Kids' Documentary Series

The Children's Documentary Exchange shares high-quality, original, true-life documentaries for an audience aged 10 to 12.

The main characters of these 15' documentary films show us the unfolding drama of their lives by telling the story from a child's perspective and in their own words. These are stories of universal appeal through which the viewer will also catch a glimpse of the diverse national cultures of Europe. The films are produced on a common theme "I Can Do It": Children showing courage.

Created over 20 years ago, the exchange series is based on the principle of ‘make one, take all’, where each broadcaster produces one episode and receives the others for free. The only other cost a participating country has to bear is a contribution to a central budget covering the executive producer and a part of the EBU's coordination costs.

Programmes in distribution

A selection of films from the past 10 years is available here for screening.

The series from previous years are available for sale. Please contact Karen Simha for further information.

Participation Schedule (2023)

January

Deadline to confirm participation
Selection of a national Director/Producer

February

Submission of 2 story proposals
Submission of a casting proposal

April

Production Meeting with the Executive Producer
Final treatment available

May to September

Production and Post Production phases

September to October  

Rough Cuts Meeting
Delivery of films to the EBU (screening + broadcast versions)

December

Screening and Exchange of films

Additional Information on format

  • 2023 theme: "I Can Do It"
  • Stories for Children aged 10 to 12 (but should be suitable for an audience aged 8 to 12)
  • Protagonist should not exceed the age of 12
  • Child-centred. The child him/herself shall tell the story in his/her own words.

Rights

10 years (as of 31 December of the production year) / exclusive, transferable and worldwide in any language.

Details

Format

Genre

Co-production or content offer

Duration
15’ Documentaries. The number of programmes varies between 6 and 10 (or more)

Language
National languages with English script / International version delivered

Year of production
2023

Delivery
Early 2024

Executive Producer
Phillis Fermer (Fermer Film)

Participating Broadcasters
BBC Alba, CYBC, ERT, NHK, RAI, RTCG, RTE, RTP, RTS, RTVSK, RTVSLO and ZDF

Budget/Cost
Between EUR 5,000 and EUR 8,000 depending on the number of participants

Contact detail

Karen Simha
Senior Project Manager
+41 22 717 2885
simha@ebu.ch