Program Description:

Vidéographe’s mentorship program is intended to encourage the professional and artistic development of Montreal-based artists in the early stages of their career. Selected participants in this program will benefit from 16 hours of consultation time with a professional artist in their field. The mentorship program can help in developing a new project, exploring a new technique, or in completing a work-in-progress.

Artists selected under this program have free access to:

16 hours of mentorship from an established artist working in their field. Access to Vidéographe’s editing suites, sound booth, digitizing equipment, and analog and digital video equipment up to a value of 1000$. Should the project require additional support thereafter a preferential rate will be applied. Please note that artists are expected to be self-sufficient as Vidéographe’s team can only offer limited hands-on technical support.

► See all our mentor profiles HERE

Eligibility:

Vidéographe is looking to support independent experimental, or documentary works that stand apart for their currency and endeavour to renew the artistic language. We will accept proposals for single-channel video, installation, Web-based work, and all other forms of moving image. We consider all genres: video art, experimental work, fiction, documentary or essay form, animation, dance video, and videoclip. Please note that all works must be independent and non-commercial. Projects of a conventional nature, such as classic short narrative film or television documentary will not be considered.

• Candidates must possess full editorial and creative control of the project.
• Candidates must be emerging artists living in Montreal.
• Projects must be independent and non-commercial.
• Projects that have received support through this program may not be re-submitted.
• Student projects are not admissible.

We encourage traditionally under-represented artists to submit a project. Vidéographe embraces the notion of an intellectual community enriched by diversity along many axes, including race, indigeneity, ethnicity, trans/nationality, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, class, age, religion, ability, and neurodiversity.

Evaluation criteria:

Proposals are evaluated on the following criteria:

• Contribution of the Mentorship Program to the project and to the artist’s professional development.
• Thoroughness and relevance of research.
• Innovative character of the project.

Selection process:

Works will be chosen by a selection committee made up of professional media artists and Vidéographe staff members. Projects that are retained will be subject to a contractual agreement between the artist and Vidéographe. Schedules, revised budgets, and requirements regarding equipment, rooms, and technical support will be planned and clearly laid out, as will the terms and conditions relative to each party.

Submissions:

Applications must include the following:

• The candidate’s contact information and website (if applicable).
• An artist statement (max 300 words)
• A project description (max 500 words)
• A motivational letter stipulating the candidate’s desired mentor mentors and why (see all our mentor profiles HERE), as well as the candidate’s expected benefits from this program (max 500 words)
• A schedule including the overall project timeline and detailed timeline for the Mentorship Program.
• Technical requirements (please consult our website for more details on our editing suites and equipment).
• The candidate’s CV (max 3 pages).
• Visual support material including current or past projects. Maximum of 10 minutes of video footage. Please send a link to your video(s). Do not forget to include the password if applicable. Up to 15 images, sketches, plans, and mock-ups may also be submitted in PDF format.

Applications will be accepted by email only. Please send your file as a SINGLE PDF document including links to videos and other visual support material (max 25MB). Incomplete applications will not be considered nor will files found in the text section of the email.

Please write mentorship program in the subject heading of your email and send your application to info@videographe.org. An acknowledgment of receipt will be sent within 1 week of receipt.

Note that it is not necessary to be a member of Vidéographe to apply; however, should your proposal be accepted, we will ask that you become a member. Once you have signed the agreement, you will have up to six months to take advantage of the benefits that this program has to offer. Regular membership fees are $50 + taxes per year and student membership fees are $25 + taxes per year.

Once your project is finished, you may submit it for active distribution by Vidéographe. Please note however that acceptance into the Mentorship Program does not guarantee that your work will be distributed.

For equity reasons, should you require any accommodations or need to submit your application in an alternative format, please contact the program coordinator at info@videographe.org or at (514) 521-2116 ext: 221.

Applicants will be notified by the end of June 2024. Please note that Vidéographe can only support 4 projects per year.