Cate Blanchett, Cynthia Erivo Launch New Displacement Film Fund
Cate Blanchett, a Goodwill Ambassador for the refugee agency UNHCR, is teaming up with International Film Festival Rotterdam’s Hubert Bals Fund to introduce a refugee-focused short film grant program called the Displacement Film Fund.
According to the IFFR, “the Displacement Film Fund is established to champion and fund the work of displaced filmmakers, or filmmakers with a proven track record in creating authentic storytelling on the experiences of displaced people.”
The fund will grant five filmmakers €100,000 ($104,000) each for their production in its pilot phase.
Australian actor and film producer Cate Blanchett will head the selection committee and will be accompanied by Cynthia Erivo, Oscar-nominated actress for Wicked and Harriet; Waad Al-Kateab, Oscar-nominated director for For Sama; Agnieszka Holland, director of Green Border and an Oscar nominee for Europa Europa; Vanja Kaludjercic, IFFR festival director; Aisha Khurram, educator, and refugee activist; Jonas Poher Rasmusse, filmmaker for Oscar-nominated Flee; and Amin Nawabi, which is an alias for the LGBTQ+ asylum seeker who was the inspiration for the story of Flee.
Blanchett explains her motivation, stating, “Film can drop you into the texture and realities of someone’s life like no other art form. Working with UNHCR I have engaged in both the large-scale impact and the vast statistics of forced displacement as an issue faced by millions of people – but I have also been fortunate to meet affected people directly and engage with their stories and experiences.”
“It is this aim of creating personal, intimate touchpoints that the Displacement Film Fund is driven by,” she continues. “When people are forced to leave their homes, they lose access to the most basic support, but as artists they also lose access to the means to make work at a time when it is more vital than ever. I’m grateful to the Hubert Bals Fund and the coalition of supremely talented individuals we’ve gathered around this collective effort to step into that gap.”
The program will officially launch on February 1 at an IFFR panel. Cate Blanchett; Koji Yanai, a Uniqlo executive and one of the producers of Perfect Days; Al-Kateab; Poher Rasmussen; and Tamara Tatishvili, the head of HBF, will speak at the panel, and Uzma Hasan will moderate.
UNHCR-ambassadeur Cate Blanchett lanceert in samenwerking met het Internationaal Film Festival Rotterdam @IFFR een nieuw fonds om het werk van gevluchte filmmakers en verhalen over ontheemding te financieren en te promoten! https://t.co/RNutK1DgKo
— UNHCR Nederland (@UNHCR_Nederland) January 28, 2025
According to the UNHCR, 117.3 million people worldwide are forcibly displaced. With the establishment of this film fund, some of these individuals will be able to share their stories with the rest of the world.
Oscar-nominated director and member of the program’s selection committee Waad Al-Kateab expresses, “This project represents not only an opportunity to amplify underrepresented voices but also a vital step towards empowering filmmakers to share their stories of resilience, identity, and hope. I believe this process can create profound connections between communities and inspire meaningful change…”
Learn more about the IFFR here.