An initiative of Tatino Films, First Cut Lab Trieste is a consultancy program designed for feature films in the editing phase. The inaugural pilot edition of the First Cut Lab program was launched in Trieste in 2015 in collaboration with When East Meets West.

First Cut Lab Trieste 2025 is open to films that previously participated in When East Meets West’s Coproduction Forum. It offers the selected teams (director/producer/editor) a creative framework, both challenging and protective, where to open up new perspectives and to explore the whole artistic potential of their films. They screen their rough cut in a private session, and receive expert feedbacks from three international film industry advisors, as well as tailor-made advice from a consultant editor.

Consultant and industry advisors will be defined according to the profiles of the film selected. An overview of regular consultants of First Cut Lab can be found here: http://firstcutlab.eu/people/

Once the workshop is over, the participants receive a report & a roadmap that can serve as guidance for further editing. Eventually, the ambition of First Cut Lab is to enhance the audience opportunities of the films.