Creative England opens first film fund

Awards of up to £50,000 are now available from Creative England for cinemas and film festivals to promote audience development.

The new body, which replaced England's nine screen agencies earlier this month, has £490,000 of lottery cash in its Film Culture Fund to distribute to areas outside London.

The fund is designed to boost access for audiences to a wide range of films and "enrich audiences’ experience through education opportunities".

It is specifically aimed at audience development within the film exhibition sector; film education activities which support film exhibition infrastructure such as cinemas, film festivals and film societies; and the acquisition, preservation and conservation of regional screen heritage.

Creative England’s Film Culture department is headed by Jay Arnold, who previously worked with Screen Yorkshire as head of cultural sector investment.

He said: “I’m very pleased to open Creative England’s first funding scheme. We’re looking for strong project ideas that we can get behind to help nurture film culture in all its variety, to the benefit of local audiences around the country, and we’re interested in hearing from organisations from all parts of the English regions.”

Download the Film Culture Fund guidelines and application from the Creative England site - the deadline is November 28.

Funding for film talent development will be announced next month.