Haifa/US Film Initiative

Annual Financial Award of $25,000 for Our Story Filmmakers

Sponsored by Stephen Greenwald of G & H Media USA

The Award will be awarded to two filmmakers per projected with a completed script to OUR STORY participants as a follow up opportunity to cross into American markets

The Award will procedure through the Our Story MID YEAR CROSSING LAB intended to focus on development and the completion of script and production and budget planning.  The Award is intended to advance and promote Israeli filmmakers in the dynamic arena of the United States and has been initiated by Stephen Greenwald of G & H Media USA with Haifa Film Festival Team Pnina Blayer, Artistic Director and Ruth Lev Ari, Our Story/Cinemarket Director.

The award will enable the selected filmmakers to promote their projects, hopefully in groups of two filmmakers per project with a completed script that has sufficient international potential to produce positive result. The range of the annual award will be $20,000-25,000 and the funds will be used to produce a first-rate promotion and marketing package for the project, and a budget, and to cover the costs of one or two visits to the US to pitch the project to distributors, agencies and financing sources.

The Award process and disbursement of funds will be administered by the Haifa Film Festival, Steve Greenwald and Ruth Lev Ari as Award Coordinators.  The actual selection of awardees will be made by a committee based on agreed and announced criteria.

This is another initiative of the Haifa Film Festival to promote Israeli Cinema and Israeli filmmakers worldwide.