Less Is More (LIM), the European platform for the project development of limited-budget feature films, announced the selection for its fourth edition today in Berlin. A total of 460 applicants from 90 countries sent their projects in for LIM 2020, out of which 16 projects and 12 “Development angels” were selected.

LIM is a training and coaching programme dedicated to script development for first, second or third feature-film projects. Each year, 16 such projects from all over the world are selected so as to boost their script development phase and to enhance their ability to accelerate and deepen the writing process, starting from an early stage. Driven by Le Groupe Ouest's methodological approach (two Le Groupe Ouest movies won two main awards at Sundance 2020 – and you can read the interview with LIM’s artistic director, Antoine Le Bos) and involving a very intense, eight-month-long process, LIM's philosophy is built around the idea that the introduction of self-imposed limitations early on in the writing process can lead to accelerated creativity for filmmakers.

After only three editions, LIM's approach has proven to be effective. Six films have already been shot and 12 are in pre-production, some of which are about to be filmed in the next few weeks (Wolf by Nathalie Bianchieri will start shooting in a few days’ time, with George MacKay and Lily-Rose Depp in the lead roles). Since 2019, LIM's team has also selected 12 “Development angels” every year (see the news). In each of the three major LIM workshops, four of these up-and-coming creative producers or development professionals are integrated in the development process within the groups of writers themselves. Under the guidance of LIM's tutors and script consultants, they are trained in new development techniques involving the intense use of oral explanations, video and creative development brainstorming.

Supported by the Creative Europe – MEDIA programme of the European Union, Less Is More is run by Le Groupe Ouest (France), and has been developed with Control N (Romania), the Vlaams Audiovisueel Fonds – VAF (Belgium), the Krakow Festival Office – KBF (Poland) and the Transilvania International Film Festival – TIFF (Romania), in partnership with the Lithuanian Film Centre – LKC, the Norwegian Film Institute – NFI and the North Macedonia Film Agency, as well as the Brittany Region and Screen Scotland.

Here is the full LIM 2020 selection:

Glory B - Konstantinos Antonopulos and Luigi Campi (Greece/Italy)
The Living - Carlos Armella (Mexico)
Aisha - Hanis Bagashov (North Macedonia)
Below Thirty Hills - Luka Bursac (Serbia)
Aurora's Skies - Joséfa Celestin (France/Scotland)
Heather - Brian Deane (Ireland)
Benimana (Children of God!) - Marie-Clementine Dusabejambo (Rwanda)
Desert Love - Gunhild Enger (Norway)
Tunis-Djerba - Amel Guellaty (Tunisia)
Mourning Glory - Nathan Hughes (Wales)
Book of Questions - Grzegorz Jaroszuk (Poland)
A Million Reasons to Daydream - Myro Klochko (Ukraine)
Tre Cavalli - Thierry Marchard (France)
Heirloom - Larissa Sansour and Soren Lind (Palestine/Denmark)
Night in the Kindergarten - Rafal Skalski and Michal Walczak (Poland)
Devils' Den - Jonas Trukanas and Marija Kavtaradze (Lithuania)

Here is the list of LIM 2020 Development angels:

Tamara Babun (Croatia)
Anna Bielak (Poland)
Ciarán Charles (Ireland)
Eva Chillón (Spain)
Daniela Cölle (Slovakia and Germany)
Aistė Dirziūté (Lithuania)
Clarisse Goulard (Brazil)
Magnus Kristiansen (Norway)
Colette Quesson (France)
Ilse Schooneknaep (Belgium)
Benjamin Taylor (Scotland)
Eva Zabezsinszkij (Hungary)