The French Institute in India is partnering with French documentary production company Kolam Productions to invite submissions for two documentaries directed by emerging female directors from India.

These documentaries will be part of the acclaimed MYTHICAL CINEMAS collection, a series exploring legendary cinema houses across the world. The collection, initiated by Kolam Productions, showcases the cultural and historical significance of iconic theaters. The first season, featuring 12 episodes of 52 minutes each, was produced for Canal+ and aired on Ciné+ as well as other international platforms.

Proposal Brief

We are looking for original ways to approach the history of a theater. We are hoping the proposals will think out of the box and be creative in telling the story of an iconic cinema, of its link with an area or a city and their inhabitants, of a local cinematography, etc.

The first series offered a great variety of styles. One episode was 95% made of archives with a plausible fictionalized voice-over narration about the city of Bologna. The film in Kiev delivered an immersive experience of a Ukrainian cinema during the war, while the film on Athens included elements of fiction to show the impact of the cinema on the local community.

Whether the films use archives or not, we are more interested in their fictional quality than in a news coverage approach.

We are making three episodes of the first season available for potential candidates to screen and get a better understanding of our expectations. You can request links to the screeners at: [email protected]

Eligibility Criteria

• Our invitation is aimed at emerging women directors who have already directed a maximum of two documentaries, short or long, including student films for graduates of film schools.
• Having an Indian producer attached to the project would be an asset but is not a requirement.
• Applications must be submitted in English. There is no fee for submitting a project.

Documents Required:

We invite you to send your proposal to [email protected] with the following information:

• A logline (5 lines)
• A synopsis (1 page)
• A brief history of the venue (10 lines) with 4 photos
• A short bio of yourself (You can add a link to IMDb or any other site)
• 1 or 2 clickable Vimeo links (no downloads) to documentaries made as a student or as a professional
• A provisional budget
• The name, a short bio, and description of your producer and production company, if any

Please combine all these elements in a single PDF file.

Submission Process & Estimated Timeline

• October 15, 2025 – Announcement of 8 preselected projectsPreselection will be based on the project’s interest, originality, uniqueness, and feasibility within the proposed budget.
• December 15, 2025 – Submission deadline for the 8-page synopsis from the preselected projects
• March 2026 – Announcement of the two selected projects at Docedge Kolkata
• April 2026 – Kolam Productions will finance the final scriptwriting and set up a production budget
• December 2026 – Expected delivery date
• For any enquiries about the call, feel free to write to us at: [email protected].
• For your submission, please include: Submission | Last Name First Name in the subject of the email.

Please note: Editing will take place in France or be supervised by a French editor.

Submission deadline: June 30, 2025

To submit your proposal, click here