U.S. Department of State Grant for Showcasing U.S. Diversity and Addressing Social Issues through American Independent Film in Ukraine

The U.S. Embassy in Ukraine of the U.S. Department of State announces an open competition for Ukrainian not-for-profit organizations to submit applications to carry out a program that addresses social issues in Ukraine and showcases U.S. diversity and values through independent film. This opportunity envisions the organization of the 2021 American Independent Film Festival (AIFF) in Kyiv and related programming in priority regions of Ukraine.  Please carefully follow all instructions below.

Priority Regions: For AIFF – Kyiv; for regional programming – eastern, southern, and/or southeastern Ukraine

Program Objectives:

Summary: A successful applicant will design a program that uses American independent film as a medium through which to address social issues in Ukraine and showcase U.S. diversity and values in a way that resonates with Ukrainian audiences. Your proposal should include plans to organize AIFF 2021 – the eleventh in a series of annual Embassy-supported festivals – as well as independent film programming in eastern, southern, and/or southeastern Ukraine. In addition, you should plan to bring at least one American independent filmmaker to Ukraine for AIFF 2021 and, preferably, for part of the proposed regional programming.

For this solicitation, independent films are those produced outside the mainstream commercial film industry. Your budget must include costs for licensing and other related costs.

Structure: You will work with the Public Affairs Section (PAS) to organize the multi-day AIFF 2021 in Kyiv, Ukraine. To address social issues in Ukraine while showcasing U.S. diversity and values, the AIFF 2021 program should include feature and documentary film screenings as well as facilitated discussions around themes or topics raised in some of the films. Although AIFF 2021 will predominantly feature American independent films, we encourage applicants to consider whether pairing some Ukrainian films with similarly themed American ones might facilitate more in-depth discussions. The AIFF 2021 program should also leave some room for screenings of PAS-selected films. AIFF 2021 should also have an opening and/or closing reception.

Beyond AIFF 2021, applying organizations should outline plans for regional film programming. This programming can incorporate screenings and discussions of the same films shown during AIFF 2021. PAS has selected eastern, southern, and southeastern Ukraine as priority sites. However, with substantial justification, PAS welcomes suggestions for other areas of Ukraine.

Capacity-building workshops or similar events for emerging Ukrainian filmmakers alongside AIFF 2021 and/or as part of regional programming are encouraged.

PAS will give preference to proposals that demonstrate a clear link to PAS thematic priorities. These include combatting the spread of hateful ideologies, encouraging innovation and entrepreneurship, promoting police and judicial reform, and fostering an understanding of Euro-Atlantic values.

Note: Given the COVID-19 outbreak, proposals must also include plans for

transitioning to an online format in case in-person programming should be

unfeasible

Sample Timeline:

·     September 2020 – Discussing programming themes with PAS

·     October–November 2020 – Identifying potential films and U.S. guests, organizing AIFF 2021 and regional programming, purchasing film rights, securing travel for U.S. guests

·     December 2020–January 2021 – Finalizing plans for AIFF

·     February 2021 – AIFF 2021, start of regional programming, monitoring and evaluation

·     March–September 2021 – Regional programming, monitoring and evaluation

Monitoring and Evaluation: You must demonstrate your organization’s capacity to monitor program activities and evaluate your program’s results by measuring performance and impact (results). Indicators of success should relate directly to the strategic goals outlined above. Your budget must cover the costs of monitoring and evaluating your program.

The evaluation plan should address the following: 1) What data will you collect to determine whether the program is on track? 2) How will you collect the data (e.g., pre- or post-surveys, focus groups, interviews, media monitoring, etc.), and what type of data will you collect (quantitative and/or qualitative)? 3) How will you organize and report your data? Your evaluation plan should be submitted as a “logic model,” a link to a sample of which is included in Section D.

Participants and Audiences:

Audience profiles will vary based on final themes. For instance, if showing films on tolerance for LGBTI+ individuals, the target audience could include mid-career Ukrainian government employees focused on human rights, new Ukrainian nongovernmental organizations working in this area, etc. U.S. Embassy representatives will assist the organizers in identifying audiences once themes are selected.

For capacity-building initiatives, participants should be young (18–30 years of age) Ukrainian filmmakers or students of filmmaking.