THE TENTH DAY

Are there enough international perspectives on American television? That’s the question ITVS and a group of major foundations began to ask a few years ago. Their answer: the International Media Development Fund (IMDF), which brings programs to U.S. audiences through both an International Call and commissioned projects.

Supported by funds from the Ford Foundation, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, ITVS International annually selects 15 to 20 documentaries by non-American filmmakers, who are awarded up to $150,000 for production and/or post-production on projects produced outside the United States.

Both the International Call and the commissioned projects have received a positive response from filmmakers around the world. First, by documentary standards, the amount of funding available is significant. Second, they provide an entry into American broadcasting. Strings attached? Always. But so far these strings have proved strong and flexible, more like bungee cords than rope, and they’re guided by a clear rule: the programs are for viewers in the United States and are created by people from outside the United States. Within that framework, the variations are immense, a flexibility that should put ITVS International on the funding map for producers in every corner of the world.

ITVS International Commissioned Programming

For many, the road to commissioned funding begins at film markets, conferences and other venues worldwide where ITVS International staff seek out documentary filmmakers and new projects: the Forum at the International Documentary Festival in Amsterdam (IDFA); the Toronto Documentary Forum at Hot Docs; Sunny Side of the Doc in France; the Israel Documentary Forum; and others. Whether through a formal pitching session or in a scheduled one-on-one rendezvous, the programming staff selects candidates, inviting them to submit a proposal, along with a demo or work-in-progress tape.

Favored projects are those that fit the overall ITVS mission statement, with an international twist. “We’re not only looking for an untold story,” says Tamara Gould, vice president of ITVS International distribution. “We’re looking for the kinds of perspectives and voices that you don’t usually find on American television.”

One example of commissioned work is a project by French producer Marc Silvera and Uruguayan director Gonzalo Arijon, both of whom live outside the United States. They first met with ITVS at the Sunny Side of the Doc market in Marseilles in 2004. The filmmakers had been working on THE TENTH DAY, a one-hour high-definition documentary on the survivors of the well-publicized plane crash in the Andes in the 1970s. “Here was a well-known story told in such a way and from a point of view you were not going to find on 60 Minutes or CNN,” says Claire Aguilar, vice president of ITVS programming. And although the story arc was not yet clear, Silvera left the meeting feeling hopeful. “ITVS staff was very encouraging,” he recalls, “and suggested to come back when we had a more solid work-in-progress.”

Perseverance paid off. In November 2005, the filmmakers pitched THE TENTH DAY again, at the IDFA Forum. Aguilar, who represented ITVS International as a commissioning editor, was satisfied and could now take it home for the semiannual staff review, held in April and October. The project was given the green light, and two months later contracts were signed.

Although the details of each contract are unique, all contracted filmmakers have up to one year to deliver the final cut, along with other deliverables such as script, production report and notes, all translated into English. As the year progresses, ITVS works to capitalize on its exclusive right to place the program with a distributor on American television.

International producers can also plan for a festival run with ITVS approval. “They understand the needs of the business and are supportive. The feedback on the cuts has been great too,” says Silvera. The final destination of these programs is PBS or cable channels like Sundance Channel, Independent Film Channel and A&E. That these programs are funded through foundation support—that is, private rather than public funding—opens the door to possible placement in private venues.

To date, ITVS considers the commissioning process a success, although work remains to prepare commissioned works for broadcast. “We have to make sure the material appeals in content and format to our American audiences, which often means making a specific version for this market,” says Aguilar. The budget of each project reflects this process, and polled filmmakers said they welcome feedback from ITVS, which must balance the interests of the filmmakers with their perceived demands of the U.S. market.

The International Call

If filmmakers are not able to hop around the world meeting ITVS staff, they can still have access to this new funding pool—from the comfort of their homes. They cannot be spared the competition, though. Instead of fighting for a spot at a pitching session, they must overcome the many selection rounds that take place in the International Call.

Every February, it seems like Santa Claus makes a belated delivery to ITVS when 300 or so packages arrive at the ITVS offices. (Deadline for International Call is February 9, 2007; view guidelines.) With press releases and announcements in four languages—Chinese, French, Arabic and Spanish—the quantity and variety of submissions is no surprise. But the paper-tearing excitement is over quickly. What follows is a strict review process. In the week following the deadline, ITVS staff review the proposals for their eligibility. Thirty percent of the applicants will be disqualified for a variety of reasons, from geography and nationality (American citizens and residents are asked to resubmit to the Domestic Open Call) to missing materials (staff members contact filmmakers requesting that they send what is needed to complete their submissions, with mixed results).

From the eligible proposals, three readers outside ITVS are hired to make recommendations. They complete a questionnaire and give projects points, one to five. Back at the office, the points are tabulated and the top 100 proposals pass for a third round of consideration. At this time, ITVS staff will vet for budgets, production distribution and legal viability, defining the parameters of possible co-production deals.

With 30 to 40 projects selected for final evaluation, a panel consisting of nine television and content professionals from around the world is flown in for a weekend of deliberation. The panelists’ recommendations go through a final count until 12 documentaries remain for a final approval by senior staff and president/CEO, Sally Fifer.

The process that follows is similar to that of the commissioned projects: contract, feedback, versioning and deliverables. Malla Grapengiesser, Swedish producer and director of IRANIAN KIDNEY BARGAIN SALE, was one of the 16 recipients for 2006. After making the submission deadline, she sat back and waited patiently for the results. “It was a new experience for me,” she relates, “and it gave me a wider perspective on international collaboration.”

The ITVS International initiatives are filling a long-standing void in the role the United States plays in world media while changing the way international independent voices are represented on American television. With the global village growing at the speed of the Internet on computer screens all over the world, understanding across cultures might be taking an important step forward on the old-fashioned small screen as well: television.

Fernanda Rossi is a filmmaker and story consultant. She is the author of Trailer Mechanics: A Guide to Making Your Documentary Fund-Raising Trailer. For more information, please visit www.documentarydoctor.com.