Below is an opportunity to bring your stories to the screen.**OPEN CALL for STORY Submissions — Deadline: July 1st, 2014**In partnership with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Sundance Institute has two contests, one contest for stories, one for short films:
The Challenge: Share your unique, compelling and personal Story (fiction or documentary) to be made into a Short Film by a renowned Sundance Institute filmmaker. Tell us a Story that explores empowering individuals or communities who are overcoming poverty and hunger, combatting disease, or improving health in all parts of our world. Your Story can be imaginative, unorthodox, daring or simple and must touch on economic inequalities.

The Goal: Let’s use the power of independent film and collective creativity to inspire a global conversation around innovative solutions that real people are using to conquer these challenges.

The Reward: FIVE winning Story submitters will each earn $1,000 and ONE of those Stories will be made into a Short Film to be directed by a Sundance Institute filmmaker. That Short Film will be shown at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival, and its Story author will receive an all-expenses paid trip to attend the Film Festival as the Special Guest of Sundance Institute and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

To submit a story, **NOTE–You can submit up to FIVE stories:http://tongal.com/project/SundanceStory#tab-brief

To submit a short film (for those projects who have videographers or filmmakers), please go to this link, **NOTE–You can submit up to FIVE videos:http://tongal.com/sundance#.
Prize is $10,000 for award winners and receive an all-expenses paid trip to attend the Film Festival.

To read the Huffington Post article, “Sundance And Gates Foundation Challenge You To Create A Video That Matters” for background and three short films that premiered at Sundance 2014 for inspiration:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/05/sundance-gates-foundation_n_4875141.html