriting, with an additional €600 producer’s fee and the option of €500 for a coach. Once scripts are developed, projects may be selected again for production funding, with a budget of up to €45,000. Each year, a maximum of eight development grants and four implementation grants are awarded.
Applications must be submitted via email to CoBO and include a synopsis, director’s vision, CVs and filmographies of both director and producer, and a declaration of consent from the film’s subjects. The application should not exceed four pages, excluding consent forms, and should be submitted as a single PDF file. Incomplete applications, projects previously rejected, or those already supported with substantial funding elsewhere are not eligible.
The Film Fund and CoBO review applications against the formal conditions before forwarding them to the Zappdoc Campus meeting. Final selections are made jointly by the Film Fund, NPO Fund, CoBO, and public broadcasters, with CoBO informing applicants of the outcome by phone. Selected projects must also include a production schedule outlining the expected timeline for filming and delivery. Budgets are capped at specific amounts, with producer fees, director allowances, travel costs, and publicity expenses subject to defined limits. Any income generated from exploitation of the films will be shared equally among CoBO, the Film Fund, the public broadcaster, and the producer.
For more information, visit Dutch Film Fund.
