About the Hubert Bals Fund

The Hubert Bals Fund supports groundbreaking film projects in every stage of the production process, working especially with filmmakers from countries where local film funding and infrastructure is lacking or restrictive. The HBF focuses on supporting filmmakers from Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Middle East and parts of Eastern Europe (full list here).

The fund functions in tandem with the activities of IFFR Pro, which include talent training, providing networking opportunities, and hosting the co-production market CineMart.

History

The Hubert Bals Fund was founded in 1988 and named after the founder and first director of IFFR, Hubert ‘Huub’ Bals, who had envisioned a fund that would help filmmakers working outside of the Western world to get projects off the ground. His sudden death in 1988 spurred the creation of such a fund in his name. 

Since then, over its more than 35 year history, the fund has offered a launchpad to some of the most distinguished filmmakers working across the world today. HBF-supported films premiere at major film festivals, reach wide audiences and find significant critical success. More than 1,100 projects have been supported to date.

Complete Results 1988–2024

The following document (updated January 2024) gives a complete and conclusive overview of all projects that have been supported by the Hubert Bals Fund since its establishment in 1988. 

Apply for support

If you’re a filmmaker with a project, you can find everything you need to know about applying for support from the Hubert Bals Fund on our practical information pages.