The UK Film Council's Development Fund has launched afresh version of its "25 Words or Less" initiative, partnering withdirectors Danny Boyle and John Crowley to bring new film ideas to the bigscreen.

Backed by film companies Pathe UK and Intermedia, thenew "25 Words or Less: Director's Cut" project gets bothdirectors and financiers involved from the beginning of the script developmentprocess.

Boyle (28 Days Laterand Trainspotting) and Crowley (Intermission) are to offer writers with agency representation achance to write a new feature film for them to direct.

Each director has set out a brief giving an indication ofthe kind of stories they are looking for and want to find a writer to work withthem, developing this brief into a film. Writers are invited to submit ashort pitch based on one of these briefs through the UK Film Council'sDevelopment Fund, who will fund the successful applicants to develop a firstdraft screenplay.

Boyle's brief takes its inspiration from L'Espritd'Escalier - the notion of people missingchances in life, something which is often at odds to what happens on thescreen.

"In themovies, when it matters most, the hero says the perfect line; at the crucialmoment they always do the right thing" said Boyle. "But for therest of us that feeling of having blanked at an important moment, of failing todo the right thing at the right time, seems like it will follow us to thegrave. Or is there occasionally a chance to change that'"

For his part, Crowley would like writers to create acontemporary 'rebirth' or transformation story about a man or womanwho begins as someone that spreads coldness wherever he or she goes.

Crowley, who is drawn to stories which hint at the idea thatsadness, coldness or loneliness can be somehow contagious or passed on throughgenerations, said, "It seems to me that the idea of transmitting coldness- whether deliberately or unwittingly - might offer an interesting imaginativestarting point for a contemporary story, romantic, comic or tragic intone."