MPA APSA Academy Film Fund FAQ

Nominees in the Asia Pacific Screen Awards are automatically inducted into the APSA Academy at the time of the Official Nominees Announcement. In addition, the Director/s of nominated Best Feature Films; Best Youth Films; Best Animated Films and Best Documentary Films will be inducted to the Academy if they are not already the nominee.

All members of the APSA Selection Panels, APSA Nominations Councils and APSA International Juries are inducted into the Academy at the announcement of their appointment. APSA FIAPF Award Winners and Young Cinema Award Winners are automatically inducted into the Academy at the time of the Winners Announcement at the APSA Ceremony.

The President of the Academy as well as the APSA Chairperson and President of FIAPF-International Federation of Film Producers Associations are also members of the Academy.

A list of current Academy members can be viewed here.

Click here to download the MPA APSA Academy Film Fund Rules and Regulations.

The Submission Form is available to Academy members only and can be accessed via a personalised link that will be provided on verification of Academy membership. Please email us and a link will be provided.

You cannot directly submit a project for consideration however, you may choose to collaborate with an existing Academy member who may submit a project in partnership with you, provided the Academy member is attached in one of the following roles: Director, Producer, Co-Producer, Executive Producer, Screenwriter, Actor, Actress, Cinematographer, Composer, Script Consultant or Cultural Advisor*

A list of current Academy members can be viewed here.

Due to privacy issues, APSA is not able to provide contact details for Academy members.

*See FAQ 9 for the definition of a Cultural Advisor

Nominees will be automatically inducted to the Academy at the time of the Official Nominees Announcement. The submission period for this fund closes after the new Nominees are announced, so there will be a short window of opportunity for Nominees to apply. Nominees will be advised ahead of the official nominees announcement and are encouraged to apply for the funding round. Extensions can be permitted on a case by case basis.

The Asia Pacific region is defined as the countries and areas of Asia and the Pacific that lie between the longitudes of 30 degrees east and 170 degrees west. On the map, this region stretches from Egypt in the west, to the Cook Islands in the east, from Russia in the north, to New Zealand in the south. Please refer to the list of countries in the region.

The submitting Academy member must be attached to the project in the role of Director, Producer, Co-Producer, Executive Producer, Screenwriter, Actor, Actress, Cinematographer, Composer, Script Consultant or Cultural Advisor*.

In addition, a Screenwriter must be attached to the project. It is not required that the Screenwriter be an Academy member.

If the submitting Academy member is the Screenwriter, Director or Producer and also holds one of the additional roles of Screenwriter, Producer, Director, Actor, Actress or Cinematographer, they do not need to attach an additional person to the project.

*See FAQ 9 for the definition of a Cultural Advisor

According to the UNESCO Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity, culture should be regarded as the set of distinctive spiritual, material, intellectual and emotional features of society or a social group, and that it encompasses, in addition to art and literature, lifestyles, ways of living together, value systems, traditions and beliefs. The Cultural Advisor shall give advice to the production team regarding such matters. For example, they may provide guidance to ensure that the culture of a particular group or people is depicted respectfully and accurately in the film.

Yes, provided the project passes “The Test of the Asia Pacific Screen Awards” set out in Appendix II of the MPA APSA Academy Film Fund Rules and Regulations.

Yes, provided the project passes “The Test of the Asia Pacific Screen Awards” set out in Appendix II of the MPA APSA Academy Film Fund Rules and Regulations.

1. You must be a member of the Academy of the Asia Pacific Screen Awards (see FAQ 1 and 2 for definition).
2. Download a copy of the MPA APSA Academy Film Fund Rules and Regulations.
3. Check the eligibility of your project in line with the Rules and Regulations.
4. Contact APSA for a link to the Online Submission Form.
5. Complete the Online Submission Form before the submission deadline.

Submissions open 11 May 2023 and close 15 October 2023.

Feature, Youth and Animated Feature Films

1. One page synopsis (double line spaced, 12 point font)
2. Treatment, maximum of 8 pages (double line spaced, 12 point font)
3. Filmography and Biography of attached creatives
4. First draft script will be accepted but will be at the Assessment Panel’s discretion as to whether it is referred to in the selection process

Documentary Feature Films

1. One page synopsis (double line spaced, 12 point font)
2. Proposal / Statement, maximum 8 pages (double line spaced, 12 point font) addressing the following points and questions:
   • What: The film’s agenda
   • How: How the idea will be translated to screen
   • Who: Background summary of the film’s key Subjects
   • Access: Applicant’s accessibility to the Subjects
3. Filmography and Biography of attached creatives and Subjects where applicable

All projects must be submitted in English. However, information about the submission process will be available in other languages by request.

A synopsis is succinct description of the screenplay which defines the essence of the story. The purpose of a synopsis is to highlight the plot and motivation of characters and should be written in a way that captures the attention of the reader. The one page (double line spaced) synopsis should define the WHO, WHAT and HOW of the story, establish the setting, key characters and the major turning points of the story.

A treatment is similar to a synopsis but is a more detailed document summarising the way you plan to ‘treat’ the story in terms of style and narrative. It should present a structured story outlining the storyline of the project, subplots, the cinematic structure and details of directorial style. Treatments submitted for the MPA APSA Academy Film Fund should be no longer than 8 pages in length (double line spaced, 12 point font).

No. Submitted projects must be intended for feature length, defined as over 60 minutes for fiction and youth films and over 40 minutes for animated films and documentary films.

Yes. As long as it is intended for feature length, defined as over 40 minutes for documentary films.

Yes. As long as it is intended for feature length, defined as over 40 minutes for animated films.

Yes. As long as you provide proof of underlying rights as outlined in the MPA APSA Academy Film Fund Rules and Regulations and defined here at FAQ 25.

You must notify the fund secretariat of any changes by contacting: [email protected] to determine whether your project is still eligible.

Yes. You may submit a maximum of two projects.

The four successful recipients will be announced at the Asia Pacific Screen Awards, and then on this website soon after.

Underlying Rights are the rights of ownership attached to an original work. If the project being submitted is adapted from another author’s work, a member of the Creative team attached to the submission must fully own/hold the Underlying Rights for that work.

If none of the members attached to the project owns the Underlying Rights for the original work, they must hold an Option on the original work to be eligible (see next FAQ below).

An Option is when a producer has purchased part of an original work (script, treatment, play etc) in order to reserve it until they have the finances to purchase all the Underlying Rights (see previous FAQ). The Producer may hold an Option on a piece of work and begin adapting it prior to purchasing the Underlying Rights in full.

Applicants who intend on adapting a published work must prove they either fully own the underlying rights or have a valid Option on the material that has not expired.

If you have any questions regarding the fund that are not in the FAQs, please email [email protected] any time or phone +61 (0) 448 827 546 during business hours (Australian Eastern Standard Time 9:00am – 5:00pm) and we will respond to you as soon as possible.