Story-First Certification

In a world flooded with content, Story-First Certification for Indian Filmmakers is your story’s seal of truth. It’s not about box office buzz or celebrity hype — it’s about storycraft that moves, matters, and lasts.

Whether you're a first-time filmmaker or a studio veteran, this badge validates what the audience senses: your story is worth watching.

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🧭 What Is It?

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Story-First Certification is a six-pillar storytelling benchmark that evaluates your film’s narrative craft.

It goes beyond marketing and ratings — it tells your audience why your story deserves their attention.​

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🎬 Turn your story into a credential.

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With Story-First Certification™, your trailer, synopsis, or script doesn’t just get feedback — it earns recognition as industry-ready storytelling that resonates, persuades, and endures.

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🧩 How It Works:

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Your trailer or story is evaluated on six foundational storytelling pillars:

1. Believability

2. Emotional Engagement

3. Intellectual Depth

4. Cultural Relevance

5. Social Meaningfulness

6. Universal Gateway

 

💠 Each certified story receives:

• A badge (Certified / Promising / Not Certified Yet)

• A Story-First Score

• An optional short Craft Commentary

• Permission to display the badge on posters, trailers, social media, etc.

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🥇 The Badges:

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(Include the 3 visual badges here, color or B&W)
 

Each badge level reflects the current storytelling strength of your trailer or story.

•    ✅ Certified – Story meets the benchmark across all 6 pillars

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•    🔼 Promising – Shows strong potential with some craft gaps

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•    ⚠️ Not Yet Certified – Craft needs development to resonate

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💼 Who It’s For:

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•    🎬 Filmmakers & Producers (Bollywood, Regional, Indie)
•    📺 OTT Creators and YouTubers
•    🎭 Directors, Writers, and Pitch Teams
•    🎟️ Film Festivals wanting credibility filters
•    📰 Media Outlets covering releases

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💵 How to Get Certified:​​

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​•    Submit your Trailer or Script Summary with your specific request
•    Choose your Badge Plan
•    Get your Badge + Feedback within 7 business days
 

🧠 Coming Soon: AI-powered story scoring tool for first-level badge screening.

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🛠 Tooltip / Popup Microcopy Set

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1. Basic Trailer Review

• “Trailer Review” → Quick expert feedback on how your trailer communicates story craft.

• “Certification” → Official Story-First Certification™ stamp validating your trailer’s story value.

 

2. Trailer + Synopsis Deep Dive ⭐ (Best Value)

• “Synopsis Review” → Detailed evaluation of your story premise, character arcs, and narrative clarity.

• “Deep Dive” → In-depth notes on alignment between your trailer and synopsis.

• “Certification” → Proof your story-first foundation is strong enough for industry attention.

 

3. Script Summary Evaluation

• “Script Summary” → We review 5–10 pages of your outline or summary to assess structure and story depth.

• “Evaluation Report” → Concise strengths/weaknesses analysis with recommendations for next steps.

• “Certification” → A badge that helps you pitch with confidence.

 

4. Certified Feedback + Coaching Session

• “Certified Feedback” → Written evaluation plus personal feedback tailored to your project.

• “Coaching Session” → 60-minute 1:1 session with Sajeev Varghese to sharpen your storytelling craft.

• “Premium Certification” → Elevates your project’s credibility with added mentorship recognition.

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🚀 Certify Your Story. Elevate Your Film.

Submit your trailer, synopsis, or script and earn Story-First Certification™, recognized by industry leaders.

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📣 Why It Matters:

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✅ Build credibility with producers

✅ Strengthen your story-first positioning

✅ Get recognized by the first global Story-First Certification™ initiative

✅ Boost pre-release buzz with story validation
✅ Stand out in festival or OTT submissions
✅ Attract better collaborations
✅ Prove craft > gimmick

 

When your story is Certified, your audience can feel it before they even watch it.

🚀 Ready to Get Certified?

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(Or: “Join the waitlist” CTA for early adopters)

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❓ Frequently Asked Questions — Story-First Certification™

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🔍 1. What is “Story-First Certification”?

 

Story-First Certification™ is a storytelling quality benchmark for Indian films, trailers, or screenplays. It evaluates your story across six pillars:

Believability, Emotional Engagement, Intellectual Depth, Cultural Relevance, Social Meaningfulness, and Universal Gateway.

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Each submission receives a badge, a score, and optionally, brief commentary. It’s your story’s craft X-ray — not based on star power, but storytelling substance.

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🏆 2. What do the badges mean?

 

There are three badge tiers:

• ✅ Certified: Your story meets the Story-First benchmark across all six pillars.

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• 🔼 Promising: Strong elements exist, but some gaps need refinement.

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• ⚠️ Not Certified Yet: Key storytelling flaws make it fall short — but it can be improved.

 

Each badge comes with permission to display it in your trailer, posters, press kit, or website.

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🎬 3. Who is this for?

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• Filmmakers launching a new film or short

• OTT creators and YouTubers seeking audience trust

• Writers pitching their screenplay

• Directors assembling pitch decks

• Producers looking to build pre-release buzz

• Festival programmers who want a filter for meaningful stories

 

📹 4. What can I submit?

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You can currently submit:

• 🎞️ A trailer (official or early cut)

• 📝 A script synopsis + logline (with optional pitch deck)

• 🎬 A short film, if complete and under 20 minutes

We assess the storytelling DNA, not final production value.

 

⏳ 5. How long does the process take?

 

Turnaround is typically 5–7 business days from submission, unless specified otherwise through a direct email message.
 

If selected for deeper review (or paired with consultation), it may take slightly longer — we’ll notify you.

 

🧮 6. How is it scored?

 

Each story is evaluated across six pillars using the Story-First Scoring Matrix (out of 30 points).
Your score determines your badge tier. You’ll receive:

• 🧠 Score breakdown

• 🏷️ Badge

• ✍️ Optional feedback (brief insights or quote-worthy strengths)

 

💵 7. What does it cost?

 

Pricing tiers will launch shortly based on submission type:

• Basic Trailer Review

• Trailer + Synopsis Deep Dive

• Script Summary Evaluation

• Certified Feedback + Coaching Session (for producers or directors)

Early-bird discounts will apply to the first 100 certifications.

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💡 8. Why does it matter?

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In an oversaturated market, credibility is your superpower.

This badge tells buyers, platforms, festivals, and audiences:
✅ “This story has substance. Not gimmicks.”

 

Think of it as your pre-release truth filter — a mark of artistic integrity and narrative impact.

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🧾 9. Will this replace reviews or censorship?

 

No. This is not a rating system or censor board.
 

It’s a voluntary craft certification — like a Michelin star for your story.
 

It helps filmmakers differentiate their work before the noise begins.

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🚀 10. When can I apply?

 

Certification submissions open in August 2025.

You can join the waitlist now to get early access and exclusive benefits.

📩 Write to us at ijotconsulting@gmail.com with a clear subject line and description of your request.

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