The Sundance Institute currently has several open or upcoming application deadlines for 2025‑2026 supporting independent artists and projects. Key deadlines include the 2026 Episodic Lab closing on November 9, 2025, the Merata Mita Fellowship on November 3, 2025, the Graton Fellowship on December 8, 2025, and the Native Lab on December 22, 2025. The Sundance Ignite x Adobe Fellowship deadline is February 12, 2026, and the Feature Film Producers Track closes around February 11‑12, 2026. The Ignite Challenge accepts applications through July 1, 2026. These opportunities span labs, fellowships, mentorships, and development tracks for filmmakers and storytellers. Most programs are open to international applicants, though some (like Native Lab and Graton Fellowship) have specific community or regional eligibility requirements. Additionally, submission windows for film and episodic content for the 2026 Sundance Film Festival occurred during mid‑2025, with the festival itself scheduled from January 22 to February 1, 2026. These dates represent the latest publicly available deadlines across multiple Sundance initiatives.
DIFFERENT DATES FOR ACTIVITIES
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Sundance Institute
The Industry Academy Colombia is an intensive training program created by the Locarno Film Festival in 2014, aimed at young professionals in the film industry working in areas such as distribution, sales, marketing, exhibition, and festival programming.
The second edition of the Industry Academy Colombia took place from July 14 to 18, 2024, in collaboration with the Bogotá Audiovisual Market (BAM).
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Industry Academy Colombia
Syncro Lab 2025 is the training and development call of the Syncro Film Fest, aimed at people over 18 years old residing in Argentina. It is a short film script competition open to fiction, non-fiction, or hybrid projects, with a maximum length of 20 pages (PDF format, Courier 12, single spacing).
Submissions are open from February 3 to May 7, 2025, with an entry fee of ARS 7,000. Up to 10 scripts will be selected, and their authors will take part in group mentoring and development sessions during the festival, which will be held June 16–19, 2025 in Buenos Aires.
A jury will choose one winning script, which will receive ARS 500,000, plus professional post‑production services (5.1 mix, color grading, DCP and export deliveries), distribution by Hablemos de Langostas, and support for material delivery. Technical prizes must be used within one year.
Syncro Lab is an excellent opportunity to boost your short film project and connect with the independent film industry.
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Syncro Lab
The Quiet Collective offers creative retreats and residencies open year-round, focused on the development of fiction and storytelling projects. These programs provide participants with immersive, collaborative environments to work on scripts, stories, and personal creative growth. The experiences take place primarily in Calabria, Italy, and accept participants from any nationality.
Key sessions scheduled for 2026 include: Embodying the Character from May 3 to 10; From Script to Pitch from May 24 to 31 and September 13 to 20; and The Creative Path from September 28 to October 4. These retreats are not competitions and do not include juries or awards; their purpose is to offer a space for exploration, learning, and creative development in fiction.
Participants work individually on their projects, benefiting from workshops, mentorship, and group dynamics. Registration is flexible, allowing integration at any available period, fostering continuous creativity and networking among writers, screenwriters, and artists interested in storytelling and fiction.
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From Script to Pitch
The Iberseries & Platino Industria Showrunners Workshop is a specialized training aimed at professionals with experience or education in creation, writing, directing, or audiovisual production. Its goal is to develop skills for managing and producing Spanish-language series, with practical training and personalized mentoring. Up to 9 finalist projects are selected, presented by one or two participants who hold or are authorized to present the rights of their projects.
The fifth edition will take place from September 30 to October 3, 2025, at Matadero Madrid. The application deadline is June 5, 2025. During the workshop, participants receive intensive training, expert talks, and one-on-one meetings with audiovisual industry executives.
To participate, you need a Spanish-language project and accreditation by Iberseries & Platino Industria. More information and full terms are available on the official website.
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Showrunners Workshop - Iberseries & Platino Industry
