Next Talent Program

Next is a talent program for those who make innovative creative visual representations and explore the boundaries of the moving image.

Next was initiated in 2016 by Playgrounds as a result of our efforts for talent and talent development in our festivals. We wanted to sustain these efforts in a new program. Next was the first talent program in The Netherlands that guided in an interdisciplinary way, with animators, illustrators, XR artists to documentary filmers and fiction filmers. Visual artists that work cross disciplinary to tell their story are the core of Next.

 

Next supports individuals and collectives within the creative industries who strongly pant for possibilities to move on, broaden and deepen skills.

Next is a new tailor sized program intending to further local talent in tight collaboration with the industry, creative and educational field. The program supports local talents by using all means and individual guidance and coaching.

The needs of the talent are leading and will result in tailor-made programs with which we support and co-construct a track record for each of our talents.

We want to boost the creative industry in the region of Noord-Brabant by allowing talents the resources, people and knowledge to kick-start their careers, initiate and produce new projects and create or broaden their (inter)national network.

History

This talent program was created in 2016, on the initiative of Playgrounds. Playgrounds already had a number of talent development activities, such as workshops, awards and the development of new work, but wanted to formalize this and gain more visibility for talents and the need to invest time and budget in talent development. In Next, the connections that Playgrounds has made for more than a decade between talents and the professional field are structurally embedded and supported by a broad network.

Together with 6 national partners, the first talent development trajectory Next was designed in 2016 and is still running today. At the end of 2019, the trajectory was expanded with documentary film and photography. And in 2020 we were able to also offer guidance to fiction film makers. Talents involved in animation, illustration, virtual reality, games and visual effects, documentary and fiction are now included in the process.

Nowadays the Next trajectory is supported by 10 partners: Playgrounds, BROET, Submarine Channel, The Panics, Herrie Film & TV, Art Academy St. Joost, Natlab, Studio Biarritz, BredaPhoto and Kaboom animation festival.

Selection of the talents 

Talents for Next are forwarded by the national and regional industry. Besides the obvious freshly graduates, we look for talents in diverse disciplines and with varied backgrounds: film and image makers who have earned their credits and are at a point in their career about to take and investigate new paths or directions.

The partners in Next, consisting of representatives from the industry and former Next talents selects eight talents per trajectory. A program, tailored to the specific needs and wishes of each talent, is set up.

For at least one year these talents commit themselves to their personal talent-program and work together with coaches, professionals and advisors to nourish their needs for knowledge and skills in all kinds of fields and levels.

Next Academy

We believe in sharing. Next stimulates new partnerships and collaborations. Within Screen Talent NL we share ideas with other national  talenthubs and we are delighted Netflix is supporting us in the development of our academy program.
Within Next Academy we open up access to many workshops and masterclasses to a broad range of talents and professionals.
Please look for all Next activities in our online agenda and join our talents!

Financial support

Next is kindly supported by Provincie Noord-Brabant, FilmFund, Netflix and all involved partners.

Playgrounds/Next is funding partner of Screen Talent NL together with New Noardic Wave and CineSud.

Image header: Josefien van Kooten

News

Past Next activities

27 January 2023
Next Academy: masterclass Pitchworthy Characters by Netflix’s Chris Mack
30 September 2022
Next Academy: master talk by screenwriter Amira Duynhouwer (Dutch spoken)
14 July 2022
Next Academy: Mastertalk by Mascha van Erven (Disney+)
Insights in drama series
2 July 2021
Next Academy: Masterclass script writing by Jolein Laarman
26 February 2021
Next Academy x KONKAV: Online Masterclass ‘All about the film producer’
29 January 2021
Next Academy: Online Masterclass Immersive Storytelling by Nienke Huitenga
16 December 2020
Next Academy: Research for film by Manon van der Sluys
25 September 2020
Next Academy: masterclass by Jurjen Blick
23 August 2020 - 9 October 2020
Next Academy x CineSud: Writers Room Documentary
SOLD OUT
23 August 2020 - 9 October 2020
Next Academy x CineSud: Writers Room Fiction
SOLD OUT
19 October 2019 - 26 October 2019

I LIKE YOU AND YOU LIKE I by DION SOETHOUDT
an inquiry into living productivity - performance @DDW
13 September 2019
Next Academy – workshop Riso printing by Wobby.club
28 June 2019 - 14 July 2019
Playgrounds Expo // Outside the line by Jelle van Meerendonk
19 April 2019 - 19 May 2019
Playgrounds Expo // Dreamscape by Iris Frankhuizen
15 March 2019
WORKSHOP TIME MANAGEMENT
Next Academy
22 February 2019
WORKSHOP WHO I AM & WHAT I WANT
Next Academy
26 January 2019
WE ARE NEXT – NEXT TALENTS EXPOSED
expo @ Cultuurnacht Breda
21 June 2018 - 15 July 2018
Playgrounds Expo // Niels Hoebers, Loek Vugs and Marleine van der Werf
EXPO
1 October 2017 - 31 March 2018
Playgrounds Expo // Visionary Villages
By Bram Knol and Vera van Wolferen
6 July 2017 - 24 September 2017
Playgrounds Expo // Vera van Wolferen

For Next partners from all sides of the industry are involved:

AKV Sint JoostBroetHerrie Film & TVKaboomNatlabSubmarine ChannelThe PanicsBredaphotoKunstloc BrabantProvincie Noord-Brabant
Playgrounds

Funding partners

Provincie Noord-BrabantFilmfondsKunstloc Brabant
Netflix

Network partners

CinesudNew Noardic WaveBeeld en geluidKONKAVStudio Biarritz