Microwave

Microwave launched in 2006 to commission debut feature film-makers in the capital. It is a project for London-based companies to produce ten micro-budget feature films over a three year period.

Microwave challenges film-makers to shoot a full length feature film for up to £100,000 with cash and in-kind support. The scheme provides an intensive approach to film-making, with an emphasis on tightly focused scripts, short production schedules and commercial potential.

It is open to film-makers working in documentary, fiction, animation, and to artists working with the moving image.

Backed by the BBC, LDA, UKFC and Skillset, the film-makers are provided with up to £65,000 of direct funding per project, as well as bespoke training for each selected film-making team. Support commences with Microschool, an intensive four-day programme of seminars, workshops, screenings and script surgeries covering everything from development through to sales and distribution.

The teams are also provided with unique professional mentoring from leading industry figures. Past mentors and advisers have included Asif Kapadia (Director of The Warrior, Far North), Paul Webster (Producer for Atonement, Eastern Promises) and Kate Leys (Script Editor for Trainspotting, The Full Monty).

Film London and its partners will also offer a range of assistance including in-kind support from leading facilities and service companies; competitive locations fees from many of London's local authorities; and a 'revenue share' model which will return a generous percentage of any revenue back to the film-makers.

Completed projects will have a theatrical window before being broadcast on the BBC. All film-making teams are given professional and tailored marketing and sales advice, giving them a head start in the international marketplace.

Since its launch, Film London Microwave has greenlit seven projects so far:

• Mum & Dad, an intense horror about a murderous and perverse family that live at the end of Heathrow's runway. Written and directed by Steven Sheil and produced by Lisa Trnovski. The film was released across all platforms in the UK on 26 December 2008.
• Shifty, a thriller charting an action packed 24 hours in the life of a young crack cocaine dealer on the outskirts of London. Written/directed by Eran Creevy and produced by Rory Aitken and Ben Pugh. The film was released in cinemas in the UK on 24 April 2009.
• Analogue, a dark psychological thriller, written and directed by Suki Singh and produced by Daniel Jewel.
• The British Guide to Showing Off (working title), a documentary about the Alternative Miss World Show and its extraordinary creator Andrew Logan, directed by Jes Benstock and produced by Dorigen Hammond.
• Freestyle, an urban teen romance set in the world of freestyle basketball, written by Michael Maynard, directed by Kolton Lee and produced by Lincia Daniel.
• Foxglove, a tense psychological drama about two destructive urban teenagers on the run. Written by Ornette and Kate Spenceley, directed by Ornette Spenceley and produced by Stewart Le Marechal.
• Strawberry Fields, a rites of passage film, bursting with energy, sex and humour. Written by Frances Lea and Judith Johnson, directed by Frances Lea and produced by Liam Beatty.

You can find out more about Microwave and all things micro-budget on the Microwave website, an online resource for micro-budget film-makers everywhere.

If you have any specific enquiries about the Microwave scheme, then please contact the Microwave team on 020 7613 7693 or microwave@filmlondon.org.uk. We recommend signing up to the Film London weekly bulletin for further updates.


Please note: Film London will update its website from time to time and write to all applicants to update them on key changes. Film London must reserve the right to adjust the terms and conditions on which applications are received and processed until the final deadline for applications in order to optimise the arrangements for the production of the films. A necessary condition for all applicants is that they agree to Film London reserving this right. Applicants should review the website before they apply, at regular intervals in between applying and the final deadline, and immediately before the closure of the deadline in order to ensure they are fully aware of any revisions which may affect their application.

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