**OPEN CALL for STORY Submissions -- Deadline: July 1st, 2014**

Sundance Institute, in partnership with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, invites YOU, the storytellers from around the world, to be a part of our first-ever Short Film Challenge.

The Challenge: Share your unique, compelling and personal Story (fiction or documentary) to be made into a Short Film by a renowned Sundance Institute filmmaker. Tell us a Story that explores empowering individuals or communities who are overcoming poverty and hunger, combatting disease, or improving health in all parts of our world. Your Story can be imaginative, unorthodox, daring or simple and must touch on economic inequalities.

The Goal: Let’s use the power of independent film and collective creativity to inspire a global conversation around innovative solutions that real people are using to conquer these challenges.

The Reward: FIVE winning Story submitters will each earn $1,000 and ONE of those Stories will be made into a Short Film to be directed by a Sundance Institute filmmaker. That Short Film will be shown at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival, and its Story author will receive an all-expenses paid trip to attend the Film Festival as the Special Guest of Sundance Institute and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Together we endeavor to illuminate the belief that all lives are connected and worthwhile and the only thing that separates us is the lottery of where we are born. Our dream, through the unlimited power of global storytelling, is to provoke human empathy and open the world’s consciousness to the idea that somewhere, out there, there is another version of you. Someone who struggles for a healthy and productive life because they live in poverty most of us can’t imagine. You can also look at the flipside and explore Another You who has unimaginable resources and enjoys a life where all of their needs and wants are provided easily.

We seek hope, and we seek it together. Go ahead - SUBMIT YOUR STORY NOW!

The goal of this Sundance Institute Short Film Challenge (Story Phase) is for you to submit up to 5 Stories (narrative fiction or real-life documentary) that celebrate individuals and/or communities from all parts of our world who are innovating ways to overcome extreme poverty and hunger, combat disease or improve human health.

The Sponsor wants to shine a light on these incredibly inspirational stories that can inspire a 3 to 8 minute Short Film. You can submit up to 5 Stories that are imaginative, unorthodox, daring or simple and must touch on economic inequalities in our world, in an empowering and optimistic way. 

Do your research. Find the untold tale. Take an adventure. Make your Story stand out above the rest.

FIVE (5) winning Story creators will each receive $1,000 and ONE (1) of those winning Stories will be brought to life in a Short Film directed by a renowned Sundance Institute Filmmaker. That ONE (1) Grand Prize winning Story creator will receive an all-expenses paid trip to the 2015 Sundance Film Festival for the premiere of that Short Film. 

Some Thought-Starters:

• How are you going to tell the story of innovative and creative ways humans everywhere are overcoming extreme poverty and hunger all across our globe?

• How are you going to shine a light on these effective solutions while creating empathy and hope for human beings living within this circumstance?

• How are you going to give a voice to and put a face to “Another You” in the Global South and/or the Global North and share that perspective in a fresh and compelling way?

• How are you going to craft a story that lends itself to a piece of beautiful and interesting cinema that will seamlessly educate and inspire decision-makers to affect change for good?

The Bigger Picture:

This Sundance Institute Short Film Challenge is part of a larger creative effort to raise awareness about these struggles affecting our world and what inspiring people are doing to combat them, and empower decision-makers to take action. Outside of the scope of this Tongal project:

 • Five Sundance Institute Alumni Filmmakers have already produced five powerful short films that premiered at this year’s 2014 Sundance Film Festival. You should reference the Sizzle Reel and we will provide the short films under the Assets Tab, once we can make them available. 

 • Over the course of this year, four more Sundance Institute Alumni filmmakers will each produce a short film that will complete the compilation of fourteen films in total.

--Key Marketing Messages: Your Story should create human empathy for the condition of those caught in poverty and hunger.

--Target Audience: Socially conscious film enthusiasts. 

--Tone: Optimistic. Empowering. Innovative. Interesting. Beautiful. Cinematic. Meaningful. We want to avoid a tone of traditional documentary (talking heads) and a desperation or depressed tone regarding the subjects of poverty and hunger. It is our intention to stimulate a creative approach to the task at hand, we even think comedy might be a possibility.

--Exposure:  The ONE Short Film to be produced by a renowned Sundance Institute Filmmaker, inspired by the ONE Grand Prize Story winner’s Story, is intended to premiere at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. Additionally, there is potential for this Short Film to be distributed across various digital platforms and social channels.

STORY PHASE (OPEN TO EVERYONE): Tell us a Story that would inspire a unique, compelling and personal Short Film that celebrates individuals and communities overcoming extreme poverty and hunger, combatting disease, or improving health conditions in our world in 500 characters or less (with the option to upload a photo as a supporting visual reference to your submission). Remember, a Story is not a detailed script but a synopsis of the basic plot points the Short Film should follow.

 • Prizing:  The FIVE (5) winning Story creators will each receive $1,000 and ONE (1) of those winning Stories will be brought to life in a Short Film directed by a renowned Sundance Institute Filmmaker. That ONE (1) Grand Prize winning Story creator will receive an all-expenses paid trip to the 2015 Sundance Film Festival for the premiere of that Short Film. 

 • Conditions: If you choose to submit a Story based on a true story, you must submit all rights documentation necessary (e.g., publicity rights, life story rights, property rights, etc.), as determined by Tongal in its sole discretion, to qualify as a Story winner. Tongal members who submit Stories and are not selected as a winner will retain all rights to their entries.

-- Keep in mind, if your Story wins you'll be required to submit corresponding releases indicating that you have the rights to the subjects of that Story. And take a piece of advice from your good friends at Tongal: it's a good idea to obtain rights before you submit - you'll only have five days to deliver any releases to Tongal once notified that you're a winner or we'll have to select an alternate. Many release forms can be found in the Winner Forms link. For example, if your Story is about a real person, you should have them sign the Life Story Agreement. Depending on the nature of your Story, you may be asked to submit additional forms evidencing you have the rights to the Story before being declared a winner.

--Story Phase Payout:  Each of the FIVE Winners of the Story Phase will earn $1,000. 

Logistical Criteria: These are the simple logistical criteria.  Simple, but also imperative – please read these criteria and adhere to them!

• Your Story should not require extensive licensing of archival footage, as determined by Tongal, Sundance Institute and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

• You must be able to obtain all the necessary rights for your Story.

• Limit 5 submissions per member in the Story Phase. 

• You must be at least 13 years or older to enter.

• Being selected as a winner is contingent upon agreeing to the Production Agreement with Sundance Institute. ONLY winning Submissions will have the option to enter into such agreement.

1. Unless provided otherwise, all work must be your own original creation and free of any copyrighted material. You shall provide detailed information of your work regarding the source, the creator and background information as requested by Tongal.

2. In the event your Story should necessitate the use any third party materials, such as music provided by a third-party music provider not provided by Tongal, you must obtain full written license and consent from the owner of such third party materials and provide such license and consent forms to Tongal.

3. Submissions cannot contain any profanity, offensive language, nudity or otherwise objectionable material, the determination of which is solely at the discretion of Sponsor.

4. Submissions must not portray Sponsor in a negative way, the determination of which will solely reside with Sponsor.

5. Limit 5 submissions per member, per Phase.

6. You must be at least thirteen (13) years or older to enter.

7. In addition to the standard Tongal W-9, Winner Affidavit, IP Assignment and Sindance Institute Production Agreement, winning Story creators MUST also provide Talent, Location, Music, Life Story Agreement, (or other) Releases for all assets that are necessary to tell his/her Story.

8. See OFFICIAL RULES for additional contest information, terms and conditions. If there is any conflict or inconsistency between these requirements and the Official Rules, the terms and conditions of these requirements shall prevail.