Submissions
Upstream is curated entirely by humans who work at Film London. We are always looking for great stories of almost any type or genre, with a focus on projects that have:
a clearly identifiable potential audience
already been developed for or reached an audience successfully (e.g. podcasts, novel, stage play, game, online content, short film, documentary)
illustrated characters with story around them (e.g. graphic novel, games)
proven talent behind them (e.g. projects from teams with a successful proof-of-concept short film, or an artist who has established themselves as an illustrator).
Film and TV will be considered at any stage between developed treatment and first draft script/pilot. Projects recommended by one of our partners will be prioritised.
We are particularly interested in IP from the worlds of the creator economy, podcasts, publishing, theatre, games, illustration and character design. We also welcome short filmmakers with proof-of-concept shorts that have found (or are about to find) an audience at festivals or online, that may translate to longer form work.
Please note: the audience for Upstream is producers and development execs. If you do not need to attach a producer or a development exec, Upstream is not for you.
Upstream is not
a showcase for undeveloped or even developed feature film treatments or scripts from untested talent (unless the project or filmmaker has been supported or developed by one of our partners, e.g. BFI NETWORK, Climate Spring) – for anyone else working on financing a feature film, please look into Film London’s Production Finance Market.
a means to finding short film funding – if you are looking to make a short film please look into BFI NETWORK
a place to pitch for video game development funding to publishers and investors – if you are working on financing the development of a video game, please look into Games London’s Games Finance Market (part of the London Games Festival)
How to submit
Please ensure you have read the above carefully before you submit. Ineligible submissions will not be considered.
Submit your project at this link.
Please note Upstream is programmed a few months in advance. Our team meets each month to discuss submitted projects so it may take us 4-6 weeks to get back to you.