Calling All Filmmakers! Our Filmmaker in Chief Creative Residency Is Now Accepting Submissions

 If you are a filmmaker looking to get paid to live and create short film in Lower Manhattan this summer, keep reading! Starting January 16, we’re launching our new Filmmaker in Chief campaign, which offers one filmmaker a creative residency to produce, direct and edit a short film in New York City’s Lower Manhattan neighborhood. The chosen filmmaker will win up to $50,000, plus two months in a paid luxury Mint House apartment and two months’ stipend to create their masterpiece. 

There’s no catch, just one main requirement: the short film you create must feature Lower Manhattan, whether as a backdrop for a dramatic short, the subject of a documentary or simply a (visible) source of inspiration. You’ll show us how you plan to feature Lower Manhattan in a submitted film treatment, plus make a one-minute video explaining why you are the best pick for our filmmaker in chief. Otherwise, you have full creative license to create a film that falls within a PG-13 rating, and any genre and style is welcome. 

Note: we’re not looking for a promotional video for the neighborhood. We simply want a short film that continues that legacy, and to have Lower Manhattan feature nicely. 

Lower Manhattan has inspired filmmakers for generations. The neighborhood’s one square mile is filled with dramatic streetscapes, steeped in rich history — a unique and deeply cinematic set of inspirations for filmmakers on shows like on HBO’s Emmy-winning TV show “Succession,” Spike Lee’s “Inside Man,” Martin Scorsese’s “The Wolf of Wall Street” and the classic 1949 musical “On the Town.” 

Your 3-5 page film treatment will clarify how you plan to feature our iconic neighborhood renowned for its dramatic skyline, storied history and landmarks like the Statue of Liberty, Fearless Girl, Charging Bull and New York Stock Exchange, as well as countless other treasures waiting to be represented through film. 

If you’re interested in throwing your name into the ring, we’re accepting submissions at filmdowntown.nyc from January 16 through February 16, closing at 11:59 p.m. Five finalists will be selected to have their treatments and videos evaluated by a jury of Lower Manhattan culture and film titans. One winner will be selected, and be notified by the Alliance around March 5, 2024.

You can find more on the Filmmaker in Chief creative residency — including fine print, FAQs, submission requirements and more — here.