23 Mar Close Up Announces New Partnership with IEFTA
IEFTA is proud to form a new partnership with Close Up, a training, development, and mentorship program for documentary filmmakers from Southwest Asia and North Africa.
A New Collaboration
Close Up and IEFTA share common values and goals in supporting independent emerging documentary filmmakers and creating platforms for under-represented stories to meet global audiences. This is an exciting collaboration that joins the wonderful Close Up international partners and together assist them to continue creating significant opportunities for emerging filmmakers from Southwest Asia & North Africa.
IEFTA will provide support and also attend the Close Up Pitching Forum taking place in June 2023 providing a cash prize of €1,000 to one selected Close Up project from the 2022-2023 cohort!
This award will be presented at Close Up Award Ceremony at the end of Close Up Pitching Forum, joined by numerous wonderful awards made available to Close Up filmmakers by partner organisations such as the Whickers in the UK, Docs Up Fund in France, MEDIMED: The Euro-Mediterranean Documentary Market in Spain, Silver Sun Foundation and Jacob Burns Film Center in the US.
Sigal Yehuda, Founder & Executive Director of Close Up said:
All of us here at Close Up are delighted to be partnering with such an international organisation like the IEFTA that is committed to fostering connections between emerging filmmakers and established organisations through collaborations. Our shared commitment towards an inclusive documentary industry is necessary and of great importance these days. We are also very thankful to the IEFTA team for making a cash prize available to Close Up filmmakers, supporting them in the process of the development of their highly urgent and extraordinary films. We are very much looking forward to our fruitful collaboration in supporting emerging documentary filmmakers together!
Lianne Llewellyn, Director of the Global Film Expression Initiative and IEFTA Partnerships said:
We are excited to be collaborating with Close Up this year and being able to offer support for their programs, initiatives and talented emerging filmmakers. IEFTA is a strong advocate for organisations focused on providing opportunities for new voices from underrepresented regions to tell their stories and Close Up’s mission aligns seamlessly with our mandate. We look forward to seeing how the partnership evolves in the upcoming years and taking part in the development of the next generation of documentary filmmakers.
All of us here at Close Up are delighted to be partnering with such an international organisation like the IEFTA that is committed to fostering connections between emerging filmmakers and established organisations through collaborations. Our shared commitment towards an inclusive documentary industry is necessary and of great importance these days. We are also very thankful to the IEFTA team for making a cash prize available to Close Up filmmakers, supporting them in the process of the development of their highly urgent and extraordinary films. We are very much looking forward to our fruitful collaboration in supporting emerging documentary filmmakers together!
About Close Up
Positioned at the intersection of arts, media, social change, and peace-building, Close Up is the only initiative of its kind in the region, creating a transformational experience for emerging filmmakers, coming from diverse ethnic, religious, cultural, and political backgrounds, including Afghanistan, Algeria, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Egypt, Georgia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Yemen.
Close Up was founded as a non-profit organization in Brussels, Belgium by five independent partners who collectively believe that working with emerging filmmakers from our region is essential to creating and maintaining cultural awareness and protecting our future. The partners include: Sigal Yehuda, Ahmet Boyacioglu, Bruni Burres, John Appel and Vincent Melilli.