Currently 38 active paid film and video grants, fellowships and residencies. 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.
Subscribe: RSS feed · Calendar (.ics)
The Fondazione Prada Film Fund is an annual initiative supporting independent cinema, with an annual endowment of EUR 1.5 million backing up to 14 feature film projects across development, production, and post-production. The Fund imposes NO restrictions on geography, theme, genre, or language and does not participate as a co-producer, guaranteeing complete artistic freedom to filmmakers. It supports both established authors and new talents, as well as research projects. WHICH TRACKS ARE STILL OPEN: the 2026 call opened 30 June 2026 and runs on two separate deadlines. The projects-in-production track has already CLOSED (6 August 2026). Development and post-production remain open to 10 September 2026, which is the deadline this card now tracks. Post-production applicants can keep working after submitting: a rough cut may be supplied up to 20 November 2026. SELECTION is based exclusively on quality, originality, vision, and the strength and reliability of the applicant structure; projects are evaluated by independent readers and external consultants, with final selection and grant amounts determined by a committee appointed by Fondazione Prada and composed of prominent figures from cinema and culture. No fixed per-stage grant bands are published, so the committee sets each award. ELIGIBILITY: applications may be submitted only by a production company involved in the project, and that company remains solely responsible for meeting all requirements and conditions; obligations of selected beneficiaries are governed by a contract with Fondazione Prada. Open worldwide, with no geographic restriction at all. PHISHING WARNING FROM THE FUNDER: all official communications about the Film Fund come only from addresses in the fondazioneprada.org domain. Treat anything from another domain as a probable fraud or phishing attempt and verify before responding. The second edition's selected projects are announced February 2027. Application documents are on the Fondazione Prada Film Fund page; questions to filmfund@fondazioneprada.org.
Hiding in Plain Site is an international public art short film festival accepting film, video art, XR, and explicitly AI-generated or AI-assisted moving image works of 2 to 20 minutes, screened in public space. Free to submit; selected filmmakers receive a modest stipend whose amount is revenue-dependent and not yet confirmed. Deadline 10 September 2026.
The UAL AKO Storytelling Institute, with the Power of Pop Fund, is recruiting six Storytelling Research Fellows to run independent research projects on how storytelling in popular culture shapes attitudes, behaviour and public discourse. Fellows work across media including television, film, gaming, podcasts and digital culture, are supported by the Institute's Head of Research and a peer cohort, and produce actionable findings for creative practitioners, funders and social-impact organisations, presented at a closing public symposium. ELIGIBILITY: experienced researchers with a PhD or equivalent research expertise gained academically, independently or through professional practice, with a track record of delivering high-quality research and working with external partners. Practice-based and non-academic researchers are explicitly in scope. APPLICATION: CV, record of publications, a research proposal of 1,000 to 1,200 words, and a supporting statement including at least one example of a research project you designed and delivered. Applications via the UAL jobs portal; closes 11 September 2026.
Guardian Documentaries and arte.tv have opened a short documentary film fund on the theme 'Democracy at Stake in Europe', supporting the development and production of a character-led documentary short exploring threats, pressures and challenges facing democratic societies across Europe. The aim is to amplify personal stories that help audiences understand democracy in Europe today and to stimulate public debate; suggested areas of focus include press freedom, civic trust and democratic participation. AWARD: one project receives GBP 10,000 in production support; alongside the financial award, the selected filmmaker receives editorial and creative input from the partners, with distribution through Guardian and arte.tv platforms. The funding can be used for work linked to the film's development and production, such as research, filming and post-production, subject to the applicant's proposed budget and plan. ELIGIBILITY: open to European filmmakers aged 18 or over; the call is focused on a single short documentary and is intended for projects where individual experience and perspective are central to telling a wider story about democratic life in Europe. Deadline 14 September 2026.
Voices With Impact funds transformative five-minute short films about mental health, awarding USD 7,500 per filmmaking team. The 2027 theme is Sanctuary, explored through the lens of mental health: a sanctuary can be a place, a person, a practice, a memory, or something else. Beyond the grant, selected teams receive regular production meetings and story consultations, industry mentor connections, feedback from mental health professionals, festival strategy development, and distribution through Art Opening Minds' festival and a network of 350+ educational partners that integrate the films into curricula. Films must be exactly five minutes. TIMELINE: grants awarded late October 2026, production from November, deliverables due mid-April 2027, world premiere at the Voices With Impact festival in early June 2027. No application fee. Deadline: 14 September 2026, midnight.
image+nation, Canada's oldest LGBTQ+ film festival, accepts international submissions for its 39th edition in Montreal. Deadline 15 September 2026 via FilmFreeway.
The Creative Challenge Fund does not fund films directly. It funds the organisations that run project-development programmes for UK creatives working on narrative, documentary or animation features, or on narrative immersive media projects. The BFI's stated aim is to decentralise development away from a small number of London-centric gatekeepers and build a wider, more resilient ecosystem of talent-development providers across the UK, with a recently added emphasis on independent producers. ELIGIBILITY: only legally constituted UK-based organisations may apply. Individual filmmakers seeking development money should look to the BFI Filmmaking Fund's Development strand instead. TIMING: Round One closed in March 2026 and has made its first awards. Round Two closes Monday 21 September 2026, with funded programme activity required to begin between 1 January and 30 June 2027. NOTE: award amounts are not published on the fund page. Successful applicants must prominently credit BFI National Lottery support.
The Netflix x NALIP Director Incubator is a career acceleration program supporting emerging and mid-career directors in creating bold, original short films centered on stories from women's perspectives. Four directors each receive a USD 45,000 production grant to make an original narrative short, along with individualized guidance, career development opportunities, and the chance to showcase their work to industry leaders. ELIGIBILITY: emerging or mid-career film or television directors based in the United States who are current NALIP members in good standing, available for all program activities, and applying with an original narrative short film project. APPLICATION: online application plus a director's statement, project synopsis, resume or CV, and portfolio links. TIMELINE: applications open 1 September 2026; deadline 21 September 2026; review mid-October; finalist interviews late October; fellows announced November 2026.
La Résidence of the Festival de Cannes (part of Cinéma de Demain, formerly La Cinéfondation) invites 12 directors each year to write their screenplay in Paris. The programme provides a place of residence in the heart of Paris, a personalised programme accompanying the writing of their scripts, and a collective programme of forums with film industry professionals. The 12 directors from the two annual sessions present their projects at the CNC pavilion in Cannes, giving 10-minute presentations to an audience of professionals and a jury of three film industry personalities; the CNC then awards a EUR 5,000 grant to one director from each session, based on the project that most inspires the jury. The Cinef & Résidence offices serve as a hub where directors meet and schedule private meetings with potential producers. ELIGIBILITY: open to young filmmakers who have made one or several short films and no more than one feature film; candidates must NOT be residents or citizens of France. Selected filmmakers must stay at the Résidence in Paris for the full session. SESSIONS: two per year, each lasting four and a half months, the first running 15 March to 31 July and the second 1 October to 15 February. Artistic fields: film, writing, interdisciplinary. Deadline: 30 September 2026 at 16:00 UTC. Free to apply.
Call for short films (1-10 minutes) involving human/AI hybrid creation, from the We Are Human Foundation in Paris. Three cash awards: Grand Prix EUR 5,000, Best Screenplay EUR 3,000, and an Ethics Award EUR 2,000. ELIGIBILITY: international, applicants 18+; films must have been completed after 1 June 2025 and involve human/AI hybrid creation; a mandatory Ethics Notebook accompanies each submission. No submission fee. Festival screening at Forum des images, Paris, on 24 November 2026. Apply via FilmFreeway; deadline 30 September 2026.
NEXT ART AI is an open AI art competition run by the HOBAN Cultural Foundation, welcoming participants of all backgrounds regardless of career, nationality or age, and framed as a way to reflect on the future of AI art through new modes of expression and artistic experimentation. TWO CATEGORIES: AI IMAGE ART, for works in a single-image format at 150dpi or higher, submitted as JPG, JPEG, PNG or BMP up to 10MB; and AI VIDEO ART, open to a wide range of video formats including animation, motion graphics and live-action footage enhanced or transformed using AI, at 1080p or higher, under one minute, 30 or 60fps recommended, stereo 48kHz audio recommended, as mp4 (h.264) or mov. Video entries are submitted as a URL via YouTube, Vimeo, Dropbox or OneDrive, or an alternative platform if those are restricted in your region; links that are inaccessible due to privacy settings may be excluded from judging. WHO CAN ENTER: individuals or teams of up to three including the representative, though you may not submit both as an individual and as part of a team. Team representatives create the account in their own name and all members submit a consent form for personal data. Applicants under 19 need a guardian's signed consent. One work may be submitted per category. RULES ON AI AND ASSETS: work must be original and created by the applicant or team, and must be image or video art created using generative AI platforms. Works that have previously won an award in another competition are not eligible. Free or paid external assets, game engines, AI frameworks, open-source tools and editing software may be used freely, but applicants must hold licences permitting commercial use for every element, and work infringing third-party rights is excluded. Even where external assets and editing software are used, the creative process must involve AI, whether AI-assisted direction, transformation, generation or other AI-based processes, and the choice of AI tools, the scope and method of their use, and the prompts themselves are all weighed in evaluating the creative use of AI. TIMELINE: applications open 1 September 2026 and close 30 September 2026 at 11:59pm KST, preliminary round early October, final round late October, announcement and ceremony early November, exhibition late November 2026. Organised and hosted by the HOBAN Cultural Foundation, sponsored by HOBAN Group, with Seoul Shinmun and EBN as media partners. Details and schedule are subject to change at the organiser's discretion.
The Ann Arbor Film Festival, founded in 1963 and the oldest experimental and avant-garde film festival in North America, is accepting entries for its 65th edition (23 to 28 March 2027). The festival seeks boundary-pushing films and expanded cinema works across experimental, documentary, animation and hybrid forms, and is a natural home for artists' moving image and essayistic work. PAY: unlike most festivals, every selected artist receives a screening fee (USD 50 for a short, USD 100 for a feature), and films compete for nearly USD 40,000 in awards including Academy Award qualifying prizes. SUBMISSION: via FilmFreeway or the festival site; the final deadline is 30 September 2026 at the USD 100 late tier (early bird USD 65 closed 31 July and regular USD 80 closed 31 August). The entry fee is substantial, but payment on selection is guaranteed, which is rare among festivals of this stature.
Work stipends for women film and video artists under the Berlin Senate's Kuenstlerinnenfoerderung (women artists' funding program). ELIGIBILITY: women film and video artists based in Berlin. Deadline 1 October 2026, 11:00 CEST, per the Senate's official deadline calendar. NOTE: research-sourced from the Senate deadline calendar; the stipend amount was not published there, so confirm details on the Senate funding pages before applying.
The Pandora Short Film Grant is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that awards an annual $12,000 grant to an early-career US filmmaker for the production of a narrative short film. Projects at script stage or already filmed and seeking finishing funds are both eligible. The winner also receives a Panavision camera package (about $15,000), an optional $1,000 Kodak Film Grant, mentorship from an award-winning filmmaker (2026 mentors include Alma Har'el, Lila Neugebauer, Lauren Wolkstein, Sarah Elizabeth Mintz and Chris Merola), and fiscal sponsorship; three finalists receive mentorship, fiscal sponsorship, Panavision New Filmmaker Program consideration and discounted production insurance. ELIGIBILITY: open to all early-career US filmmakers; applicants are asked NOT to apply if they have directed a feature film with a budget over $250K or directed or produced television. Selection is blind, based on script and pitch materials, weighting artistic vision over industry resume. TIMELINE: submissions open 30 May 2026, close 1 October 2026, notifications 15 November 2026.
Anima, the Brussels International Animation Film Festival, is open for submissions for its 46th edition (19 to 28 February 2027). CATEGORIES: feature films, feature films for children, international professional short films, international student films, international short films for children, national (Belgian) short films, and short films in virtual reality. Films must be completed after June 2025. Submissions are free via the festival's online form until 2 October 2026. Winners in the main competitions receive cash prizes and an Anima trophy; the prize list for 2027 is published in late January. Anima is an Academy Award and BAFTA qualifying festival, and a small, approachable festival for animated and animation-adjacent experimental work. Notification to filmmakers on 4 December 2026.
Kaboom Animation Festival, the Netherlands' largest animation festival, is accepting films, games and VR projects for its 2027 edition in Amsterdam and Utrecht. Kaboom takes a famously broad view of what counts as animation: experimental and hybrid work screens alongside traditional animation, and combinations of animation and live-action are eligible as long as the larger part of the work is animated, which makes it a plausible home for AI-generated and expanded-media video work. In recent editions animated shorts could run up to 30 minutes excluding credits with up to 3 submissions per filmmaker; check the current regulations on the submission portal. Submissions are free of charge via the FilmChief portal. DEADLINE: 5 October 2026, 23:59 CET.
Long-running post-production grant from Frameline, the San Francisco organisation behind the world's longest-running LGBTQ+ film festival, for films that represent and reflect LGBTQ+ life in all its complexity and richness. Grants run up to USD 5,000, typically USD 1,000 to 5,000, and the jury may recommend more or less than that range. WHAT IT COVERS: any post-production cost, explicitly including editing, special effects and graphics, music licensing, photo licensing, and, notably, closed captioning and audio description, so accessibility work is fundable rather than an afterthought. STAGE GATE, the thing that disqualifies most applicants: your project must be at least 90 percent complete with a rough cut available, and in or about to enter post-production. Work still in development or mid-production is not eligible. WHO AND WHAT: all formats, lengths, genres and nationalities are welcome, spanning documentary, narrative, experimental, animated and episodic work, so long as the film is about LGBTQ+ people and their communities. Directors must have creative and financial control of the project. NO APPLICATION FEE, which is worth flagging given how many completion funds charge one. TIMING: the submission window opens 31 August 2026 and closes 9 October 2026, with decisions in January 2027. The 2026 cycle's grantees have already been announced ahead of Frameline's 50th festival, so this is the next round.
The Netherlands Film Production Incentive is the Film Fund's automatic cash rebate for feature films, animated films and documentaries, returning up to 35 percent of qualifying Dutch production costs. It is designed to keep production spend in the Netherlands and is assessed on a points system rather than artistic panel review. WHO CAN APPLY: only Dutch producers representing independent production companies. The company must be legally registered in the Netherlands (including Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba) for at least two years, operate continuously in film or audiovisual production, and be represented by a producer who has produced at least one majority film with a budget of EUR 500,000 or more that had a Dutch cinema release. PROJECT THRESHOLDS: feature films and animated films need a minimum production budget of EUR 1 million and at least EUR 150,000 in qualifying costs; documentaries need a minimum budget of EUR 250,000 and at least EUR 100,000 in qualifying costs. FURTHER CONDITIONS: a guaranteed Dutch cinema release with a minimum 12-week window, at least 50 percent of the budget unconditionally promised in writing by third parties, at least two unaffiliated financiers, and a minimum score of 75 points on the automatic assessment system. Deadline 26 October 2026 at 17:00 CET.
The High-End Series strand of the Netherlands Film Production Incentive extends the Film Fund's 35 percent cash rebate to high-end drama, documentary and animated television series, returning up to 35 percent of qualifying Dutch production costs. WHO CAN APPLY: independent production companies based for at least two years in the Netherlands, an EU member state, the EEA or Switzerland, producing audiovisual content on a continuing basis, and represented by a producer who has produced either a majority film with a minimum budget of EUR 500,000 and a Dutch cinema release, or a majority television series in the same category. Note that despite the broader basing rule, only applicants from the Netherlands, Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba may actually apply. PROJECT THRESHOLDS: minimum production budget per broadcast minute varies by category, at EUR 4,000 for documentary and EUR 8,000 to EUR 12,000 for drama and animation. FURTHER CONDITIONS: at least 50 percent of the production budget secured in writing from third parties, a guaranteed television or VOD broadcast in the Netherlands (or in two or more countries for co-productions), and a minimum score of 75 points on the automatic assessment system. Deadline 26 October 2026 at 17:00 CET.
Scotland's leading short film festival marks its 20th edition in March 2027. International entries compete for the Bill Douglas Award for International Short Film; films must be completed after 30 September 2025 and run 40 minutes or less. Deadlines: earlybird 4 August 2026 (GBP 10), regular 22 September 2026 (GBP 14), late 27 October 2026 (GBP 18).
First Flights funds emerging filmmakers worldwide making live action and documentary shorts in any scripted genre (scripts up to 30 pages). The autumn 2026 round awards up to GBP 7,000 / USD 10,000 in cash toward production costs, plus two Kodak awards of five 400ft rolls of 16mm film stock with complete processing, and one USD 10,000 post-production package from Periscope. Selected filmmakers also receive festival submission assistance and distribution opportunities through partner organizations. APPLY with project details, logline, synopsis, director's vision statement, completed script, director biography, budget and lookbook (sizzle reel optional); independent judges score originality, creativity, plot, pacing, characters, entertainment and message, with interviews for long-listed candidates. Production must begin within six months of the deadline. ENTRY FEE: tiered, GBP 30 until 30 September or GBP 40 until the final 31 October 2026 deadline.
The European Media Art Platform (EMAP/EMARE) is a network of leading European media-art organisations offering fully funded two-month production residencies for artists working with digital media, including media art, bio art and robotic art. Each residency provides a EUR 4,000 grant to the applying artist (including subsistence), a EUR 4,000 project budget, host-provided accommodation, travel covered according to EU ceilings, and access to technical facilities and media labs; a collaborating artist receives an additional EUR 2,000 (EUR 6,000 total for a duo). Residencies take place at one of 15 host institutions across Austria, France, Slovakia, Portugal, Belgium, the Netherlands, Slovenia, Croatia, Spain, Italy, Cyprus, Greece, Latvia, Germany and Poland. ELIGIBILITY: applicants must be EU residents or taxpayers in an EU member state, or residents/taxpayers of one of the eligible non-EU countries (Netherlands-based artists qualify). Undergraduate and Master's students are not eligible; PhD candidates and emerging artists of any age and academic background may apply. IMPORTANT: applicants must apply as a duo or collective, or propose a collaborative project, rather than as a purely solo applicant. The 2027 open call runs from 3 September 2026 to 6 November 2026 at 14:00 CET. Apply online at call.emare.eu. No application fee.
The 17th Open City Documentary Festival takes place at venues across London in April 2027, presenting international contemporary and retrospective non-fiction film, audio and cross-media work alongside filmmaker Q&As, panels, talks and workshops. The festival nurtures experimentation within the expanded field of non-fiction cinema, from artists' moving image to documentary, the essay film, audio and cross-media works; recent artists screened include Sky Hopinka, Onyeka Igwe, Luke Fowler, Ana Vaz, Jessica Sarah Rinland and Morgan Quaintance. ELIGIBILITY: non-fiction film and video, cross-platform projects and audio works completed after 1 January 2026; no strict premiere requirement, but works not yet publicly screened in London are prioritized. All selected filmmakers receive screening fees: GBP 275 for works over 60 minutes, GBP 140 for works over 40 minutes, GBP 70 for works under 40 minutes, GBP 100 for cross-platform projects (all incl. VAT). Submissions via FilmFreeway with tiered entry fees (lower before the early deadline). EARLY DEADLINE: 25 September 2026. FINAL DEADLINE: 27 November 2026; all entrants notified by 22 February 2027.
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).
Go Short, the international short film festival in Nijmegen, is open for entries for its 19th edition (6 to 11 April 2027). A small, approachable Dutch festival that programmes fiction, documentary, animation and experimental shorts. COMPETITIONS: the European Competition (fiction, documentary, animation, experimental), the Dutch Competition, and the New Arrivals Competition for European film school projects, plus a Music Video Competition and a separate strand for video games, VR/XR, performances and installations, which makes it a natural target for expanded-media and installation-based video work. DEADLINES AND FEES: early bird 15 September 2026 (EUR 12.50 per film; EUR 8 per installation/VR/game project), regular 15 November (EUR 15 / EUR 10), late 15 December 2026 (EUR 20 / EUR 12); music videos EUR 7.50 flat. Awards include Best European Short, Best Dutch Short, the New Arrivals Award and an Audience Award. Read the festival regulations for length and completion date requirements before submitting.
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.
The New Media Film Festival in Los Angeles champions stories told with new technology and was among the first festivals to screen AI-generated content; it has a dedicated AR / MR / AI / TECH category. Open worldwide in all formats. Deadlines: 6 December 2026 (USD 80), 6 February 2027 (USD 85), final 6 April 2027 (USD 95).
The British Council's standing Travel Grant Fund helps early to mid-career UK filmmakers and XR creatives represent their work abroad, build networks, reach new audiences and raise the international profile of new and emerging UK film and immersive talent. Supported by BFI National Lottery funding in partnership with BFI NETWORK and the BFI International Fund. WHAT IT FUNDS: travel to attend international film festivals, showcases, training and development labs, and co-production forums, across five strands: short film festival grants, feature film festival grants, interactive/XR grants (including VR, immersive storytelling experiences and installations), lab grants and co-production forum grants. AMOUNTS: short and feature festival grants GBP 150 to 1,500 (typically up to GBP 750); XR travel-only grants GBP 150 to 1,500; large XR grants GBP 1,500 to 5,000; lab grants up to GBP 6,000; co-production forum grants up to GBP 2,000. WHO CAN APPLY: UK residents or citizens aged 18+; applicants can be directors, producers or writers attached to the selected project. KEY CONDITIONS: the festival, lab or forum must appear on the British Council's Key Lists of eligible events, and the project must be registered on the British Council's UK Project Database. DEADLINE: rolling, no fixed deadlines; submit at least two weeks before the event starts (retrospective applications for past events are not accepted). Free to apply.
Impact is the higher-budget production strand of the BFI Filmmaking Fund and carries the largest award available in the current BFI portfolio at up to GBP 1.25 million. It sits above the Discovery strand in scale, serving experienced directors with production budgets from GBP 1 million to GBP 15 million, and debut directors whose budgets exceed GBP 3.5 million. UNLIKE DISCOVERY, Impact accepts applications on a continuous rolling basis with no round structure and no published closing date, though applicants must submit at least 20 weeks before principal photography begins. SELECTION is explicitly criteria-driven: projects must address at least three of the BFI's stated aims, covering equity and inclusion, audience or cultural impact, talent development, creative risk, production activity across the UK nations and regions, and environmental sustainability. ELIGIBILITY: applications must come from a limited company registered and centrally managed in the UK, so individuals cannot apply. A dedicated producer is always required, though unlike Discovery the writer and director may be the same person. Directing credits must be evidenced. No explicit nationality or residency test for the director or writer is published. NOTE: the BFI cautions that maximum-level awards are rare, so realistic requests will typically fall well below the GBP 1.25 million ceiling.
Development Funding is the earliest-stage strand of the BFI Filmmaking Fund, supporting original live action and animated feature films through script and package development to the point where they are viable candidates for production finance. It is aimed at distinctive fiction projects from what the BFI calls 'adventurous storytellers', across a wide range of genres rather than a single house style. UNLIKE DISCOVERY, it does not operate in rounds: applications are accepted year-round, with the only fixed interruption being an annual closure through the month of April, plus occasional short pauses during periods of high demand or holidays. ELIGIBILITY: the application must be made by a producer through a limited company registered at Companies House, so unincorporated individuals are ineligible. Nationality and residency requirements are not published on the fund page. NOTE: award amounts are not published, so the ceiling should be treated as unknown rather than assumed. Successful applicants are required to publicly acknowledge National Lottery support in project credits and materials.
The Audience Projects Fund distributes GBP 19.7 million of National Lottery money over three years to widen UK audiences for film and immersive work, covering exhibition, distribution, festivals, touring programmes and sector-support initiatives. It reopened in November 2025 and runs continuously with no closing date, which makes it one of the more accessible large BFI pots for organisations working on the audience-facing rather than production side. AWARDS are tiered: small pilot projects receive GBP 10,000 to GBP 20,000, while full projects can receive GBP 20,000 to GBP 500,000 per year, with immersive projects permitted to include up to GBP 150,000 of production cost inside that envelope. ELIGIBILITY is strictly institutional. Applicants must be legally constituted organisations centrally managed in the UK and not more than 50% foreign-owned. Eligible types include limited companies (not classed as 'large' under the Companies Act 2006), community interest companies, LLPs, UK local or statutory authorities, and registered UK charities or trusts. Individual practitioners cannot apply. Applicants must evidence experience in marketing, festivals, distribution, immersive installations, cultural programming, touring or sector support. TIMING: there are no deadlines but lead times are enforced. Single-film distribution projects must apply at least 10 weeks before release; all other projects at least 16 weeks before the project starts.
The rare BFI stream that individuals can apply to directly. Individual Skills funding supports training and professional development for people working, or intending to work, in the UK screen heritage sector, the field concerned with preserving, digitising and widening public access to screen archive collections. ELIGIBILITY: applicants must be 18 or over, working or intending to work in the UK screen heritage sector, hold a UK bank account, and be eligible to work in the UK. TIMING: applications are rolling with no deadline, but must be submitted at least eight weeks before the training starts. All funded activity must be completed by 31 March 2029, the end of the current National Lottery funding plan period. CONTEXT: the wider Screen Heritage Fund has three strands. Project funding, open to legally constituted not-for-profit organisations operating a screen archive or collection network, runs year-round with a 16-week lead time and prioritises collections that better reflect the diversity of the UK. Resilience funding for the 2026-29 cycle closed on 31 March 2026 and is not currently accepting applications. NOTE: award ranges are not published on the fund overview page.
Field of Vision is a filmmaker-driven documentary unit that creates and commissions original short-form and feature nonfiction visual journalism. It funds and commissions filmmakers, often as assignments, and supports projects in development and production (it does not acquire finished films). SUPPORT: commissioning fees and production funding; specific amounts are not published publicly. ELIGIBILITY: filmmakers of all experience levels, within and outside the United States. APPLICATIONS are accepted on a rolling basis, with no fixed funding cycles or deadlines. Submit via the Field of Vision submissions page.
The Basel House of Film, run by the Verein Filmhaus Basel und Umgebung, offers a three month residency for emerging artists working in film and television. Residents receive housing at the Filmhaus in the Basel old town plus a stipend to cover travel and living costs. There is no obligation to produce work, and residents can use the open schedule to write a script, prepare a film, draw storyboards, or edit. The facility includes a clubhouse, meeting room, office space, a small cinema with VR equipment, and an editing and grading suite. The program targets up and coming filmmakers, and both national and international applicants are welcome. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis through the online form, followed by a CV, motivation letter, and portfolio sent to the residency email.
Pulitzer Center reporting grants supporting in-depth international journalism on under-reported global issues. Open to reporters, photographers, audio and video journalists, and documentary filmmakers worldwide. Grants cover the hard costs of reporting projects. ELIGIBILITY: professional journalists and visual storytellers anywhere in the world; both freelance and staff. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis via the Pulitzer Center grant portal.
The BFI Doc Society Features Production Fund (delivered via BFI with Doc Society as delegate partner) supports UK filmmakers producing non-fiction feature films intended for theatrical release. Two strands: Directions (first- or second-time directors) and Momentum (established talent). AMOUNT: up to £150,000 non-recoupable grant (the total Doc Society contribution per project cannot exceed £150,000). ELIGIBILITY: UK-based filmmakers, both emerging and established directors; experienced and debut producers eligible; projects must meet at least three of six stated priorities: equity/diversity, audience impact, talent development, creative risk, UK-wide access, and environmental sustainability. PROCESS: two-stage — submit an Expression of Interest, then a Full Application if invited. Rolling intake year-round. Opened May 2026. APPLY via BFI Doc Society website. Contact: hellobfi@docsociety.org.
Pink Screens, Brussels' queer film festival run by Genres d'a cote, accepts international films completed 2024 or later that were not previously submitted. Submissions are free via the festival's own form on pinkscreens.org (the FilmFreeway route may charge). No exact deadline is published, but the call is in its late phase, so submit soon.
Queer Screen's Mardi Gras Film Festival in Sydney is one of the largest queer film festivals in the world. Submissions reopened in July 2026 via FilmFreeway; the final deadline is historically mid-October (around 15 October 2026, unconfirmed). Audience awards; modest submission fees.