Latest posts from National Screen Institute - Canada (NSI)

Above: Werewolf by Ashley McKenzie and Nelson MacDonald (NSI Drama Prize) was accepted to the program in 2016 after being nominated by NSI.

The Telefilm Micro-Budget Production Program is back for its fifth year.

As a partner organization, NSI can write up to two letters of recommendation for the main component (one feature film and/or one web project) and up to two letters of recommendation for the Aboriginal component (one feature film and/or one web project).

NSI can only write letters of recommendation for our own students and grads.

NSI students/grads from 2011 to 2016 are eligible.

To qualify for a recommendation letter from NSI, students and graduates are invited to submit the following to us by Thursday, January 5, 2017. Please note we have set our own deadline ahead of Telefilm’s final submission deadline of February 5, 2017:

• a draft script of the project;

• a trailer of the project, if available;

• a link to previous work, if available;

• a draft written synopsis for the project including a description of the creative team’s vision;

• a draft promotion and distribution plan including a digital marketing and social media strategy;

• a draft production schedule (from pre-production to digital release);

• total budget amount of the project including the amount allocated for the promotion and distribution of the project;

• any other information that sets this project apart.

Once we’ve selected the applicants, we’ll work with them to refine their submissions in advance of Telefilm’s February 5 deadline.

We strongly recommend you contact Brendon Sawatzky, NSI’s director of programming, with any queries about submission requirements.

• • •

The program aims to stimulate the use of new digital distribution platforms and to allow emerging talent to develop an expertise in digital marketing and promotion.

All projects submitted under this program will be evaluated through the lens of reaching Telefilm’s objective of obtaining a representative and diversified feature film portfolio that better reflects gender, cultural diversity and Canada’s Indigenous communities.

The program is comprised of three components: (1) main component; (2) Aboriginal component; and (3) Official-Language Minority Communities (OLMC) component.

Read the full set of guidelines (PDF).

NSI invites every qualified student/grad seeking a letter from NSI to forward their required documents plus full script for our review by Thursday, January 5, 2017, 4:30 p.m. Central Time. Only complete applications will be accepted.

If you have questions about the Telefilm Micro-Budget Production Program, please contact your regional Telefilm officer.

Suck It Up, the second feature film from director Jordan Canning (NSI Drama Prize) has its world premiere at the 2017 Slamdance Film Festival in Park City, Utah in January 2017.

The film screens in the Beyond program which showcases bold and daring films from emerging filmmakers working beyond their first features.

Suck It Up is one of only five films in the Beyond program, and the only Canadian film in that section.

A female buddy film about loss, grief and the tenacity of friendship, Suck It Up follows best friends Ronnie (Grace Glowicki) and Faye (Erin Carter).