Rules and Reg

Application

Application Period and Deadlines
There are two open calls for applications each year.
Submissions for the current session are now closed.
The next deadline will be June 26, 2012.
Dates are subject to change.

Rules & Regulations

Legal Basis
Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage (ADACH) is the legal entity of SANAD (the Fund).

Utilization of the funds received from ADACH will be audited according to the laws of the United Arab Emirates.

The following general categories qualify to submit as Entrants:

  • Feature-length narratives in development
  • Feature-length documentaries in development
  • Feature-length narratives in post-production
  • Feature-length documentaries in post-production

Entrants agree to be bound by the general Rules & Regulations of the Abu Dhabi Film Festival.

In order to be eligible for the Fund, entrants must comply with all of the following Rules & Regulations. Applications that fail to comply will be considered ineligible.

Entrants who are awarded a grant will be required to submit a signed copy of the Warranties and Assurances Declaration, in the form provided by ADACH/ADFF.

General Requirements

The director or producer must be a national of one of the eligible countries listed below. A production company from at least one of the eligible countries must also be attached to the project.

The eligible countries are: Algeria, Bahrain, Comoros Islands, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, UAE and Yemen.

Only feature-length narrative and documentary projects are eligible. Shorts and student films will not be considered.

The minimum running time of projects is 61 minutes for narratives and 52 minutes for documentaries.

The beginning and ending credits of the project, as well as all promoting materials including but not excluding DVDs, internet, press releases and posters, should contain the following statement:

POST-PRODUCTION GRANTEES:
With the participation of SANAD
The Post-Production Fund of the Abu Dhabi Film Festival
United Arab Emirates

(ABU DHABI FILM FESTIVAL LOGO IMAGE)

DEVELOPMENT GRANTEES:
With the participation of SANAD
The Development Fund of the Abu Dhabi Film Festival
United Arab Emirates

(ABU DHABI FILM FESTIVAL LOGO IMAGE)

The submitted project must not have been aired on any form of television, screened publicly or distributed in theatres or via the Internet.

If the project receives a post-production grant, ADFF shall have the exclusive right of the regional premiere screening at the subsequent edition of ADFF. This does not apply to a project that receives a development grant.

Projects that receive post-production grants must have UAE or United Arab Emirates included as a country of coproduction in all materials.

ADACH/ADFF reserves the right to determine the amount of the grant awarded to each recipient, as well as the payment schedule and method.

The Fund’s grants are non-transferable, must solely benefit the projects to which they are awarded and may be rescinded if the director of a selected project changes.

The decision to provide assistance to projects in post-production is valid for eight (8) months.

In order to offer year-round support and to aid in promoting the projects that receive grants, ADACH/ADFF retains non-exclusive non-commercial rights within the UAE to all films it supports. ADFF requires a master copy of the project on DigiBeta or HDCAM as well as on DVD. ADFF also requires copies of all marketing materials for the project. Master copies and marketing materials shall be kept in ADFF’s archive.

Selection Process

Projects will be selected from applications received during the Fund’s semi-annual open call for applications.

Projects will be chosen by a Selection Committee that includes the Abu Dhabi Film Festival programmers and highly qualified film industry professionals.

The Selection Committee’s principal criteria for choosing projects are content and artistic vision, but the financial plan and overall feasibility of each project are also taken into consideration.

The Committee’s decision is final.

Applications

Please read through the application checklist before submitting your project. You must complete and submit the online application form and mail in hard copies of all your other application materials.

Applications can only be processed if all requested materials are received by the deadline. Incomplete applications will not be taken into consideration.

All application forms should be in English.

Scripts and treatments should be submitted in their original language and be accompanied by an English or French translation.

The complete application form must be submitted online through our website and all supporting documents should be uploaded as part of the submission form no later than the application date.

All requested application materials must be sent to:

Abu Dhabi Film Festival – SANAD Fund
c/o ADACH
P.O. Box 2380
Al Raha Theatre, Al Raha Beach Service Road on Abu Dhabi-Dubai Highway
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

ADACH/ADFF and the Entrant each acknowledge that they are independent contractors and that no partnership, joint venture, agency or employment relationship has or will be created by this Agreement.

Entries will not be considered complete until all of the materials are received.

All applications must be postmarked within the entry deadline dates.

All inquiries must be in Arabic or English.

SANAD accepts applications in two categories:

  1. Development

    2. Applications must include the following:

    • Submit a completed a online application form through our website.
    • Please include a cover letter in hard copy with brief details about your project and mail it along with all other materials.
    • Biographies of director(s), producer(s) and key crew members
    • Contact information for each key crew member
    • First draft of the script in original language
    • English or French translation of the script
    • Treatment (7 and 12 pages) in original language
    • English or French translation of the treatment
    • Synopsis
    • Director’s statement
    • Two (2) DVD copies of all previous work
    • Filmographies of the director(s) and producer(s)
    • Development Budget for script and project development
    • Financial plan with confirmed financing, if available (including copies of the agreements whenever possible)
    • Pre-production schedule
  2. Post-production

    3. Applications must include the following:

    • Submit a completed a online application form through our website.
    • Please include a cover letter in hard copy with brief details about your project and mail it along with all other materials.
    • Biographies of director(s), producer(s) and key crew members
    • Contact information for each key crew member
    • Synopsis
    • Director’s statement
    • Two (2) copies of all previous work
    • Filmographies of the filmmaker(s) and producer(s)
    • Financial plan with confirmed financing, and a budget for the requested funds
    • Copies of all confirmed financing agreements
    • Post-production estimated schedule
    • Three (3) DVD copies of a scene assemblage or a rough cut (not less than 30 minutes) of the project. The DVDs must be labeled with project title, running time, applicant’s name and contact information. If the film is not subtitled in English or French, the English dialogue list must be enclosed.
    • Detailed post-production budget and corresponding financial plan (in addition to the budget and financing plan of the whole production), with detailed information regarding the cost of the work not yet financed, along with an explanation of the budget deficit items and copies of documents regarding confirmed or requested funds

Applications must be shipped pre-paid, including any duties or customs fees.

Applications will not be returned and will remain the sole and exclusive property of ADACH/ADFF.