The 2021 edition of North Pitch -Below Zero took place as an online workshop, where the projects were sent to a selection of decision makers after the workshop. We will be back with a full version in 2022. The call for projects is now open, and the deadline is November 29.
NORTH PITCH — Below Zero is an international pitching session for documentary projects focusing on life above the Arctic Circle.
The event will take place from 19-22 January 2022.
The program will consist of the following elements:
Frank Piasecki Poulsen, Danish Film Institute
Katja Härkönen, Filmpool Nord, Sweden
Jannik Splidsboel, Swedish Film Institute
Eirin Gjørv, Norwegian Film Institute, Norway
Kenan Aliyev, Current Time TV, USA
Tore Tomter, Altibox, Norway
Liisa Holmberg, International Sami Film Institute
Anna Svensson – NNFS, Norway
Sabine Bubeck-paaz, ZDF-ARTE, Germany (cannot attend , but will receive the projects after the pitch)
An essential part of the Below ZERO is the pre-pitch workshop, where the selected projects will be developed under guidance from experienced international experts from the documentary business.
Tutor team for the workshop in 2022:
Photo from ‘Where Man Returns'
The 2018 participant at NORTH PITCH – Below Zero "Where Man Returns" (working title ‘The last Hunter’) was the opening film of Tromsø International Film Festival 2019. Producer Racha Nia says this about NORTH PITCH:
"Below Zero became a very important arena for our film and for whom we ended up collaborating with. We got incredible support, and not least important feedback to determine and understand the strengths and weaknesses of our project. We encountered a lot of resistance, but also met the people who loved our project and became our invaluable partners."
You submit your project by sending a written 2-page presentation of your project accompanied by visual material. The deadline for submitting projects is November 29th 2021. You can submit your 2-page presentation by email to :bz@northpitch.no
Your written 2-page presentation should include the following elements:
You can submit your 2-page presentation by email to: bz@northpitch.no
Applications must be accompanied by visual material shot for the submitted project. Applications with no visual material / visual material as a previous work will normally not be considered. You submit your visual material by including a link to an online streaming facility like Vimeo or YouTube when you email your 2-page presentation.
Each selected project pays a participation fee of 300 Euro, which includes the fee for one person. We strongly recommend participation of both director and producer, and the extra fee for additional participants is 200 Euro. The fee includes lunch Thursday-Saturday, and dinner Wednesday and Saturday.
For NORTH PITCH - Below Zero a number of observer seats are available. When participating as an observer you will take part in all sessions on equal terms with the pitching participants. Only exception is not having a concrete project developed and pitched. Observers pay 200 Euro for participating.
The NORTH PITCH - Below Zero event was initiated in 2009 to bring together filmmakers, producers, decision makers and organizations whose common interest is documentaries thematically rooted in the Northern Polar region. Building on the success of the first twelve editions of NORTH PITCH - Below Zero, this thirteenth edition will further strengthen and develop the international network for documentaries made around or focusing on the Arctic region. NORTH PITCH - Below Zero is set in Tromsø, Northern Norway, during the last days of the polar night.
For questions regarding the pitch, please contact Mikael Opstrup, mikael@northpitch.no.
For practical questions regarding the event, please contact Herdis Levang, herdis@nnfs.no.