The RIDE Feature Film Fund, standing for Respect, Inclusion, Diversity and Equality, is open again and seeking pitches for feature films by Queensland creatives from under-represented groups in the screen industry.
RIDE partners Screen Queensland, SBS and Madman Entertainment, together with The Post Lounge and Media Super, are excited to welcome new applications to this major initiative, that guarantees a significant production budget of $1.5 million for one feature film to be created each year, for the next three years.
Kylie Munnich, Screen Queensland CEO, said they were making available increased development investment , as part of the agency's $3.3 million COVID-19 support package, to swiftly re-open RIDE for the next wave of applications across Queensland.
"We know that diverse voices and stories that truly reflect our population connect with audiences both here and abroad. And we want to tap into this commercial opportunity with new urgency as this demand will only grow as restrictions ease from COVID-19 and audiences seek new screen content," Ms Munnich said.
"Along with our valued RIDE partners, we are keen to tap into the strong global market for fresh feature film ideas that are entertaining, push boundaries and surprise audiences in cinemas and on streaming platforms," Ms Munnich added.
RIDE is now a rolling fund that will accept applications at any time. Projects selected will move into further intensive development and join the RIDE Slate, from which the partners aim to select a film for production each year.
The first projects selected for development in the RIDE Slate uncovered some wonderfully diverse stories.
Piano Mums - A Chinese-Australian tiger mother pushes her teenage son to succeed at a pivotal piano audition by Queensland writer Aven Yap.
Soldier - A story of forbidden love between Australian soldiers during wartime; created by a Queensland team including producer/writer Anthony Mullins, writer Krissy Kneen, and director Ben Hackworth.
Welcome to Country - An ambitious, naive bureaucrat is sent to shut down a beleaguered remote Aboriginal community, but he finds there is more to life than politics; from a Queensland team consisting of producer/writer Helen Morrison and director/writer Dean Gibson.
Queensland writers, directors and producers with anywhere from zero to two feature film credits in their nominated role, can now apply for RIDE as an individual or in a team. For this program, under-represented groups are recognised as differences in gender, age, Aboriginal identity, CaLD, LGBTQI+, regional and remote, and socio-economic status.
The Screen Queensland COVID-19 support package also includes programs to assist potential RIDE applicants perfect their pitches such as the SQ Lab workshops and Creative Consultations.
Read the full RIDE guidelines
