Agora Works in Progress

Agora Works in Progress: November 5th - 9th, 2023

The Agora Works in Progress selects projects in post-production stage, which have a link to the Mediterranean regions and Southeastern Europe, and presents them to sales agents, distributors, producers, streaming platforms and festival programmers with the objective to raise finishing funds, secure sales agents, festival premieres and book meetings with potential partners.

Films that have participated in previous editions of the Agora Works in Progress include: THE SEA AND ITS WAVES by Liana & Renaud (Cannes FF - ACID Cannes 2023), HAVE YOU SEEN THIS WOMAN? by Dušan Zorić, Matija Gluščević (Venice FF - International Film Critics’ Week), PELIKAN by Filip Heraković (Tallinn Black Nights FF), HOW IS KATIA? by Christina Tynkevych (Locarno FF - Cineasti del Presente 2022 - Special Jury Prize, Best Actress), ROCK BOTTOM RISER by Fern Silva (Berlinale Encounters 2021- Special Mention), MOTHER LODE by Matteo Tortone (Venice FF- Venice Critics Week 2021), MOON, 66 QUESTIONS by Jacqueline Lentzou (Berlinale Encounters 2021), SWEAT by Magnus von Horn (Cannes FF- Cannes Label 2020), LAST DAYS OF SPRING by Isabel Lamberti (Cannes FF - ACID Cannes 2020, San Sebastian IFF - New Directors Award), PAPICHA by Mounia Meddour (Cannes FF- Un Certain Regard 2019), AS HAPPY AS POSSIBLE by Alain Raoust (Cannes FF - ACID Cannes 2019), SPELL REEL by Filipa César (Berlin FF - Forum 2017), OCCIDENTAL by Neil Beloufa (Berlin FF - Forum 2017), SUNTAN by Argyris Papadimitropoulos (Rotterdam IFF and SXSW 2016), STRATOS by Yannis Economidis (Berlin FF - Official Competition 2014), NEXT TO HER by Asaf Korman (Cannes FF - Quinzaine des Réalisateurs 2014, Silver Alexander - Thessaloniki IFF 2014), AT HOME by Athanassios Karanikolas (Berlin FF - Forum 2014), MY DOG KILLER by Mira Fornay (Rotterdam IFF - Tiger Award 2014), WHEN I SAW YOU Annemarie Jacir (Toronto FF 2012), LUTON by Michalis Konstantatos (San Sebastian FF 2013), BOY EATING THE BIRD’S FOOD by Ektoras Lygizos (Karlovy Vary IFF- Competition 2012) and more.

A. What is the application process?

If you are in the process of shooting or in post-production please fill in the online Agora Works in Progress Registration Form and send it to us accompanied by a minimum of selected 25 minutes excerpts or scenes of your film in a secure web link.

B. Which countries are eligible to apply?

Albania, Algeria, Armenia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Egypt, France, Georgia, Greece, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Kosovo*, Lebanon, Libya, Malta, Moldova, Montenegro, Morocco, North Macedonia, Palestine, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine.
Guest country: Lithuania

* This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244/1999 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence.

Countries not mentioned in the above list can still apply if they are co-produced by a country within these regions or contain elements in the story that link them to these regions.

C. Key Dates:

Open Call: May 2, 2023
Submissions Deadline: September 11, 2023
Notification Date: Late September, 2023
Online Workshop: Early October, 2023
Agora Works in Progress: November 5-9, 2023
Online Meetings: November 10, 2023

D. General Rules and Guidelines:

Agora Works in Progress selects 8-10 fiction feature films and is offering to the filmmakers of our region the platform to present their films to key players of the audiovisual sector. The selection is based mainly on the quality of the visual material sent to Agora (minimum 25 minutes), the artistic elements and storyline of the film. Other factors are the previous films of the director and the company’s track record. Special attention is given to films promoting diversity, equality, environment and focus on the human experience. Gender equality between selected producers and directors is also a focal point during decision making. Agora Works in Progress selects only premieres, making the films presented an exclusive opportunity for the festival programmers, sales agents and distributors to discover the new films emerging from the region just in time for the next season of the festival circuit. The rules are:

The application materials and subtitles should be in English
We accept only feature film projects (over 60 minutes).
We accept all genres except feature documentaries.
One production company or producer can submit up to two projects.
A project should mention any other workshops and markets it has been previously presented and when, or if it is a new project.
The selection committee is composed of the Agora department team, the Festival’s International Program team and the Greek Film Festival’s Program team. The final decision of selection is the one of the Head of Agora with an international advisor in accordance with the Festival administration.
The number of selected projects is up to ten (10).

E. What happens if my project is selected?

Once a project has been selected, the director(s) and producer(s) are called to participate in the preparatory online workshop in September. The Workshop is mandatory and includes pitching training, feedback on the pre-recorded pitch and film excerpts for both the online use and the live presentation as well as print presentation feedback (synopsis, director’s notes etc).
The director(s) and producer(s) are advised to be present during the five days of Agora Works in Progress (November 5-9, 2023) or at least one representative of the project.
Your project’s meetings schedule will be sent to you a few days before the Agora begins. The schedule will be based upon requests from the invited industry professionals. Additional meetings are scheduled and curated by the Agora team and upon availability.
Finished film projects presented at the Agora Works in Progress should mention or display its logo in their credits. The following sentence should be mentioned in the credit list: "[film title] has been presented at Agora Works in Progress of the Thessaloniki International Film Festival". The logo will be sent to the filmmakers upon selection of the project.

F. Agora Works in Progress - Awards:

Authorwave Post-production Award
Creative Image Post Services
MuSou Music Group Award
Sound/music post-production services
119 Marvila Studios Award
Sound mixing services
Onassis Film Award
10.000 euro to a Greek project participating in the Agora (Crossroads Co-production Forum and Works in Progress)
ASTERISK* Marketing Award
ERT Agora Works in Progress Award
2.000 euro to a Greek project