The VII Foundation Film Lab develops short-form film projects led by working photojournalists and aspiring filmmakers whose stories are rooted in their communities. The inaugural 2026 cohort has 12 participants and combines online learning with an in-person workshop in Arles, France.
Training covers storytelling, visual language, production, financing, ethics, writing, legal strategy, sales, and distribution. Participants refine a project and pitch before continuing development with an individual mentor.
Benefits & funding
- Four weeks of online instruction and mentorship.
- A one-week workshop at the Alexandra Boulat Campus in Arles.
- Individual online mentoring for one year after the workshop.
- A jury awards project grants to the most promising final pitches; the number and value are not published.
- The program page describes scholarship eligibility, and the foundation describes its training for visual journalists from the Majority World as tuition-free; travel and living-cost coverage are not published.
Eligibility
- Applicants must be from a Majority World country or an underrepresented community in a G20 country.
- Applicants must currently work in the visual media industry.
- Applicants must already have a plan for a new project.
- The official program page publishes no degree, age, gender, or years-of-experience requirement.
Can you apply?
Open to all applicants
No nationality, residency, education, or experience limits are listed.
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Application process
- 1Check the official Film Lab page and the foundation’s open-calls page; applications for the 2026 cohort are closed.
- 2When a call is open, register on the foundation’s application platform and create an entry for the relevant program.
- 3Tailor the submission to the Film Lab and provide every item requested in the live form.
Program timeline
Application deadline at 23:59 EST.
Feb 6, 2026
Program starts.
Jun 1, 2026
Published course end window; no exact end date is stated.
August 2027