Request for Proposal

Cabin Creek Films, an award-winning production company in New York City, is producing a feature length documentary about guns in the United States to be broadcast on HBO and we are interested in potentially integrating youth-produced video into a segment of our film. We are looking for high production-quality documentary genre video segments between 5-10 minutes long that tell a compelling story in urban, suburban or rural
settings about guns. As is evident in many of our films, rather than a series of sit-down interviews, we like stories that are told in “verité” style, where one gets to know the subject(s), something unfolds in front of the camera and a certain intimacy is achieved. The overarching theme should regard how an experience/incident with a gun has changed or transformed a young person’s life. Some potential themes might include:

•Consequences of gun violence, gun accidents and gun deaths on friends, family, community and society;
•Representations of guns in popular media (music, TV, movies, video games) and its impact on individual and social attitudes towards guns;
•Growing up with guns and/or first encounters with guns.

Other themes might include gun safety, guns at school, the tradition of hunting and the role of guns in the USA compared to other countries.

Final material would be licensed for use in our film. Please note: the submission of a written proposal or DVD does not obligate Cabin Creek Films to pursue any relationship with submitter. Please send a BRIEF PROPOSAL/PROJECT DESCRIPTION (see guidelines below) to
wrossacole@gmail.com
with the word “GUNS PROPOSAL” in the subject line.
For an overview of our work, please visit www.cabincreekfilms.com.

If your organization has ALREADY produced a piece that fits this criteria, please send a DVD copy to

Williams Cole,
Cabin Creek Films, 270 Lafayette Street, Suite 710, New York, NY 10012

and indicate in the Project Description send via e-mail that a DVD will be sent.

Deadline for submissions is Jan. 7th, 2009.

Submission guidelines:

1) Name of contact person/organization, address, email, phone and website.
2) Summary description of story idea and/or of an existing video segment including genre, setting, characters/subjects, story arc (500 words)
3) Overview of proposed approach to storytelling (e.g., will the story be told from first- person pov, as an investigation, a history, etc.?) and style (e.g., verité, sit-down interviews,
etc.) (300 words)
4) Production details such as camera model; format; sound equipment to be used
5) Please state why you think your youth-produced segment will be critical to addressing the issue of guns in America (e.g., does it provide a new perspective, tell an untold story, challenge a stereotype, or serve to make the topic more complex?) and what kind of impact you would like it to have. (300 words)

Please attach in Word format AND cut/copy into body of email.