The International Short Film Festival of Cyprus 2026 (ISFFC) has announced an open call for What's the Story? Cyprus 2026, a short film screenwriting workshop to be held as part of this year's festival in collaboration with the international organisation Talents Generator Factory (TGF).
What the workshop offers
What's the Story? Cyprus is an intensive five-day short film development writing workshop, part of the Talents Generator Factory initiative. Led by two experienced tutors, to be announced shortly, the workshop requires active participation and a collaborative mindset, with work carried out both in class and between sessions through daily tasks and assignments.
Following the workshop and the submission of final materials within two weeks, one participant will be selected by the tutors to further develop their film script. The development phase will take place online in the months after the workshop, guided by one tutor, with the aim of completing a full draft of the short film script.
In addition, TGF will arrange online one-on-one meetings with at least three industry professionals by the end of January 2027 for all participants. Participants will also be able to publish a summary sheet of their project on the TGF website to promote their developing film, with the option to update it as the project progresses.
Who can apply
The workshop is open to up to ten selected filmmakers, including film directors and screenwriters, who will work together to kickstart their storylines for an upcoming short film.
Applications are open only to filmmakers living or born in Cyprus, Egypt, Greece, Israel, Lebanon, Syria, Turkey, Jordan and Palestine.
Dates, location and language
The workshop will take place from Monday 12 October to Friday 16 October 2026 in Limassol. The main language of the workshop will be English, and all submitted documents and text materials produced during the workshop must be in English.
How to apply
Applications can only be submitted via the official submission form here. The deadline for submissions is Monday 3 August 2026.
Submission is free of charge. If selected, participants pay a participation fee of €100. ISFFC will provide accommodation and one meal per day for all selected participants, while travel expenses will not be covered.
For further information, applicants can contact wts@talentsgeneratorfactory.com.
The International Short Film Festival of Cyprus is organised by the Department of Contemporary Culture of the Deputy Ministry of Culture and the Rialto Theatre.
