The Jacques Salmanowitz Program for Moral Courage in Film is devoted to encouraging the production of films concerned with acts of moral courage, providing role models for youth world-wide.
The Salmanowitz Program serves as a resource for independent filmmakers, university students, and faculty across the disciplines who wish to create documentaries that will inspire future generations.
The Program is named for Jacques Salmanowitz, a Swiss businessman, who was instrumental in bringing individuals trapped behind German lines in World War II to safety in Switzerland.
The Salmanowitz Program is established through a five-year grant which commenced March, 2001. The Program is Fine Arts Department at Boston College and made possible by a grant from the Documentaries International Film and Video Foundation, Washington, DC. The grant establishes the Salmanowitz Professor who advises potential producers on the implementation of new documentary projects. Further, the grant supports the Assistant Director, a student from within the Fine Arts Department, who provides research and logistical support for the program.
The Salmanowitz Program offers the following resources and assistance to both professional and student filmmakers:
Advice and Consultation
The Program provides consultation on all phases of pre-production, production, and post-production to help guide producers to successful completion of their films.
Funding Database
The Salmanowitz Program has developed a database of over 400 potential funders that provide support for films on the subject of moral courage. This database includes information from the most current foundation registries.
Film Archive
The Salmanowitz Program maintains an extensive list of completed films and their distributors so that potential producers may develop projects that are distinct and unique.
Distribution
The Salmanowitz Program is particularly interested in placing these new and important films on moral courage in high school classrooms around the world. We will work with school officials to bring completed projects to classroom audiences, in an effort to encourage all students to recognize that they, too, have the ability to make a positive difference. The databases and archive mentioned above will be available for on-line use shortly.
If you are a filmmaker of any kind—accomplished or aspiring—contact either the Program Director or the current Assistant Director with your story ideas for films in moral courage at any phase of production, from concept to post-production. Let us help you turn your ideas into a finished project.
