Antenna Documentary Film Festival invites Australian filmmakers nation-wide to submit their documentary feature films to its 6th Rough Cut Lab, to be held in July 2025. 

The Antenna Rough Cut Lab is a workshop designed to pair local filmmakers with industry mentors from around the world, supporting them in refining their films and completing them with clarity and confidence, while identifying new paths to global audiences.

Three to four feature-length documentaries at rough-cut stage will be selected for the Lab, and their creative teams will receive access to these international experts and decision-makers and be provided coaching and advice on storytelling, editing, marketing, sales and festival strategies. 

Antenna Rough Cut Lab is provided free of charge, thanks to the support of Screen NSW and the City of Sydney. 

The Rough Cut Lab Mentors this year are: 

Caitlin Mae Burke
Emmy-winning producer and Oscar-shortlisted Executive Producer, Caitlin’s work has been broadcast and screened in movie theaters internationally, recognised with Emmy, Grand Clio, and Gotham Awards, and nominated for Critic’s Choice, Independent Spirit, and Cinema Eye Honors. Caitlin is currently Head of Production & Development at Sandbox Films, an award-winning documentary studio that provides creative and financial support for artist-driven films exploring the world — and beyond — with curiosity, creativity, and humanity. Its slate of critically acclaimed films includes the Academy Award–nominated Fire of Love (2022).

Elizabeth Lo is an award-winning director whose films have premiered at festivals including Venice, TIFF, Sundance, Tribeca, IDFA, MoMA, CPH:DOX, True/False, and in The New York Times Op-Docs. Her debut feature Stray premiered at Tribeca in 2020, won Best International Feature at Hot Docs, and was nominated for multiple awards at the Independent Spirit Awards, Critics Choice Documentary Awards, and Cinema Eye Honors. Her latest feature, Mistress Dispeller (2024), had its world premiere at the 81st Venice International Film Festival, where it won two awards, and was selected for the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival.  

Simon Price is an Australian-based award-winning documentary and fiction film editor. Simon has brought his craft and story skills to acclaimed feature films and documentaries such as Ruin (2013) Antarctica: A Year on Ice (2013) Free in Deed (2015) The Leunig Fragments (2019) Martha: A Picture Story (2019), In My Blood It Runs (2019), and Bad Behaviour (2023).

The Antenna Rough Cut Lab will be held on the 19 and 21 of July 2025. Applications are now open and will close on July 4. 

ENQUIRIES Luis Antonio Cervantes – program@antennafestival.org