13.   Does the awardee receive other kinds of support in addition to the grant monies?

Awardees will also receive the following benefits courtesy of BCC’s Grant partners:

• 6-month VIP Membership to MUBI’s catalog of independent films.

• A bi-coastal film screening opportunity with promotional support provided by the New York African Film Festival and Northwest Film Forum Seattle – if the awardee film is completed and ready to be screened by May/June 2025.  Awardee will be required to provide at least 3 - 4 months notice to our partners, or by Feb 15th, 2025 to have this screening support.

14.  If I receive the award, can I apply for the microgrant again in the future?

Previous awardees will not be eligible for two years after receiving a BCC grant.

If you apply and don’t receive this award, you are welcome to apply to future grants.

15.  How will awardees be receiving funds?

We will award each recipient $7,500 via our Fiscal Sponsor, Northwest Film Forum. Payments will be made via payment/disbursement information provided by awardee, or check payment will be sent out to information provided within four weeks of the public grant announcement.

16.  Can two people submit an application together? Or an org?

Artists collaborators (example co-directors or writer/director teams, etc.) are eligible but a collaborative team does not denote a double prize. Collaborators will be sharing a single prize on a shared project. Organizations are not eligible to apply.

17.  Are there previous application examples?

The 2023 Black Cinema Collective Microgrant was launched for 1st time filmmakers with different eligibility requirements.  As such, we do not have application samples to share.

• We will offer a live Application Workshop on Monday, May 6th, 2024 at 12:30 pm PST.  This workshop will be recorded and available for viewing anytime via our website on our FAQ + main Grant Call pages for the duration of the application period.

18.  What do you mean by post-production for film projects?

Anyone working in the many stages of post-production after you have finished filming all scenes and performances, including B-roll for your film. 

• Post-production action needs can include film or sound editing, color correction, special effects, captioning, crediting layouts + design, font design, soundtrack/music rights, archive footage rights, sound mixing, image licensing, editing software or instruction, etc.

• If you are past all this and are now packaging your film for the festival circuit or screenings, these funds can also be used towards trailer cuts, press kits, marketing assets, merch, photography, film festival submission fees, etc.

You will have the opportunity to provide specific details about your post-production needs or the stage of your film project in your application at 400 wds max.

19.  What do you mean by Black filmmakers?

Regardless of their ethnicity, gender, (dis)abilities, sexual orientation, we understand Black to mean someone who self-identifies racially and culturally as Black, African, Afro-descendant, or Afro-diasporic, from any part of the world.

20.  Why is this grant only open to US residents?

While BCC supports filmmakers both locally and globally, this year we only have the capacity to support filmmakers domestically/nationally. Our fiscal sponsor, Northwest Film Forum (NWFF), is best able to support prize disbursements domestically also.

• We define U.S. residents to include U.S. citizens living in the U.S., U.S. green card holders living in the U.S., and those living in the U.S. with valid work authorization from the USCIS (such as O-1 and H-1 visa holders).  As long as you are able to legally receive funding with provision of a W9 form for award funds, you are eligible to apply.

21.  Why is it called a microgrant?

Filmmaking is a very expensive endeavor. Film artists do successfully make films with smaller budgets, but sometimes need an extra fiscal bump to complete their work, or at least one aspect of the many components that make up a film. 

We are calling this a microgrant because this is a small grant in the larger scheme of film budgets. Also, we would like to assist with post-production funds for more than one individual, which means sharing our $15,000 grant budget to award two (2) people.         

22.  What obligations do awarded applicants have if they are selected by jurors to receive this grant?

If awardee does choose to receive our award package, they will be required to sign a Letter of Agreement (LOA) listing all awards received, noting timeline for MUBI membership or expiring prizes to be used if they so choose, and schedules of available times to screen their films with our partners within the calendar year if they so choose.

• As we will be publicly announcing the awardees, we will request a photo or headshot, bio, and any promotional links/socials/websites for us to share or tag you in our marketing. 

• We do request funding or producer shout out in your film credits.

• Should the RECIPIENT accept the AWARD, they will be obligated to provide their legal identification for payment, a W9 form with SS# or EIN #, and payment platform or banking info. They will also need to provide a projected timeline of their film completion if they intend on accepting the bi-coastal opportunity for screening their film with Northwest Film Forum (NWFF - Seattle) and New York African Film Festival (NYAFF) by May/June 2025.

23.  If my film is still in production now, but we will wrap all shooting by this coming summer, is our film still eligible?

The jurors will be evaluating applications according to stage of production, and the specific post-production needs detailed in your application.  If you are able to demonstrate this within the timeline of the grant evaluations and award, you may be eligible.  This will be up to the decretion of the jurors.  If you will still be in production at the time of this award announcement your project will not be considered post-production stage.

24. When would our film need to be finished to receive screening opportunities from Northwest Film Forum (Seattle) and New York African Film Festival by May/June 2025?

It is most ideal for your film to be completed (with press kit, trailers, teasers, marketing assets, and stills) by Feb 2025.  Please note both film organizations will need at least 3.5 months notice to include filmmakers in their programming with requisite promotional support.