4th Script Development Contest by ATHICFF & Cinekid Festival
Are you a professional screenwriter and do you have an amazing idea for a script which is aimed at children ages 3 - 14?
The Athens International Children’s Film Festival is collaborating for the fourth consecutive year with the Cinekid Festival (Netherlands), the largest children’s film festival in Europe, in one of the largest international script development programs for children’s content, the Cinekid Script LAB.
Cinekid Script LAB is a six-month script-training programme for writers with a children’s film or series project. The training takes place during Cinekid for Professionals in October, and the Berlinale the following February.
The Athens International Children’s Film Festival offers a full scholarship for the selected Greek project. The deadline for submitting proposals is April 30, 2025.
So far, three Greek filmmakers – Zacharias Mavroeidis, Alexandros Rellos, and Effie Pappa – have received scholarships from the Athens International Children’s and Film Festival and have taken part in the six-month Cinekid Script LAB program to develop their screenplays.
The scripts will be evaluated by a three-member committee, consisting of:
Georgina Kakoudaki – Theatre theorist and Director
Lucas Paleocrassas – Director
Effie Pappa – Writer, Animation Director
Effie Pappa, who received the last year scholarship for her screenplay MY NAME IS LULO!, says:
“Being part of the Cinekid Script Lab was a priceless experience—it really helped the development of my series, My Name is Lulo!. Through many brainstorming sessions, character studies, and working with actors, the project became clearer, deeper, and more real. The support from my mentor, other creators, and the wonderful team at the Lab helped me improve my idea with more confidence and understanding. Cinekid was the key that gave my story real shape!”
In the first year of the program (2022), Zacharias Mavroeidis received the scholarship for his script 9 LIVES LEFT, and in the second year (2023), Alexandros Rellos received it for his script CHERRY & ZUCCHINI.
The Athens International Children’s Film Festival has taken significant initiatives for the development, reinforcement, and global outreach of audiovisual content production for children within Greece.Initiatives include hosting the ATHICFF for Professionals meeting every November, producing short film for teenagers as part of Eleusis Cultural Capital of Europe, and organizing the International Screenplay Development Program Kids Kino Lab (Warsaw Kids Film Forum).
The Cinekid Script LAB Screenplay Development Competition is supported by the Hellenic Film & Audiovisual Center Creative Greece.
A few words about Cinekid Script LAB
It is an intensive six-month screenplay development program with two face-to-face meetings in Amsterdam and Berlin and intermediate online seminars with trainers of recognized value and extensive experience in the audiovisual field and children’s content. Learn more here.
* This contest is open to Greek projects only.
** Find out more about the contest, the application process and the T&C here (in Greek).
*** Find out more about the Cinekid Script LAB here.