Twenty-eight projects from non-Western filmmakers are to receive a total of Euros 467,000 in grants from the International Film Festival Rotterdam's (IFFR) Hubert Bals Fund (HBF), as was decided during the fund's autumn selection round.

The HBF provides individual grants to support either script development, post-production or distribution in the country of origin. During the upcoming International Film Festival Rotterdam (Jan 21 - Feb 1, 2004) the Hubert Bals Fund sidebar is expected to contain 30 recently completed films supported by the HBF. This line-up will be announced mid-December 2003.

The HBF autumn 2003 Selection Round comprises nine grants for script and project development; 12 grants for post-production and three grants for distribution. The Selection Round also includes the support given to organise script workshops in Colon (Argentina) and Sithengi (South Africa) and the four HBF Awards for promising film-projects at the PPP (South Korea) and Sithengi (South Africa) markets.

Among the grants selected in support of script development three go to Argentinean film projects: a sign of the ongoing vitality of independent film-making in this country. Film projects selected for support in post-production include new titles such as Familia Rodante, the third film by Pablo Trapero (Crane World), The Hunter by Kazakh director Serik Aprymov (Three Brothers), Spreading: The Pirate Movie by He Jianjun (Postman). First-time directors supported include Josue Mendez (Peru), Teona S. Mitevska (Macedonia) and Diao Yinan (China).

Many HBF supported film projects originate from countries (for example Colombia, Peru, Macedonia and Yugoslavia) where local film industries experience difficulties due to political and/or economical crises. The Hubert Bals Fund is also supporting the distribution of three films in Congo, Iraq and Pakistan. Among these three films is the Locarno 2003 Golden Leopard prizewinner Silent Waters (Khamosh Pani) by Sabiha Sumar.

The line up of the IFFR's Hubert Bals Fund Fall 2003 Selection Round in full:

Script and project development
The Innocents (Bigonahan) - Sepideh Farsi - Iran
The Sky, The Earth And The Rain (El Cielo, La Tierra Y La Lluvia) - Jose Luis Torres Leiva - Chile
In The Name Of The Dead - Apolline Traore - Burkina Faso
I'm Afraid (Ja Bojus) - Oleg Kovalov - Russia
Homeland (Janmo Bhoomi) - Catherine & Tareque Masud - Bangladesh
Maytland - Marcelo Charras - Argentina
Monobloc - Luis Ortega - Argentina
The Eternaut Project (El Proyecto Eternauta) - Gustavo Mosquera - Argentina
Blood And Rain (La Sangre Y La Lluvia) - Jorge Navas - Colombia

Post production
Le Voyage Immobile (Bab Lbhar) - Daoud Aoulad Syad - Morocco
Days Of Santiago (Dias De Santiago) - Josue Mendez - Peru
Familia Rodante - Pablo Trapero - Argentina
How I Killed A Saint - Teona S. Mitevska - Macedonia
Spreading (The Pirate Movie) (Man Yan: Ni Qu Na Er) - He Jianjun - China
The Hunter (Okhotnik) - Serik Aprymov - Kazakhstan
Parapalos - Ana Poliak - Argentina
Father (Père) - Naguel Belouad - Algeria
Shutka - Aleksander Manic - Yugoslavia
The Silence Between Two Thoughts (Sokaate Beine Do Feks) - Babak Payami - Iran
Uniform - Diao Yinan, China

Distribution
Father's Garden (Le Jardin De Papa) - Zeka Laplaine - Congo
Life (Jiyan) - Jano Rosebiani - Iraq
Silent Waters (Khamosh Pani) - Sabiha Sumar - Pakistan