Produce a suite of documentary videos for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints about the transformative power of The Church's international nutrition program on families in Guatemala, The Philippines, and Zimbabwe.
Nutrition is a pivotal part of leading a fulfilling life, and it's easy for most us to take for granted the readily accessible resources that available in most of the world. Still, even in today's connected world, there are still many places around the globe that face real limitations when it comes to food accessibility and nutrition. To help make a difference, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints runs special nutrition programs for children in different regions around the globe, and now they're looking to amplify the impact that those programs can have by creating a documentary series that sheds some light on the larger problem, while simultaneously highlighting the progress that they've been able to make in addressing it.
The goal of this project is to produce a series of seven different 3-6 minute documentary videos that showcase the transformative impact of The Church's child nutrition programs in three countries - Guatemala, The Philippines, and Zimbabwe - by looking at how the program has affected specific families or leaders in each country. We're looking for a strong and agile documentary filmmaking team here that can travel to these countries and capture footage with those families, which have all be identified and pre-selected. The videos that you create will need to show how The Church's nutrition program has helped each family fight off malnutrition, and the stories that they tell should help The Church to build local systems (whether in the home, community, or both) that can make nutrition a more sustainable standard for generations to come.
One of the balances of this project will be carefully planning pre-production with Tongal and The Church producers to establish a unified look across all of the videos, while at the same time collaborating with each specific regions' local Church leaders to capture an authenticity and creative approach that feels true to each video's singular location. Even for the Philippines, where you will be traveling to multiple locations within the region (laid out in the Background), you'll need to ensure you can work with each family's preferred languages and/or dialect (Bicol, Ilocano, Tagalog, etc.). There's certainly a lot to consider here, and you will have help from The Church in getting connected with the right folks, but it would be a good idea to lay out in your pitch any experience you have working abroad, especially with non-English speaking subjects, and how your team's able to adapt and problem solve.
All of production will need to happen in a relatively tight window, so it would also be great for The Church to hear in your pitch how you plan to execute post-production with efficiency. For example, an editor that can receive the footage remotely to begin putting the cuts together during production would be a great way to streamline the process. Whichever approach, you intend to take, this will be an important consideration that will need to be decided upon early.
For any questions or other project updates, check out the Project Forum.
DELIVERABLES: There are 14 total video assets.
EXPECTED TIMELINE: HERE
EXPOSURE: We expect content will be used on the platforms below, but if casting talent, be sure they review our required Talent Release before they're cast, as we CANNOT guarantee that usage is limited to these platforms. You should also review our Music providers in the Project Requirements, as well as the platform best practices.
TARGET AUDIENCE: Young adults & adults, ages 16-35, who want to make a difference.
TONE/FEEL: Inspiring, hopeful, resilient
EXECUTIONAL MANDATORIES:
AI USAGE: You may not use AI generated visual or audio assets in your final content. However, for the purposes of your pitch and pre-production materials, you are welcome to use generative AI to create visuals, storyboards, animatics, proofs-of-concept, etc. that might help the Sponsor understand your vision for creating the final content. Additionally, assistive AI tools (e.g. object removal, compositing, color grading, sound mixing, subtitling, etc.) may be used in post-production to supplement your workflow. Please keep record of any AI usage deployed in your submissions in the event that the Sponsor requests AI disclosures. If you have questions about any specific usage or tool, please ask your Tongal producer.
By participating in this project, creators acknowledge that the Sponsor is under no obligation to greenlight a submission. Though most projects do move forward, we'll notify you in the event the Sponsor decides not to fund any submissions via the Project Forum. Regardless of the result, all submissions will be reviewed and evaluated by the Sponsor and project team.
COUNTRY PROGRAMS BEING PROFILED:
Philippines:
Guatemala:
Zimbabwe:
In order to be considered, include the below materials in your submission. For examples of effective pitches, check out this gallery. All Pitches remain private, even after a Pitch is selected, and Tongal strives to have Pitch selections made by the end of the Evaluation period, but additional time may be required by the Sponsor, depending on any number of factors. Unless specifically requested, there's no need to include a budget with your submission.
The most compelling pitch will be greenlit by the Sponsor, and the responsible creator will then receive an email from Tongal producers detailing next steps. All submitters will also receive an automated email notification that a selection has been announced. To ensure you’re receiving project updates, review your email settings to check that you haven’t unsubscribed.
Creators who’ve been selected will receive funding upon completing the Winner Affidavit and the IP Assignment. Payment of the pitch funds is subject to a payment schedule determined by Tongal, typically included with the project timeline.
PRE-PRODUCTION BIBLE & APPROVALS: Prior to the commencement of actual production, creators MUST prepare a singular pre-production "bible" document with the elements contained below, and that document MUST receive final approval from the Sponsor. We recommend that you use the bible template we provide HERE, or something very similar. The bible can be presented in stages as different elements are ready for review (i.e. it's not expected that storyboards, if required, are ready with your first draft). Apart from the below, you're also welcome to include other key items that you think would be helpful to communicate your plan (e.g. moodboards, lighting, music, shot list, etc.).
Note that there may be multiple rounds of feedback until elements are approved, and if you begin production before you have received final approval, you may need to reshoot or reanimate at your own expense.
For convenience, we've provided some helpful templates that you can consider using for pre-production materials, and they can all be accessed here.
BUILDING YOUR TEAM: Looking for help? Post crew and production opportunities connected to Tongal projects on Backlot. Backlot includes search tools to help you find collaborators and crew by role, skill set, location, and more, for productions of any size and type. Tongal also supports inclusivity in all productions, and strongly encourages you to hire diverse talent for your team. To find additional options for staff & crew in your area, check out these resources and partners.
REVISION REQUIREMENTS & RESOURCES: Once Content has been submitted and the initial Production Phase completed, greenlit creators will enter into Revisions. Creators will perform reasonable edits on their videos according to the Sponsor's feedback. Check out our Filmmaker Resource Portal to access helpful post-production resources like Text-Safe Guides for different platforms, Project File Organization Tutorial, Export Presets, and Captioning services.
MUSIC: If you use music from a library for your content, you MUST use one of Tongal's music providers: Universal Production Music, PrimalHouse, or Slipstream Music. Music from these providers is available to registered Tongal members at no charge solely for their incorporation into submissions to this project, and will not require a Music Release Form. To learn more, click on any of the providers' names above.
If you use original music, you must fill out and submit our Music Release Form. Please ensure your composer reviews and signs this form BEFORE beginning their work.
STOCK FOOTAGE: Tongal has partnered with the stock footage library Storyblocks, which can be used to source video clips, photography, and After Effects templates for your video submission to this project. Video or photo content from Storyblocks is available at no charge, solely for incorporation into submissions on this project, and will not require a separate Release Form. If identifiable people or intellectual property appears in a video clip or photo, you may only utilize assets that are clearly marked “Model released: Yes” or “Property release: Yes” on the clip description pages. You may NOT use any audio.
If you intend to use Storyblocks, inform your Tongal producer, and an account will be created for you to access the library. Once assets are approved for delivery, you must provide a complete list of all Storyblocks content that you used via our template HERE.
ASSET DELIVERY REQUIREMENTS & RESOURCES: You must also provide all project files, editing sequences and a 1080p .mov master file, using a ProRes, Animation, or Uncompressed Codec in order to submit final payment. You are responsible for any costs associated with the hard drive and shipping. Tongal also reserves the right to request all raw files associated with the project.
To ensure a smoother delivery, please review the Export Presets, Specifications, and Project File Organization Tutorial in our Filmmaker Resource Portal.