First Cut Lab comes to Manila to help raise films to int’l standards

From left: Izabela Igel (Poland), Mmabatho Kau (South Africa), Matthieu Darras (France), Matthieu Taponier (USA/France) and Giovanni Pompili (Italy)

This April, the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) will bring to Manila the First Cut Lab to help “develop and elevate films and stories to international standards.”

First Cut is a project development and editing lab dedicated to refining feature films in the editing phase “that can transcend global borders,” according to FDCP chair Liza Diño.

Now on its fifth year, it has helped develop film projects from countries such as Slovenia, Lithuania, Poland, Ukraine and Russia—many of which have made their premiere in A-list film festivals, including Toronto, Berlinale and Cannes.

Diño said selected participants would be personally mentored by award-winning producers, script consultants, screenwriters and film editors. Deadline for submission of entries is on March 11.

Two film projects in postproduction stage will be screen-tested and assessed on their progress and direction, while six to eight projects in development will undergo an intensive four-day project development workshop that focuses on script and production.

Diño said it was important to learn how to “internationalize” a film, adding that “a filmmaker has to know what local elements are in his film, and how to use these to reach the most number of audience possible.”

She said a three-day film conference during the Lab would be open to the public “to maximize their opportunity to learn valuable insights from the international mentors and inspire more filmmakers to develop their projects more intensively and carefully to ensure a quality output.”

Workshop sessions include Script Development, PH Context: “Armi and Carlo with Their Journey from Torino to Cinema du Monde,” Creative Producing, and How to Put Together a Project Brief for International Submission.

Topics to be featured in the workshops include: “Co-Producing with Europe” (with producer consultant and film distributor Giovanni Pompili, Italy); “Distributing Non-European Films in Europe” (with producer and distributor consultant Izabela Igel, Poland); “Developing Original Content Locally: South Africa Case” (with producer, broadcast and development executive, and script consultant Mmabatho Kau, South Africa); and “Labs, Markets and Festivals: A Panorama” (with former TorinoFilmLab artistic director Matthieu Darras, France).