MUMBAI MANTRA CINERISE SCREENWRITING PROGRAMME 2016
100 STORYTELLERS A YEAR!

Mumbai Mantra CineRise provides a rare mentorship opportunity for 100 Indian screenwriters!

After successfully completing the 1st edition of the Mumbai Mantra – CineRise Screenwriting Programme, where 100 storytellers got an opportunity for one-on-one mentoring and subsequently 12 screenwriters went through for an intensive 5-day screenwriting lab, Mumbai Mantra continues its mission to nurture and nourish the creative ecosystem that it has built over the years. The programme aims at offering creative support to screenwriters to write, refine and pitch their scripts and to help get their films made!

‘The Mumbai Mantra CineRise Screenwriting Programme’, a detailed step-by-step process of nurturing, which goes through 8 stages:

STAGE 1: INVITING APPLICATIONS
From enthusiastic and determined Indian screenwriters.

Your application should consist of -

• STORY: The complete story on which your script will be based. Should have 6-8 pages with a beginning, middle and an end.
• WRITER'S STATEMENT:  A 2-page note outlining what your project is about. Do explain what motivated you to tell this story, and why you believe you are best placed to write it. If you have a view on how the project should be treated (sensibilities, style, etc.), do share in this note.
• WRITER'S BIO WITH CONTACT DETAILS: Attach your bio-data. You can send the bio-data of other key team members (producer, director, DoP, etc.) if they are already attached to the project.
  
  

STAGE 2: SCREENWRITING WORKSHOP
2-day screenwriting workshops will be held in different cities across the country. Among the submitted applications, 100 stories will be selected for the workshop out of which the finalists will come in for intensive interactions with experienced writers and directors at the workshop. The selected participants can choose the Center closest to their homes.

In keeping with our goal to help as many aspiring screenwriters as possible, the first day of the workshop will be open to EVERY enthusiast, including applicants who did not get selected in the top 100 (for a fee of Rs.2000). Those selected (in the top 100) will be invited to attend and shall not be required to pay any fees. The workshop will be an intensive introduction to screenwriting where some valuable lessons about the craft will be imparted. It will help participants understand the creative tools required to be able to create a robust screenplay. Those who do NOT make it to the top 100 this year can therefore use this guidance to apply next year to further endorse Mumbai Mantra's mission to nurture screenwriting and help develop writers.

STAGE 3: WRITING THE FIRST DRAFT
The 100 screenwriters who went through the 2-day workshop will have 2 months to submit the first draft of their screenplays.

STAGE 4: FINAL SELECTION
After an intensive screening and evaluation, 12, 15 or more deserving screenplays will make it to the final selection. These screenplays will be sent to the Mentors and other experts, for detailed evaluation and notes. Earlier, Mumbai Mantra has been supported by the advice of incredibly gifted writers, filmmakers, academics and actors such as Shyam Benegal, Rajkumar Hirani, Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, Ramesh Sippy, Zoya Akhtar, Sharmila Tagore, Shabana Azmi, K. Hariharan, Ira Bhaskar, Anil Kapoor, Vikramaditya Motwane, Sooni Taraporevala, Shekhar Kapur and more. This year we will again go out to them as well as many others. The Convenor for this programme will be Anjum Rajabali.

STAGE 5: THE SECOND DRAFT
After receiving notes from the Mentors, the writers will have 1 more month to send in the second drafts of their screenplays.

STAGE 6: 5-DAY RESIDENTIAL LAB
The finalists will be invited to a 5-day workshop at a Resort destination. Here, the screenwriters will have 4-5 exhaustive one-on-ones with the Mentors, who will be renowned writers and directors

STAGE 7: POST-LAB DRAFTS
Using the notes from the workshop the writers will revise their screenplays and turn in their third draft, in readiness for the S2S event.

STAGE 8: S2S (FROM SCRIPT TO SCREEN)
This draft will then be pitched to studio heads, independent producers, directors, financiers, distributors, film festival directors & curators at a Pitch Event in Mumbai.