West Meets East Screenplay Lab is returning in 2023 for its second edition where selected filmmakers from South Asia will be given an opportunity to network with professionals including producers, distributors and programmers from the global industry. The juries were announced officially earlier this week.
The jury members are Gyda Velvin Myklebust (Film Producer, Programme Director (New Nordic Films, Norwegian International Film Festival in Haugesund) from Norway, Dalia Alic (Consultant and Film Producer, 47th Student Academy Awards Finalist, World Academy of Art and Science Junior Fellow) from Croatia, Yana Lekarska (Director, Screenwriter, Journalist) from Bulgaria, Sameer Ahmed (Filmmaker/editor) and N Rashed Chowdhury (Filmmaker and activist) from Bangladesh.
West Meets East, which began in 2019, is a special section of Dhaka International Film Festival aimed at bridging the gap between the Western film industry and filmmakers from the East. WME Screenplay Lab was introduced in 2021. Scripts from Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Bhutan, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka are shortlisted from a pool of submissions.
Three projects out of 10 finalists will be awarded cash prizes: 1st Prize being USD 5000, and 2nd and 3rd Prizes being USD 3000 and USD 2000 respectively. In 2021, the first prize went to Kiran Pokhare’s “Putali Ko Sapna” (Nepal), the second prize went to Tasmiah Afrin Mou’s “Fear-y-Tale” (Bangladesh) and the third prize went to Gaurav Madan’s “Kanda Vanda” (India).
The lab takes place during the Dhaka International Film Festival. After mentoring at the Lab, the successful participants will pitch to potential international collaborators through the program’s market section- Film Haat, where the winners will be chosen and connected to potential producers. Co-convenors of West Meets East, AKA Reza Ghalib and Sadia Khalid Reeti will oversee the screenplay lab and co-production market.
21st Dhaka International Film Festival will take place from January 14-22, 2023. The shortlisted candidates will be notified by September 30. They will be given one month to submit the full scripts.
