ARCHIVE

July 28 – July 30 + September 1 – September 26, 2025
on-site and online
Max. 10 participants
Fee: 1500€
EARLIER APPLICATION DEADLINE: JUNE 25, 2025

From concept to first draft in 23 days: This intensive seminar guides you from your first idea to the first draft of your feature film screenplay in 23 days. It is divided into two modules: 3 days to test and deepen your concept, as well as
find the structure of your screenplay, followed by 20 days of writing the screenplay.
The seminar introduces and elaborates essential writing tools and offers hands-on advice from three experienced professionals, who help you navigate your writing journey all the way to the first draft.

To make it easier for participants from outside Munich to take part in the course, it will be held on a hybrid basis:
July 28 – 30: The first three days will take place at the HFF, but there is also an option to attend via Zoom. However, on-site attendance is definitely recommended.
September 1 – 19: The first 15 days via Zoom.
September 22 – 26: Final week at the HFF (in person).

Important: The seminar combines theory instruction with writing sprints and Writers’ Room feedback in the group each day. Attendance is essential for all 23 days – via Zoom and on-site.
Suitable for beginners and professionals. For brand-new ideas as well as for concepts you’ve wanted to write for a long time.

Application materials:
1. Declaration of Consent (available for download down below)
2. CV including filmography (if available)
3. Idea for a feature film / exposé, summarized on a maximum of 1-2 pages

Workshop Leaders: Florian Puchert, Romina Ecker

​September 1 – September 12, 2025
on-site
max 12 participants
Fee: 600€
Application deadline: July 20, 2025

WOMEN WRITING LAB is a workshop by award-winning and Oscar®-nominated writer & director Robin Swicord, who has written the books for THE JANE AUSTEN BOOK CLUB, THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON, or LITTLE WOMEN, among others. In a week-long workshop setting, you will learn practical tools for creating compelling stories that are well-founded in the essential elements of drama. We will address the development of strong original characters, and how all story rises from character. We will explore the use of themes to ground every story in universal meaning. Through guided exercises, you’ll develop your own instincts for story, character, and powerful, visual scenes. During daily writing hours, you will expand and develop your own story ideas, and refine your ideas in individual mentoring sessions with the workshop leader, Robin Swicord.
The goal of the workshop is for each participating writer to develop a full story as a detailed treatment for a feature film or a multi-part episodic TV story, which will become the immediate blueprint for your screenplay. This is the workshop that will launch you into your first draft, or your next draft.

Application requirements:
1. Declaration of Consent (available for download below)
2. CV including filmography (if available)
3. Writing sample (maximum of 5 pages)
4. Feedback on a list of questions (available for download below (Feedback on Women Writing Lab Topics))

Workshop Leader: Robin Swicord

September 9 – September 12, 2025
on-site
Max. 16 participants
Fee: 750€
Application deadline: July 20, 2025

This 4-day hands-on workshop lead by Oscar winner Ruby Yang and Lola winner Uli Gaulke from Hongkong University invites participants to explore how Generative AI can support documentary storytelling—especially when visual material is missing or incomplete. Each participant will create a short (3–5 minute) documentary portrait of a real person, drawing from interviews, personal memory, letters, or public records.

The focus lies on portraying individuals whose stories include past events, memories, or emotional experiences that lack visual documentation. Using Generative AI tools, participants will learn how to fill these visual gaps creatively and ethically:

• Still photos can be animated to represent memories or moments being described by the person
• AI-generated reenactments can visualize events, environments, or scenes that were never filmed
• AI animations inspired by films like Waltz with Bashir can be used to depict internal states, trauma, or subjective truths
• Synthetic voiceovers can bring written material (e.g. speeches, letters, testimonies) to life or reconstruct the voice of someone no longer present

Through this process, participants will explore how AI-generated visuals and sound can open new storytelling possibilities in nonfiction filmmaking, while also critically engaging with the ethical and artistic questions these technologies raise.

Prerequisites:

• Basic editing skills; participants should bring a laptop and headphones
• Idea for a documentary short film on the themes of family, portrait, first-person doc: the idea should include AI reenactments and/or AI visuals
• any kind of material related to the idea (family pictures, super 8 video, found footage) as reference for the AI

Application materials:
1. Declaration of Consent (available for download down below)
2. CV including filmography (if available)
3. Motivational letter: half page why you want to participate in this workshop
4. Idea for a documentary short film, summarized on a maximum of 1 page

Workshop Leaders: Ruby Yang, Uli Gaulke

September 15 – September 20, 2025
on-site
Max. 20 participants
Fee: 600€
Application deadline: July 20, 2025

This workshop is about telling stories through moving images – it means that we will concentrate on everything that happens when our scripts, our ideas and feelings are being transformed into images, shots and scenes of our films.
This workshop programme starts with simple things concerning space, shots and images. Then it deals with characters and relationship between them and at the end of the workshop we will concentrate on the narrative.

In the first part of the workshop we will talk about the special task of film beginnings and analyze examples. The second part will be about communication with the audience (The Deal with the audience). Why and how we need to communicate with the audience ( Breakdown, how to break a scene in to shots). This will be explained in the analysis of key scenes.

Application materials:
1. Declaration of Consent (available for download below)
2. CV with filmography (if available)
3. Motivational Statement for this course (half a page)

Workshop Leader: Hagen Keller

September 15 – September 19, 2025
on-site
max 12 participants
Fee: 750€
Application deadline: July 20, 2025

Guided by the creators of the succesful AI writing workshop I’m Your Staff Writer, you will be taking the next step in this five-day workshop:
You’ll learn how series are developed today – in a collaborative Writers’ Room setting, with AI as your creative sparring partner. Together, we’ll create a fictional series from scratch: From the initial pitch deck to laying the foundation for a pilot episode – including the structure of the first act.

What you’ll learn:

• How to craft a compelling pitch deck
• How characters, worldbuilding, and story structure work together
• How to use AI meaningfully in the Writers’ Room
• How to structure and begin writing a pilot episode
• How collaborative teamwork drives the series development process – agile, creative, and focused

Technology is evolving rapidly. Workshop content and methods may be adapted and further developed accordingly.

This workshop is aimed at writers, creatives, and storytellers who:

• Have some experience with serial storytelling (TV, streaming, audio, etc.)
• Enjoy collaborative writing and dynamic group work
• Are curious about integrating AI into their writing workflow
• Are ready to explore and experiment in a professional-level development process

Prerequisites: Participants must bring their own laptop. This must support browser-based AI tools (e.g. ChatGPT)

Application material:
1. Declaration of Consent (steht weiter unten zum Download bereit)
2. CV including filmography (if available)
3. Motivational statement: Why do you want to take part in the workshop? What experience do you have with serial storytelling? How do you see the use of AI in the creative process?
4. Optional: Project idea (max. 1 page). Focus on the theme of the series, not the plot. Choose an idea that is worth telling NOW and why. This is not required, but can help with team building.

Workshop Leaders: Taç Romey, Markus Walsch

​23rd September – 27th September 2024
Max. 10 Participants
Fee: 750€
Application deadline: 31st July, 2024

• hybrid

From idea to treatment in five days:
This intensive seminar introduces essential dramaturgical tips and tools, deepens them and combines theory with writing sprints and feedback from day one. With dramaturgical guidance from experienced writers & instructors, participants will write a complete treatment for a feature film within 5 days. Suitable for beginners and professionals. For brand-new ideas as well as for concepts that have long wanted to be written.

Prerequisite: The idea for a feature film, summarized on a maximum of 1-3 pages.

Goal: Creation of a treatment for a feature film.

Application requirements:
1. Letter of agreement (available for download under the “Application” tab)
2. Current CV with filmography
3. An idea for a feature film / exposé, summarized on a maximum of 1-2 pages

Workshop Leader: Florian Puchert, Romina Ecker

9th September – 14th September 2024
Max. 14 Participants
Fee: 500€
Application deadline: 31st July, 2024

• on -site

This workshop is about telling stories through moving images – it means that we will concentrate on everything that happens when our scripts, our ideas and feelings are being transformed into images, shots and scenes of our films.
This workshop programme starts with simple things concerning space, shots and images. Then it deals with characters and relationship between them and at the end of the workshop we will concentrate on the narrative.

In the first part of the workshop we will talk about the special task of film beginnings and analyze examples. The second part will be about communication with the audience (The Deal with the audience). Why and how we need to communicate with the audience ( Breakdown, how to break a scene in to shots). This will be explained in the analysis of key scenes.

Application requirements:
1. Letter of agreement (available for download under the “Application” tab)
2. Current CV with filmography
3. Write half a page about your motivation for this course

Workshop Leader: Hagen Keller

23. September . – 27. September 2024
Max. 10 Participants
Application deadline: August 8th, 2024

• on-site

The workshop is aimed at filmmakers who are interested in how to use AI in film projects. It will give an overview of the most important AI tools from film development to film production, help experimenting with them as well as show the current possibilities and limitations. Participation is possible with and without experience with AI applications. You can come with your own project ( optional ). We will take a closer look at different parts of filmmaking where AI is already being used – from scriptwriting, to image and video generation, to the creation of sounds, voices and music. For this, we will use the AI tools that are state-of-the art at the time of the workshop. We will also discuss the legal and ethical challenges of these tools and learn about the current regulations. You will need your own laptop.

Application requirements:
1. Letter of agreement (available for download under the “Application” tab)
2. Current CV (with filmography)
3. half a page about your motivation for this course
4. Laptop
5. optional: short description of your project idea

Dozierende: Prof. Sylvia Rothe, Dr. Gerd Hansen

2nd September – 11th September 2024
12 Participants
Fee: 500€
Application deadline: 31st July, 2024

• on -site

WOMEN WRITING LAB is a workshop by award-winning and Oscar®-nominated writer & director Robin Swicord, who has written the books for THE JANE AUSTEN BOOK CLUB, THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON, or LITTLE WOMEN, among others. In a week-long workshop setting, you will learn practical tools for creating compelling stories that are well-founded in the essential elements of drama. We will address the development of strong original characters, and how all story rises from character. We will explore the use of themes to ground every story in universal meaning. Through guided exercises, you’ll develop your own instincts for story, character, and powerful, visual scenes. During daily writing hours, you will expand and develop your own story ideas, and refine your ideas in individual mentoring sessions with the workshop leader, Robin Swicord.
The goal of the workshop is for each participating writer to develop a full story as a detailed treatment for a feature film or a multi-part episodic TV story, which will become the immediate blueprint for your screenplay. This is the workshop that will launch you into your first draft, or your next draft.

Application requirements:
1. Letter of agreement (available for download under the “Application” tab)
2. Current CV with filmography
3. A writing sample ( maximum of 5 pages )
4. Feedback on a list of questions (available for download under the “Application” tab)

Workshop Leader: Robin Swicord

19th July – 21st July + 4th September – 29th September 2023
Max. 10 Participants
Fee: 1250€
Application deadline: July 1st, 2023

• hybrid

From concept to first draft in 23 days: This intensive seminar guides you from your first idea to the first draft of your feature film screenplay in 23 days. It is divided into two modules: 3 days to test and deepen your concept, as well as
find the structure of your screenplay, followed by 20 days of writing the screenplay.
The seminar introduces and elaborates essential writing tools and offers hands-on advice from three experienced professionals, who help you navigate your writing journey all the way to the first draft.

To make it easier for participants from outside Munich to take part in the course, it will be held on a hybrid basis:
07/19-21: The first three days will take place at the HFF, but there is also an option to attend via Zoom. However, on-site attendance is definitely recommended.
09/04.-24.: The first 15 days via Zoom.
09/25.-29.: Final week at the HFF (in person).

Important: The seminar combines theory instruction with writing sprints and Writers’ Room feedback in the group each day. Attendance is essential for all 23 days – via Zoom and on-site.
Suitable for beginners and professionals. For brand-new ideas as well as for concepts you’ve wanted to write for a long time.

Application requirements:
1. Letter of agreement (available for download under the “Application” tab)
2. Current CV with filmography
3. An idea for a feature film / exposé, summarized on a maximum of 1-2 pages

Workshop Leader: Florian Puchert, Benedikt Schwarzer, Romina Ecker

4th September – 9th September 2023
Max. 14 Participants
Fee: 500€
Application deadline: July 31st, 2023

• on -site

This workshop is about telling stories through moving images – it means that we will concentrate on everything that happens when our scripts, our ideas and feelings are being transformed into images, shots and scenes of our films. This workshop programme starts with simple things concerning space, shots and images. Then it deals with characters and relationship between them and at the end of the workshop we will concentrate on the narrative.

In the first part of the workshop we will talk about the special task of film beginnings and analyze examples. The second part will be about communication with the audience (The Deal with the audience). Why and how we need to communicate with the audience ( Breakdown, how to break a scene in to shots). This will be explained in the analysis of key scenes.

Application requirements:
1. Letter of agreement (available for download under the “Application” tab)
2. Current CV with filmography
3. Write half a page about your motivation for this course

Workshop Leader: Hagen Keller

11th September – 21th September 2023
12 Participants
Fee: 750€
Application deadline: July 31st, 2023

• on -site

INTERNATIONAL SERIES MEETS AI is a 10-day masterclass by independent screenwriter and producer Prof. Taç Romey and cross-media professional Markus Walsch. The focus of this course is the development of 4-6 episodes for a mini-series, which will be pitched to film industry representatives at the end of the course. Likewise, a large component of the course is also the use of AI tools that can and are supposed to assist in this development. Also, previsuals for the individual pitches will be created with the help of AI generated images. How can artificial intelligence be used for creative work without losing one’s own style?

The course is about working on the perfect pitch with the support of mentors Taç Romey and Markus Walsch, learning about the link between creativity and AI, exchanging ideas together, making connections and finally presenting the material in front of a professional audience.

Application requirements:
1. Letter of agreement (available for download under the “Application” tab)
2. Current CV with filmography
3. Write one page about “Something Worth Fighting For”

Workshop leaders: Prof. Tac Romey, Markus Walsch, Ronit Weiss, Agnieszka Kruk, Prof. Sylvia Roth

18th – 27th September 2023
12 Participants
Fee: 500€
Application deadline: until July 31st, 2023

• on -site
  

WOMEN WRITING LAB is a workshop by award-winning and Oscar®-nominated writer & director Robin Swicord, who has written the books for THE JANE AUSTEN BOOK CLUB, THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON, or LITTLE WOMEN, among others. In a week-long workshop setting, you will learn practical tools for creating compelling stories that are well-founded in the essential elements of drama. We will address the development of strong original characters, and how all story rises from character. We will explore the use of themes to ground every story in universal meaning. Through guided exercises, you’ll develop your own instincts for story, character, and powerful, visual scenes. During daily writing hours, you will expand and develop your own story ideas, and refine your ideas in individual mentoring sessions with the workshop leader, Robin Swicord.
The goal of the workshop is for each participating writer to develop a full story as a detailed treatment for a feature film or a multi-part episodic TV story, which will become the immediate blueprint for your screenplay. This is the workshop that will launch you into your first draft, or your next draft.

Application requirements:
1. Letter of agreement (available for download under the “Application” tab)
2. Current CV with filmography
3. A one-pager with your dramaturgical concept for a feature-length film

Workshop Leader: Robin Swicord

25. September – 27. September 2023
14 TeilnehmerInnen
Fee: 350€
Bewerbungsschluss: 31. Juli 2023

• vor Ort

Angelehnt an John Vorhaus’ Bestseller COMIC TOOLBOX – ein Handbuch des Humors.

Anforderungen für die Bewerbung:
1. Einverständniserklärung (steht unter dem Reiter “Bewerbung” zum Download bereit)
2. Lebenslauf mit Filmografie
3. Ein halbseitiges Motivationsschreiben – was ist deine persönliche Verbindung zur Komödie? Was sind deine Ziele in diesem Bereich? Wieso möchtest du teilnehmen?

Dozierende: John Vorhaus

29th August – 11th September 2022
10 Participants
Fee: 800 € for externals
Application period: 20th June – 1st August 2022

Documentary film design
Practice Workshop: How to make your documentary a cohesive cinematic work of art.
Plan – shoot – cut

• on-site

A two-week hands-on seminar focusing on documentary work and design intent. Documentary films often fall short of their visual possibilities. The seminar is designed to give directors*, cinematographers and editors* concrete tools with which they can achieve strong visual work. The first week focuses on planning a creative concept and the associated camera work. The second week is the associated editing process.
It goes from planning the design concept to execution to evaluation and review. Following the seminar, an introduction and exercises on working with live-visual programs can be attended on two further days. This is intended to stimulate a new approach to the creative process of editing.

Academic Direction: Prof. Beatrice Babin

Workshop Leader: Paola Calvo,Patrick Jasim, Ginés Olivares

05th – 09th September 2022
10 Participants
Fee: 750 € for externals
Application period: 1st July – 10th August 2022

• online 

19th – 24th September 2022
16 Participants
Fee: 500 € for externals
Application period: 1th July- 15th August 2022

• hybrid

We go into the depth of directing serial formats and want to learn from the best. How do you successfully implement dramaturgical highlights of a series in a stage setting? How do we adapt to the needs of Production & Showrunner? Adaptation: what needs to be considered? Direction at an international world order such as THE CROWN: How can you succeed in cleverly integrating a personal handwriting into the dramaturgy and look of a well-known series? What role do regional characteristics play in a 30 something comedy series like SERVUS BABY? How can we dive into the world of WE ARE THE WAVE? And how do you share the responsibility in collaborating like in HACKERVILLE or a duo work as in THE BOAT Season III? Which do’s and don’s have to be considered when directing concepts of serial formats & where are the pitfalls?

Goal: In the end, each participant should develop a director’s concept with moods

Academic Direction: Prof. Tac Romey, Prof. Dr. Julia von Heinz

Moderation: Pauline Roenneberg

Workshop Leader: Baran Bo Odar, Christian Schwochow, Julia von Heinz, Anna Winger, Natalie Spinell

26th September – 05th October 2022
10 Participants
Fee: 600 € for externals
Application period: 15th July – 20th August 2022

• on-site

WOMEN WRITING LAB is a workshop by award-winning and Oscar®-nominated writer & director Robin Swicord, who has written the books for THE JANE AUSTEN BOOK CLUB, THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON, or LITTLE WOMEN, among others. In a week-long workshop setting, you will learn practical tools for creating compelling stories that are well-founded in the essential elements of drama. We will address the development of strong original characters, and how all story rises from character. We will explore the use of themes to ground every story in universal meaning. Through guided exercises, you’ll develop your own instincts for story, character, and powerful, visual scenes. During daily writing hours, you will expand and develop your own story ideas, and refine your ideas in individual mentoring sessions with the workshop leader, Robin Swicord.
The goal of the workshop is for each participating writer to develop a full story as a detailed treatment for a feature film or a multi-part episodic TV story, which will become the immediate blueprint for your screenplay. This is the workshop that will launch you into your first draft, or your next draft.

Workshop Leader: Robin Swicord

„STRENGTHENING YOUR SCREENWRITING TECHNIQUES” is a craft-based workshop designed to build on your foundational screenwriting skills. In a week-long workshop setting, you will learn practical tools for creating compelling stories that are well-founded in the essential elements of drama. We will address the development of strong original characters, and how all story rises from character. We will explore the use of themes to ground every story in universal meaning. Through guided exercises, you’ll develop your own instincts for story, character, and powerful, visual scenes. During daily writing hours, you will expand and develop your own story ideas, and refine your ideas in individual mentoring sessions with the workshop leader, Robin Swicord.
The goal of the workshop is for each participating writer to develop a full story as a detailed treatment for a feature film or a multi-part episodic TV story, which will become the immediate blueprint for your screenplay. This is the workshop that will launch you into your first draft, or your next draft.

Akademic direction: Natalie Spinell, Prof. Tac Romey
Speaker: Natalie Spinell, Taç Romey, Pauline Roenneberg, Anca Miruna Lăzărescu, Christian Schwochow, Dennis Gansel, Hans Steinbichler, Moritz Polter
Host: Pauline Roenneberg

We go into the depth of directing serial formats and want to learn from the best. How do you successfully implement dramaturgical highlights of a series in a stage setting? How do we adapt to the needs of Production & Showrunner? Adaptation: what needs to be considered? Direction at an international world order such as THE CROWN: How can you succeed in cleverly integrating a personal handwriting into the dramaturgy and look of a well-known series? What role do regional characteristics play in a 30 something comedy series like SERVUS BABY? How can we dive into the world of WE ARE THE WAVE? And how do you share the responsibility in collaborating like in HACKERVILLE or a duo work as in THE BOAT Season III? Which do’s and don’s have to be considered when directing concepts of serial formats & where are the pitfalls?

Goal: In the end, each participant should develop a director’s concept with moods

Target group: For a small group of max. 18 participants, including 9 students from the HFF Munich in the Directorate & Screenplay departments

This intensive seminar introduces and elaborates essential writing tools and combines theory, writing sprints and immediate feedback. Guided by experienced instructors you will write a full feature film treatment in 5 days. This seminar is for beginning writers and professionals alike, open for brand new ideas as well as for concepts you’ve always wanted to write.

Requirement: An idea for a feature film, summarized in 1-3 pages max.

Visual storytelling is the key to filmmaking and, because audio and moving image must come together, it is one of the most difficult art forms. Storyboards can help us find the right position and order of the characters in the scene, adjust the lighting and the movement of the camera. Storyboards can help us find the right position and order of the characters in the scene, adjust the lighting and the movement of the camera. Finding this translation from the words in the script to the final image in the storyboard sequence is practiced with existing scripts.

STORYBOARD I

– HFF München –
Workshop Leader: Prof- Michael Coldewey
06. September – 10. September 2021
Application Deadline: 1. September 2021
Guest Speaker: Tobias Schwarz
Max. 15 Participants
Fee: 500€
Translating a script into images, words into drawings, and giving visual expression to characters is a magical and wonderful process. Participants how to break down a script, develop floor plans, stage scenes with actors and cameras, and put those scenes into action.

Goal: Present storyboard panels that give an idea of the overall mood of a film with light and shadow and accurate camera angles and movements.

Application form (Download)

Declaration of Consent (Download)

STORYBOARD II

– HFF München –
Workshop Leader: Prof- Michael Coldewey
13. September – 17. September 2021
Application Deadline: 23. August 2021
Guest Speaker: Tobias Schwarz
Max. 15 Participants
Fee: 500€
Tutorial with a lot of knowledge in digital art to bring the storyboard into a presentation deck with mood images. Tutorial with a lot of knowledge in digital art to bring the storyboard into a presentation deck with mood images.
Participants will learn to take advantage of drawing software such as Procreate on Apple iPadPro.

Goal: At the end of the course, each student will create an animation (storyboard slideshow with timing) of a sequence.