Louis Theroux’s Mindhouse Productions and Amazon Prime Video have joined forces to find the next generation of on-screen documentary makers, with a major programme of mentoring and development up for grabs.
They have devised a talent search, Looking For Louis, in which entrants must submit a one-page pitch for a two-minute ‘micro-documentary’, with a panel of influential industry figures whittling this down to 10, who will be given support to shoot their doc on a mobile phone.
Mindhouse will select six finalists, who will screen their films at an Edinburgh TV Festival session featuring Theroux and fellow Mindhouse execs Nancy Strang and Arron Fellows, climaxing with a winner being named.
The winner will work exclusively with the indie for six months, working up developments with the creative team and pitching them to commissioners, and will also get a year-long programme of mentoring and training from Amazon Prime Video, overseen by unscripted executive Fozia Khan.
Further support for the scheme comes from the festival’s YouTube- and Screen Scotland-backed charity the TV Foundation and the TriForce Creative Network.
Theroux said the initiative chimes with Mindhouse’s ambitions to find new talent who can tell fresh stories in interesting new ways. “We need to safeguard the future of irreverent and intelligent on-camera reporting by bringing up the next generation of presenters,” he said.
As well as Theroux's own projects, including his debut podcast series for BBC Radio 4, Grounded with Louis Theroux, Mindhouse has worked with fitness coach Joe Wicks and broadcaster Alice Levine on documentary series.
Submissions are now open until 11.59pm on Sunday 25 July. For more information and to enter, click here.
