with Claus Herzog-Reichel and Mario von Grumbkow
Date: Sat, 09.05. – Sun, 10.05.2026
Registration deadline: Sun, 26.04.2026
Target group: Beginners & advanced participants
The online seminar provides a comprehensive overview of the film industry and its players in Germany and Europe. Using concrete examples from practice, we show how an initial idea becomes a market-ready project, which strategic decisions need to be made along the way and which partners become important at what point in time. Different paths and strategies will be visualised in an exchange with the projects and questions from the participants.
The seminar is aimed at aspiring and experienced filmmakers (screenwriters, directors, producers) who want to gain a foothold in the industry and/or have a concrete project (documentary, feature or short film) in the early development phase that is ready for the market.
The following questions will be dealt with in the seminar:
Market positioning
– How is the film industry structured and which players are there?
– Who am I in this industry, what role(s) do I have and what is the best way to act?
– How can my project be a career starter?
Script development
– How do I finance the development of my screenplay?
– What conditions should my screenplay fulfil?
– How do I recognise whether my screenplay is ready for the market?
– Who will help me develop my screenplay?
– How should I think about the evaluation of the project right from the start?
Funding
– How can I convince others of my project – what is sought and funded?
– How is the German funding landscape structured and what (unwritten) laws are there?
– Which partners (production, broadcasters, distributors, sales) are relevant in which project phase?
– How does cooperation with TV broadcasters, distributors and sales agents work and when and how do I contact them?
Networking
– My network – why it’s so important.
– How and where do I network?
– Film festivals – a strategy for sustainable success.
The topics and projects of the participants are discussed interactively. Individual strategies are developed in short inputs and joint evaluations – true to the motto: film is teamwork and networking.
Claus Herzog-Reichel (*1986) works as a producer for European cinema in Cologne. In 2019, he and Mehmet Akif Büyükatalay were honoured with the “First Feature Award” at the 69th Berlinale for “Oray”. In 2020, he founded filmfaust GmbH together with Mehmet Akif Büyükatalay. In 2023, he was nominated for the German Film Award for the documentary “Liebe, D-Mark und Tod” by Cem Kaya; the film received the Grimme Award in 2024. In 2024, the short film “Immaculata” by Kim Lêa Sakkal was invited to the Directors’ Fortnight in Cannes. The projects he produced, “Hysteria” and “Sirens Call”, both premiered at the Berlinale 2025. He is currently developing a slate of 5 international feature film projects.
As Executive Producer, he has realised all projects together with Mario von Grumbkow.
Claus Herzog-Reichel is a member of Filmbüro NW, an alumnus of the Rotterdam Producer Labs, Berlinale Talents and the Mediengründerzentrum NRW as well as a member of the German Film Academy. In 2024 he was part of LocarnoPro (A4D) with “A Paradise Lost”. He regularly gives workshops on financing & creative production at the Filmwerkstatt Münster, the Mediengründerzentrum NRW and is involved in jury activities.
Mario von Grumbkow (*1989) has been working as a production manager for companies such as augenschein Filmproduktion, filmfaust, 2 Pilots Filmproduction, Outside The Club, MADE IN GERMANY Filmproduktion and Bildersturm Filmproduktion since 2020. As the administrative arm of the producers, he is responsible for all financial, legal and funding aspects of fictional and documentary cinema and TV films.
This includes the financing, calculation, contract design, team management, filming support and realisation of projects and co-productions with France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Latvia, Lithuania, Switzerland, Austria, Finland, Iceland, Luxembourg, Turkey and the USA.
Most recently, Mario von Grumbkow worked on the feature films “Hysteria” (Int. Filmfestspiele Berlin 2025 – Panorama section) and “The Assignment” (premiere 2026) and the cinema documentaries “Sirens Call” (Int. Filmfestspiele Berlin 2025 – Forum section), “Fritz Litzmann, mein Vater und ich” and “Liebe, D-Mark und Tod” (Int. Filmfestspiele Berlin 2022 – Panorama section) – among many other projects in the financing phase. As an alumnus of the Academy of Media Arts Cologne and the Mediengründerzentrum NRW, producer (“Luz” and “Fritz Litzmann, mein Vater und ich”) and author of his own material, Mario von Grumbkow is an experienced sparring partner in all dramaturgical and financial dimensions of filmmaking – especially when it comes to the discrepancy between artistic aspirations and profitability.
He is a member of the Filmbüro NW and the Bundesverband Herstellung- und Produktionsleitung.
Dates: Sat, 09.05. – Sun, 10.05.2026, 10am – 5pm
Registration deadline: Sun, 26.04.2026
Costs: Early-Bird* 200 € / Reduced 220 € / Regular 260 €
Further information on funding options can be found here
Target group: beginners & advanced participants
Number: min. 6 participants / max. 10 participants
Language: German
Location: Online (Zoom)
*Are you registering early for the seminar? Our early bird discount applies up to 2 weeks before the registration deadline. As an early bird, you only pay €200 for the seminar.
The seminar is the second of three parts of the Successfully Producing Films series, which build on each other but can also be booked independently.
Seminar series: Tue, 17 March 2026, 7pm-9pmSuccessfully Producing Films 1 – Offstage: Online Talk with filmfaust GmbH Sat, 09 May – Sun, 10 May 2026, 10am – 5pm
Successfully Producing Films 2 – Set the Stage: Industry, Actors & Networks
Sat, 06.06. – Sun, 07.06.2026, 10am – 5pm
Producing Films Successfully 3 – Show me the Money: Financing & Calculation