The Arts Council has issued a reminder about the deadline for the 2016 Reel Art scheme. Launched in 2008, Reel Art is designed to provide film artists with a unique opportunity to make highly creative, imaginative and experimental documentaries on an artistic theme. Operated in association with Filmbase and the Audi Dublin International Film Festival, Reel Art will wholly support two films with grants of €70-€80,000 per project. Reel Art films will premiere at the Dublin International Film Festival in February 2018. The deadline for receipt of applications is Friday 7th October 2016 at 5pm.
The Arts Council’s purpose in offering the Reel Art scheme is to support film artists to make documentary art films that would not otherwise get made. A key aim of the scheme is to complement, rather than replicate, the documentary and other funding programmes offered by the Arts Council, broadcasters and funding agencies in Ireland.
Reel Art projects should be conceived for theatrical exhibition at film festivals and in arthouse cinema settings. Only proposals for original, imaginative and aesthetically-driven treatments of arts subjects will be considered. Proposals that offer visually engaging, creative and experimental approaches to their subject will be prioritised.
Film artists interested in applying for Reel Art are invited to attend an information session on the scheme on Tuesday 6th September at 3pm in Filmbase, Curved Street, Temple Bar, Dublin 2. This session will outline the purpose and priorities of the award and will answer questions on the scheme. Anyone interested in attending is required to register their interest by sending an email to reelart@filmbase.ie.
Updated guidelines for Reel Art 2016, together with application forms for the scheme are available for download from the Reel Art website as are details of previous Reel Art projects.
Projects selected in the 2015 Reel Art scheme include The Piano Lesson from director Ken Wardrop and Rochester: City of Film from directors Traolach O Morchu and John Murphy.
The Piano Lesson is a film featuring nine pianos, nine students and nine teachers with one simple goal. The Piano Lesson is a creative documentary that charts the musical journey of students and their teachers through the piano grading system, exploring the impact that formal training has on the characters’ musicality and creativity.
Rochester: City of Film presents a portrait of photography itself as told through the lens of the citizens of a city defined by the art form. The film explores how the various strands of the city interact with photography, how its past informs its present, and how the resilience of its citizens perhaps suggests a future.