Currently 10 active film and video grants, fellowships and residencies open to applicants in the US. Hand-curated and updated weekly. Almost every entry is funded; a few notable unpaid open calls and festival submissions are included as clearly flagged exceptions. Browse the list below, or use the interactive desk for filtering and shortlisting.
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Open call from Agog for immersive-media projects that drive climate engagement and action, using augmented and mixed reality, spatial sound, smart glasses and related technologies. ELIGIBILITY: creators, artists and teams working in immersive media; applicants must apply through a US-registered entity or fiscal sponsor, though international collaborators are allowed. Apply via the Agog open-call page.
The Accelerate Fellowship is a four-month rewriting sprint that gives disabled film and television writers USD 30,000 in unrestricted funding and bespoke mentorship to develop a spec script to market. Through writers groups, one-on-one mentorship, guidance from Inevitable Foundation staff, and access to leading film and television writers, the program offers everything a disabled writer needs to get a script ready to take to market; this year's program also encourages nuanced disability representation in the projects themselves. Benefits include a USD 30,000 unrestricted grant to cover living expenses so Fellows can focus full-time on writing, frequent conversations and workshops with leading writers and showrunners, ongoing mentorship and check-ins with the Inevitable team, and a community of disabled screenwriting peers. The Fellowship is supported by Netflix. Fellows retain all rights to their work. ELIGIBILITY: self-identifies as disabled (physical, intellectual, developmental, visible or invisible disabilities, and mental health conditions); 18 or older; currently pursuing a career in writing for film or television; not enrolled in an accredited degree program; and currently or previously worked in the entertainment industry. Applicants must also meet at least one of: has an agent or manager; member of the WGA, Animation Guild, or equivalent union; has sold a script, TV show, or pitch; has staffed on a TV show or received a movie writing credit; has been or is in development with a major production company, studio, or network; has placed in a prominent screenwriting competition; or has participated in a screenwriting or filmmaking lab, program, or residency. Writing teams may apply, but only disabled members receive the unrestricted funding (and if both members are disabled they apply as a team and split the grant). International applicants are accepted but must be available within the US Pacific Time working day and are subject to additional review under U.S. Treasury regulations. Former Accelerate Fellows are not eligible. The script need not be finished, and projects from any genre are welcome (the market currently favors comedy, horror, thriller, rom-com, and young adult). APPLICATION: a single round open 28 May 2026 through 17 June 2026; first complete the Program Eligibility Questionnaire, then if eligible submit information about yourself and your career, a writing sample with title and logline, details on the intended project, and short-answer questions on your goals. TIMELINE: applications open May 2026; semi-finalist interviews July to August 2026; Fellows selected August 2026; Fellowship runs September to December 2026. Selections are made by Inevitable Foundation staff. Questions: programs@inevitable.foundation.
Supports development, production and distribution of radio programmes, podcasts and documentary films that engage general audiences with humanities ideas. Proposals must build on sound humanities scholarship, present multiple perspectives, involve external humanities scholars at all phases, involve appropriate media professionals, use accessible formats, and show potential to attract a large public audience. Development awards (up to $75,000) cover scholar meetings, preliminary interviews, treatments and scripts, work-in-progress trailers, outreach planning and archival research.
Seventh season of Sight/Geist, a series from the Shelley & Donald Rubin Foundation supporting emerging NYC-based film and performance artists. The Foundation provides curatorial, administrative and promotional support, plus documentation for performances and discussions; selected artists also engage in a Q&A on their broader practice. TWO CATEGORIES: (1) single-channel screening - experimental/non-commercial cinema, video art or performance documentation as a single-channel non-looped projection with 2.1 PA; H.264 or ProRes; under 80 minutes (priority to <20 min); (2) performance and expanded forms - 20-50 minutes; may foreground duration, movement, audiovisual media, voice, site specificity, audience participation; conceptual and political proposals encouraged. ELIGIBILITY: primary applicant must be at least 18 and maintain their primary residence in New York City (or spend most of their artistic, professional and social life in NYC); self-identify as an 'emerging' artist (early-career, self-trained, newly graduated, or currently enrolled in undergraduate/graduate programs); one submission per artist/duo/collective. Submissions open 1 June through 11 pm ET, 5 July 2026; applicants notified by late August 2026. Contact: info@the8thfloor.org.
Signature fellowship program offering career opportunities to filmmakers from communities typically underrepresented in film and entertainment. Selected fellows are eligible for a stack of bundled fellowships: Amazon MGM Studios ($10K), Climate Entertainment Commissioning Grant ($25K to write a new climate-focused fiction feature), LAIKA Animation Track (production grant + stipend across 2 years for 5 stop-motion fellows), Panavision Fellowship ($60K camera package for an outstanding cinematographer), Sony Pictures Entertainment ($10K), and University of Arizona TFTV Fellowship ($10K for a TFTV alum). International fellows are also eligible for the Dolby Institute Fellowship ($50K post-production grant utilising Dolby Vision and Atmos). Project Involve alums become eligible to apply to the Amplifier Fellowship for Black filmmakers ($30K unrestricted plus year-long support; six fellows annually). Applications open 18 May 2026; non-member deadline 13 July 2026; Film Independent member extension to 27 July 2026.
Screenwriters Lab from the Jewish Writers Institute, pairing a cash stipend with three fully-covered in-person seminars to develop screenwriters' craft and projects. ELIGIBILITY: US-based screenwriters aged 21 or older who meet at least one industry credential (WGA membership, representation, completion of a recognised program, an optioned script, or writers'-room experience). Apply via the Jewish Writers Institute screenwriters page.
Competitive screenwriting lab for emerging feature screenwriters. Selected fellows are eligible for the Climate Entertainment Development Grant ($25K, climate-focused fiction features) and the same bundled $10K fellowship pool available across Artist Development programs (Cayton-Goldrich, MPAC Hollywood Bureau, Sony Music Vision). International fellows are also eligible for the Dolby Institute Fellowship ($50K post-production grant utilising Dolby Vision and Atmos). Lab alums become eligible to apply to the Amplifier Fellowship for Black filmmakers ($30K unrestricted plus year-long support; six fellows annually). Applications open 29 June 2026; non-member deadline 31 August 2026; Film Independent member extension to 14 September 2026.
Intensive program for emerging episodic (TV/series) directors, with mentorship, set shadowing opportunities and industry access. Selected fellows are eligible for the same bundled $10K fellowship pool (Cayton-Goldrich, MPAC Hollywood Bureau, Sony Music Vision) available across Artist Development programs. Applications open 27 July 2026; non-member deadline 28 September 2026; Film Independent member extension to 12 October 2026.
Annual screenwriting fellowship from the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) administered through The Black List, awarding $20,000 each to three writers to revise a feature screenplay or pilot that engages with climate change in a compelling way. Submission and selection happen on The Black List platform; applicants should review program eligibility and any associated hosting/submission fees on blcklst.com before applying. Strong fit for narrative writers using fiction to dramatise climate, ecology, energy, or environmental-justice themes (rather than documentary).
One-off film grant awarding a single filmmaker $4,500 to support an independent narrative project in 2026. Application is free to submit. Centerpiece of the application is a production book built on the IMGN platform: script breakdown, schedule, coverage, and pre-visualization for the project (tutorials are provided inside the application). Eligibility: US-based filmmakers in the 50 states plus DC, aged 18 and older. If the project is already completed before funds are disbursed, the grant is paid as a reimbursement upon submission of a final cut of the film. Winner announced and funds disbursed by end of January 2027.