Conference Special Opportunity!

Thought Equity Motion’s Fundraising Trailer Enhancement Contest!

Are you looking for funding for your documentary? Does your pitch trailer need a refresh to attract new potential funding bodies? Do you feel like your current pitch trailer could benefit from archival footage? If you answered “yes” to these questions then read on, as this contest may be just what the doctor ordered to get your documentary produced and distributed.

Contest details
In conjunction with the panel, “Anatomy of a Trailer: Strategies to Create More Engaging Trailers and Attract Funding,” held on June 24 as part of the AFI-Discovery Channel Silverdocs International Documentary Conference, Thought Equity Motion invites Silverdocs delegates to submit their documentary pitch trailers that they think could benefit from archival footage. Judges will select one trailer to be enhanced with up to 5 clips from Thought Equity Motion’s library*.
The winner will have the chance to select up to five clips (valued at up to $1,500) that will enhance his/her documentary trailer.

The winning submission will also benefit from…

Promotion of the “before” and “after” versions of the winning trailer on the Silverdocs blog (http://silverdocs.wordpress.com/). Winner must work with Silverdocs representative to provide digital files of trailers and feedback on clip selection, editing, etc.
Promotion of contest winner and his/her trailer in Thought Equity Motion’s monthly e-newsletter, ThoughtBox, which goes to tens of thousands of people in the digital production community
30-minute phone consultation with each of the Anatomy of a Trailer panelist— panelists Dave Smith, Vice President, Eastern Region at Thought Equity Motion; Mark Berridge, President, ZEALOT; Fernanda Rossi, Writer & Story Consultant; and John Ford, Media Consultant. During the call the panelist will provide the winner with feedback on the “before” trailer that the he/she can take into consideration when selecting his/her 5 clips and incorporating them into the new version of the trailer
An autographed copy of Trailer Mechanics: A Guide to Making your Documentary Fundraising Trailer by Fernanda Rossi
Here’s how it works…
·         See Section 4 in the Official Rules for contest entry requirements
·         Contact Abby Lurie for instructions on how to submit your pitch trailer(s)
·         Provide Abby Lurie complete answers to all 8 questions below
·         All entries will be evaluated by Thought Equity Motion’s creative team and will be judged based on the criteria in the Official Rules.
·         The deadline to submit your trailer and responses is July 15, 2010
·         The winner will be announced on or around July 19 on AFI-Disocvery Channel Silverdocs’ blog

Contest Questions:
1. What is the name of your documentary pitch trailer?
2. Provide your one sentence project pitch summary.
3. What is the project’s current funding status (i.e., none as of late, 25 % complete, 75 % complete, etc.)?
4. What format (TV series, feature film, short program, etc.) are you pitching the trailer for?
5. Who is the target audience demographic?
6. Why do you think your trailer would benefit from the addition of stock footage? (200 words or less)
7. What type of clips do you think could/should be added to achieve the reasons in #6? (200 words or less)
8. Are there any other details you’d like to mention about your fundraising trailer? (200 words or less)
Click here to read the Official Rules.

*= Price Class A, Collegiate Sports Libraries, Premier Supplier Collections and Music Collections not included.

click here to download a pdf of the Official Rules