Emerging talent program

No, only projects submitted by a legally incorporated and duly registered company are admissible. Companies may only submit projects developed by emerging creators. From a legal standpoint, sole proprietorship does not qualify as a Québec business.

Producers, screenwriters, and directors who possess the minimum experience required but have not yet gained access to traditional funding channels are considered emerging. Please refer to the guide for emerging creators — required experience.

Please refer to the guide for emerging creators — required experience for details on all the eligibility requirements for the type of project submitted and the position held.

You are not admissible to this program if:

• you have already produced, written or directed a feature-length film with a professional showing recognized by the SODEC;
• you have previously received support under component 1 or 3 of SODEC’s production program for the same position for which you are currently applying under the emerging talent program.

See the guide for emerging creators — required experience.

You have experience in a different position than the one for which you are currently applying. You might be eligible to apply to the emerging talent program.

No, there is no age limit to be eligible.

The production company may be well established as long as the producer working within said company and with whom you are applying for this grant is emerging.

The creator must have had their tax residence in Québec for at least two years.

Networking activities may be organized by SODEC or partner organizations responsible for their promotion. SODEC will keep its clients informed via its website and by email.

Projects may be submitted in French or English. SODEC assigns at least 80% of the funds allocated to its programs to projects whose original version is in French.

• Short and feature-length fiction films;
• Short, medium-length and feature-length documentaries.

Any audiovisual production that represents reality in a non-fictional way, which provides information and analysis on a subject, can be considered a documentary. The cinematographic treatment must be original and clearly distinguishable from the strictly informative thematic program.

Mid-length and feature-length documentaries as well as feature-length fiction films may be directly submitted at the production stage if they meet the specific eligibility requirements.

• Only majority-owned co-productions are eligible for this program. SODEC considers a coproduction to be Québec majority-owned when 51% or more of the rights to a project are held by one or more Québec companies;
• SODEC’s financial assistance only applies to the Québec portion of the project;
• Please note that co-productions with the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) are not eligible for this program at the development stage.

Yes, a rejected project at the development stage can be resubmitted to this program, in the development stage. After two rejections, a project is no longer eligible.

A project that was rejected at the production stage of the emerging talent program is no longer eligible but can be submitted to the programme d’aide à la production (production program), if it meets the program’s eligibility requirements.

Projects that have received funding from the former programme d’aide aux jeunes créateurs are not eligible.

No, a finalist project of the Cours écrire ton court contest is not eligible to the emerging talent program. However, you can submit your project to component 2 of the programme d’aide à la production (production program), in collaboration with an eligible company.

A company, including any related companies, may submit a maximum of four projects per application, provided that the following conditions are met:

• at least half of the projects submitted are scripted by women, and in case of an odd number of projects that is greater than two, the majority must be scripted by women;
• at least half of the projects originate from a networking activity recognized by SODEC that took place prior to the development application deadline.

Participation in a networking activity is not mandatory for production companies only submitting one project. Networking activities are only mandatory forcompanies submitting two or more projects.

The creative teams of supported short and medium-length film projects have 12 months, 24 months for feature-length projects, from the date of acceptance to deliver the final version of the script. Projects that do not respect these windows will be rejected at the production stage.

A handling and assessment fee is payable for each project at the time of submission. At the development stage, the fees are:

• $50 plus applicable taxes ($57.49) for short fiction films as well as short, medium-length and feature-length documentaries;
• $350 plus applicable taxes ($402.41) for feature-length fiction films.

At the production stage, for projects that were not supported at the development stage, the fees are:

• $50 plus applicable taxes ($57.49) for medium-length or feature-length documentaries;
• $350 plus applicable taxes ($402.41) for feature-length fiction films.

The data collected is used for statistical purposes only. It is not used for project evaluation or selection and will not be passed on to evaluation committees.

Applications are reviewed by an external committee chaired by an internal project manager who acts as a liaison with clients.

SODEC is particularly attentive to the coherence of the various components of a project and its potential to engage audiences both in Québec and abroad by evaluating:

• the synopsis, or the brief proposal for a documentary;
• the impact of the proposed directorial treatment (if a director is already attached to the project);
• the unique character, relevance and quality of the project;
• the experience of all producers, screenwriters and, if applicable, directors in relation to the type of project submitted;
• the company’s track record;
• the budget and financing structure of the project, as well as the consistency between the budget and written proposal;
• the marketing strategy and opportunities to reach target audiences.

At the development stage, SODEC’s participation can reach a maximum of:

• $15,000 for a short fiction film, a short or medium-length documentary, including the services of a story consultant;
• $25,000 for a feature-length fiction film or documentary, including the services of a story consultant.

In the case of an animation project, SODEC’s participation may be increased by 25%.

At the production stage, the cumulative participation of SODEC (including any previous funding granted by SODEC at the development stage) may reach a maximum of:

• $115,000 for a short fiction film or documentary;
• $138,000 for a medium-length or feature-length documentary;
• $750,000 for a feature-length fiction film.

For co-productions, the cumulative participation of SODEC must be used to help finance the Québec portion of the budget.

Based on the financial information submitted for the production stage, SODEC’s financial contribution may be increased:

• by an additional maximum amount of $5,000 for the hiring of a consultant linked to one or more facets of the production process;
• and by an additional maximum amount of $7,000 to finance the project’s discoverability strategy and the production of basic promotional materials.

The evaluation process can take from 11 to 15 weeks. All (positive and negative) results will be sent by email. Please ensure that your contact information is up to date.

Our current objective is to support one feature-length fiction film per year. As for fiction or documentary shorts as well as medium-length and feature-length documentaries, our objective is to provide production support to all the projects that received support from this program at the development stage. However, this support ratio is conditional on the availability of funds and the credits granted to us by the National Assembly.