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Eligibility
The 2008 Academy Film Festival Grants are directed to festivals occurring during the 2009 calendar year.
Grants are not offered to individual festivals in successive years.
Only festivals based in the United States that have held at least five festivals as of December 31 of the year prior to applying are eligible to apply.
Screening programs, be they periodic screening series or end-of-term student screening programs, are not eligible to apply. Festivals that do not screen films in a theatrical setting also are not eligible to apply.
Eligible film festivals may apply for grants at three funding levels, depending on the cash budget of the festival.
- Festivals with cash budgets of less than $200,000 can apply for a grant of up to $10,000.
- Festivals with cash budgets from $200,000 to $600,000 can apply for a grant of up to $20,000.
- Festivals with cash budgets greater than $600,000 can apply for a grant of up to $30,000.
To maximize the distribution of funding to festivals, the Academy’s Festival Grants Committee may approve grants for less than the amount requested. In recent years, this has been the case more often than not.
Guidelines and Instructions
Completed applications must be received at the Festival Grants office by July 1, 2008. Under no circumstances will late applications be accepted.
Grant requests must target one or more concrete elements within the festival. Proposals should be specific and thorough in their description of the elements for which the request is made. No grants will be awarded for “general support.”
Film festivals are encouraged to submit proposals that make festival events more accessible to the general public, especially to underserved communities; that give screening opportunities to minority and less visible filmmakers; and that bring the public into contact with films and filmmakers.
Grants may be used to support seminars, conferences or other educational events within a festival.
Grants may not be used to support any of the following: the screening of an individual new film; competitions or awards programs; the screening of works produced specifically for television, or any other event or program that primarily involves work produced for television; parties, hospitality suites, tribute dinners or similar festival activities; the development, production or completion of motion pictures.
All proposals must be accompanied by four copies of the most recent festival program book.
All proposals must include proof of a festival’s nonprofit status.
While the festival elements described in the proposal carry the most weight, factors such as the festival’s focus and its geographical location may also be considered in making the final determinations. The manner in which the Academy will be acknowledged during the festival also is of some importance.
Festivals will receive notification of their status by November 2008.
Press releases concerning festival grants can be found at www.oscars.org/press.
Application Template
Complete and assemble your proposal according to the following template.
Note: Do not staple the pages. Do not use three-hole paper. Do not insert title or section heading pages between the proposal segments.
(1) Application form
Fill out the form completely. The application form is a downloadable and fillable PDF document. Please make sure that it includes your current contact information as well as statistics from your most recent festival.
(2) Proposal – no longer than two pages
Request statement – a single sentence describing the proposed project and the grant amount requested. (This statement should also appear on the application form.)
Proposal paragraphs – several paragraphs outlining the element(s) for which support is requested. They should provide as much detail as possible as briefly as possible and should mention how the element(s) will affect the festival’s current and projected audience. Offering alternatives here will give the committee the opportunity to select a preferred scenario.
(3) Organizational information – as a separate page or part of proposal pages
Mission statement – one or more paragraphs broadly describing the goals of the festival as well as delineating how each proposed element supports those goals.
History of the festival – a brief description of the festival, including some past highlights (events, tributes, films, honored guests, etc.).
Description of the parent organization – a brief outline of the yearly activities of the festival’s parent organization, if it is film-related.
(4) Acknowledgments – no longer than a single page.
A list of the ways in which the festival will acknowledge the Academy’s grant. As stated in the Guidelines and Requirements page, include here, as appropriate, mention of the Academy’s support in the festival program; a full-page ad in the program; ability to screen the Academy trailer before selected screenings; ability to display Academy signage; verbal acknowledgment of the Academy at various events, etc.
(5) Income/expense statement – no longer than two pages
This should include a financial overview of the most recent festival.
(6) Budget – no longer than two pages.
This should include a budget for the proposed element(s), a simple breakdown of anticipated costs and an overview of the projected budget for the entire festival.
(7) Proof of festival’s nonprofit status
(8) Four copies of the most recent festival program – or other similar material
Completed application packages should be sent to:
Gale Anne Hurd
Chair, Festival Grants Committee
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
1313 Vine Street
Hollywood, CA 90028-8107
Applications must be received by July 1, 2008. Under no circumstances will late applications be accepted.
Packages may be mailed or sent via a delivery service such as FedEx or UPS.
For additional information, call (310) 247-3031 or e-mail grants@oscars.org.
The Academy requires grant recipients to acknowledge the Academy’s sponsorship in appropriate and reasonable ways. As each festival is unique, the Academy will assess sponsorship credit requirements on a case-by-case basis.
Additionally, the Academy has very specific views about the representation of its name and marks. Festivals must obtain prior approval of any mention or representation of the Academy Foundation, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences or the Academy’s sponsorship.
As appropriate, please provide the following:
- prominent recognition on all printed material;
- mention in press releases;
- prominent recognition on any trailer or on-screen slide produced specifically for the festival;
- prominent recognition on the festival Web site with hyperlinks to the Academy’s Web site;
- recognition on banners and signage at the festival;
- ability to display an Academy banner or similar signage at the festival;
- ability to run an Academy-produced trailer at sponsored event(s);
- full-page ad in the festival program, brochure or magazine;
- a certain number of festival guest passes and reception invitations; and
- all other benefits offered to other sponsors at the equivalent level.
In lieu of or in addition to the placement of an Academy logo, the following acknowledgment line may be used:
Special support provided by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
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