TANDEM is a funding and professional development programme designed to support FLINTA* professionals taking on a Head of Department position across all crafts and departments in film production. TANDEM is a project of FC Gloria – Feminism, Networking and Film, developed in cooperation with the Austrian Film Institute and funded by the Federal Ministry for Housing, Arts, Culture, Media and Sport (BMWKMS).

FLINTA stands for women, lesbian, intersex, non-binary, trans and agender people.

 

ABOUT THE PROGRAMME

The programme provides a grant of €5,000 per tandem partnership to enable participants to receive coaching and professional support from an experienced colleague in their field. This mentoring support is intended to help participants prepare for, carry out, or reflect on their responsibilities as a Head of Department. The coaching may take place before, during, or after production and is limited in duration. The mentor’s fee is fully covered by the TANDEM grant. Applicants must be attached to their first or second project as a Head of Department, either through ongoing contract negotiations or a signed contractual commitment. Participants are free to choose their tandem partner. There are no restrictions regarding the mentor’s country of residence, language, age, or gender. The only requirements are that the mentor possesses appropriate professional qualifications and that the total mentoring fee does not exceed €5,000.

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

  • Residence and Professional Base in Austria: Applicants must have their primary place of residence and professional activity in Austria. Proof of Austrian residency is required.
  • First or Second Project as Head of Department: Applicants must be attached to their first or second film project as a Head of Department, either through ongoing contract negotiations or a formal contractual commitment. If a contract is not yet available—for example, because the project is still in development—a written confirmation or binding Letter of Intent (LOI) from the production company may be accepted. A transition to a new format or genre may also qualify as a first project, for example from short film to feature film or from documentary to fiction film.
  • Funding Commitment for the Project: At the time of application, the project must already have received a production or development funding commitment from its primary public funding body, either the Austrian Film Institute or the Federal Ministry for Housing, Arts, Culture, Media and Sport (BMWKMS). A TANDEM grant can only be awarded once the financing of the production or project development has been secured. However, because preparation work in some departments begins before financing is fully closed, TANDEM support may, in justified cases, already be granted during the project development phase, provided that development funding has been approved. This particularly applies to the departments of production, directing, screenwriting, and casting, but may be extended to other departments upon request and with appropriate justification.

FAQs

TANDEM funding is intended for professionals who would like to receive mentoring and support from a more experienced colleague in their department and who are taking on a Head of Department role for the first or second time. Applicants must have their primary place of residence and professional activity in Austria.

Eligible departments are:

  • Producer
  • Director
  • Screenwriter
  • Line Producer
  • Production Manager
  • Cinematographer
  • Editor
  • Dramaturg
  • Head of Make-up and Hair
  • Costume Designer
  • Production Designer
  • Casting
  • Production Sound
  • Sound Mixing
  • Sound Design
  • Original Score
  • Gaffer
  • Color Grading
  • VFX Supervisor
  • Animation

Exceptions may be made for emerging film professions such as Intimacy Coordination, Child Acting Coach, Green Film Consultant,…

 

You may apply for TANDEM funding a maximum of two times within the same department, as the programme is specifically designed to support professionals on their first or second project as a Head of Department.

A maximum of two TANDEM applications may be submitted per film project, provided they come from two different departments.

A mentor may participate in a maximum of two TANDEM partnerships per calendar year.

Applicants may receive professional support from an experienced colleague working in the same department. Mentoring can take place during preparation, production, post-production, or be divided across different stages of the project, depending on the applicant’s needs.

The total mentoring period is limited to a minimum of five and a maximum of ten days.

A TANDEM partnership is limited to a minimum of five and a maximum of ten days. This limitation is intended to ensure that the programme remains focused on mentoring and professional support, while avoiding potential issues relating to authorship or the delegation of core responsibilities.

Mentors and participants are free to decide how this time is organised. The mentoring may take place as a single block or be spread over a longer period.

Should the mentor and participant wish to continue collaborating beyond the TANDEM partnership, they are of course free to do so. However, establishing ongoing working relationships is not the primary objective of the TANDEM programme.

The date for final reporting and settlement of the grant is agreed contractually.