Development Lab

Cinema Pendent 2025

Cinema Pendent General Terms and Conditions

Call for Development Lab Projects

The directors, screenwriters and producers of four fiction, hybrid and/or experimental feature-film projects at the development or writing stage will be selected to take part in this eight-day lab by Pau Subirós. The lab will be split between four days at l’Alternativa and a four-day residency in the Empordà region of Catalonia.

Participants will work on concept, structure, narrative development and cinematic style and will be required to provide a dossier, synopsis or treatment to give a clear idea of their project and their needs.

Participants will use interactive and participatory methodologies to help give filmmakers, screenwriters and producers a better grasp and deeper understanding of their own projects and equip them with a work plan for later development.

At the end of the programme, and provided that participants have taken part in the Development Lab in full, each of the four selected projects will be awarded a €500 grant to cover participants’ expenses related to their required presence at l’Alternativa PRO and the residency in the Empordà and any other expenses directly related to their participation in the programme.

The organisation reserves the right to change the route of the programme at its discretion, but only ever before the final four projects have been selected.

The Selection Committee may also decide to consider this project for the following Cinema Pendent programmes:

1. EXTREMLAB
2. Mentoring Acció>Cinema Pendent
3. GAC Pitching Forum

Eligible prizes:

1. Cinema Pendent Prize
2. Kinolux & Welab Prize
3. Non Finito Prize
4. Río Bravo Prize
5. Antaviana Prize
6. Music Library & SFX Prize

L’Alternativa PRO also offers

• Personalised Advice Sessions. Participants with shortlisted projects are called to meetings with experts in accordance with their particular needs, as identified by reading through their submitted project or following discussions of requirements. A carefully selected mix of accomplished screenwriters, consultants, producers, distributors, commissioners, editors, sales agents, festival programmers and institutional representatives will be invited as experts to ensure sessions are as productive as possible.
• Professional Accreditation. Participants with shortlisted projects will be issued with professional accreditation to attend all festival screenings and l’Alternativa PRO activities.
• Meeting Points. In addition to the specific activities for each project, l’Alternativa PRO also organises a series of lunches, social get-togethers and parties offering participants further opportunities to engage accredited professionals in conversation.
• Project Follow-Up. Projects will receive ongoing support on social media and newsletters until they finally reach the big screen.
• On-the-Spot Meetings. We also employ our in-depth knowledge of filmmakers’ careers and expectations to arrange on-the-spot meetings and help forge ties between industry experts and project participants.