04/04/2006

April 15 is the deadline for applications for young European filmmakers interested in participating in the second edition of the Angers Workshops, an initiative headed by Jeanne Moreau and co-organised by the Premiers Plans festival.

Open to European directors who have already made one or more shorts and who are preparing to start on their first feature, the 10-day training period, which gives filmmakers the chance to perfect their skills and come into direct contact with seasoned professionals, will take place from June 30-July 9 2006.

Last year, 12 young European filmmakers from Belgium, Hungary, Spain, Portugal and France received practical advice from directors Luc and Jean-Pierre Dardenne, and Krzysztof Zanussi, DoP Gérard de Battista, producer Alain Rocca, set designer Dan Weil and editor François Gédigier. The programme includes lessons on new technologies, directing actors, shooting, editing and digital post-production, as well as music and sound.

According to Claude-Éric Poiroux, who co-directs the Angers workshops, it is important to help "young and still fragile professionals, who need to build up confidence before starting on a more structured path in their artistic career. The workshops are not, however, meant to provide technical training. Our workshops are designed for directors, not technicians. We want young filmmakers to master current technologies by giving them the chance to make choices that correspond to their artistic career. Our objective is to offer ten days of work, with emphasis on choices of creation and to answer questions that are asked a few weeks and few months before their first feature".

For further information, please contact: ateliers@premiersplans.org
Registration: Premiers Plans

(Translated from French)