CED — MEDIA offices from Croatia, Cyprus, Montenegro, Greece, Hungary, and Serbia are organising the fifth edition of the online TV series event Series Rough Pitch – The Balkan Way #5, in collaboration with the Croatian Audiovisual Centre, the Film Centre of Montenegro, and the Film Centre Serbia.
The pitch event is aimed at development-stage TV fiction series projects, and up to eight projects will be presented online to a jury of industry experts (names of representatives from co-production markets, broadcasters, etc., will be announced later).Following the pitching session, the jury will award a €5,000 cash prize to one project for further development. Additional awards will also be given.
The video pitch preparation workshop will be led by experienced, international coaches Valeria Richter (scriptwriter) and Helene Granqvist (producer).
The call is open to applicants coming from Cyprus, Montenegro, Greece, Croatia, Hungary, and Serbia.
Applicants must be available to participate in the preparatory pitch workshop, which takes place October 20–25, 2025, while the pitching event will be held online on October 30, 2025, starting at noon (CET). As the video pitches will be recorded and delivered before the event, all participants must attend the workshop and be available to answer questions from the jury. It is not possible to participate in the pitch event without taking part in the workshop.
Workshop schedule:
- 20 October: 09:30 – 18:00 (8 projects with both coaches)
- 21 October: 09:30 – 13:30 (4 projects with Valeria Richter) and 11:00 – 15:00 (4 projects with Helene Granqvist)
- 22–23 October: individual work, including video pitch preparation
- 25 October: 10:00 – 14:00 (8 projects with both coaches)
Application materials
Please send the following materials (in English) to info@epcr.org.cy by October 5, 2025, midnight (CET) :
- Logline + Season Synopsis (max 1½ pages + ½ page contact information**)
- Moodboard (max 1 page)
- CV + short 5-line bio (max 2 pages total)
- Motivation letter (max 1 page – why this series? why you? vision for the project as creator). These four texts should be combined into a single Word document.
- Portrait photo of the participant (max 2 MB, attached separately)
** Please include contact information and series details at the top of the Word document:
number + length of episodes, format, genre, language(s), stage of development and financing, and any co-producers.
About the coaches:
Helene Granqvist and Valeria Richter have extensive experience in the international film and TV industry and have collaborated on several film projects and training events. Together they cover a wide range of fiction, documentary, and TV series expertise, and are actively engaged in creating innovative development and script labs for both young talents and experienced filmmakers. They currently finance and run a new industry-wide lab format and initiative focused on sustainability and new ways of developing, producing, and connecting films and TV series with audiences.
Helene Granqvist
Helene is an award-winning producer who has worked in film and television for more than 30 years. Her films have been represented at major festivals such as Sundance, Cannes, Toronto, and San Sebastian. She is frequently engaged as a coach and lecturer, both in Sweden and internationally. From 2013, Helene has been Chair of Women in Film & Television Sweden, and from 2018 to 2023 she served as President of Women in Film & Television International (WIFTI). She is a member of the European Film Academy and a co-founder of ARTEF (Anti-Racist Taskforce for European Film). She is based in Southern Sweden.
Valeria Richter
Valeria works internationally and, since 1997, has been writing, developing, and consulting in the areas of feature films, TV series, lab innovation, script development, and pitching; she regularly consults for funds, industry events, and film institutes. She is head writer/creator of the TV drama series Next of Kin (premiered on Elisa Viihde, 2022). Valeria has developed several lab concepts, including a three-year Nordic Genre Boost for Nordisk Film & TV Fond, POWR and EmPOWR Lab/Industry@Tallinn Baltic Event, and created TorinoFilmLab’s audience design concept. She holds an MA in Film & Media Studies and is a member of EFA and the Danish Writers’ Guild. She is based in Copenhagen, Denmark.
