2023-24 National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Media Projects Program

The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Division of Public Programs is accepting applications for the Media Projects program.

Donor Name: National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH)

State: All States

County: All Counties

Type of Grant: Grant

Deadline: 08/09/2023

Size of the Grant: up to $1,000,000

Grant Duration: 3 years

Details:

Purpose

The Media Projects program supports the development, production, and distribution of radio programs, podcasts, and documentary films that engage general audiences with humanities ideas in creative and appealing ways. Projects must be grounded in humanities scholarship and incorporate an approach that is thoughtful, balanced, and analytical; proposals must demonstrate the potential to attract a broad general audience.

The Division of Public Programs encourages media projects that promote a deeper understanding of American history and culture as well as those that examine international themes and subjects in the humanities. Film and television projects may be stand-alone documentaries or a series of programs. Radio and podcast projects may be single programs, a series, or segments within an ongoing program.

Projects may include supplementary components such as discussion programs or websites. All projects should be intended for national or regional distribution.

All Media Projects proposals must:

• build on sound humanities scholarship
• deepen public understanding of significant humanities questions
• approach a subject analytically, presenting a variety of perspectives
• involve humanities scholars in all phases of development and production
• involve appropriate media professionals
• employ appealing and accessible formats that will actively engage the general public in learning.

Funding Categories

Media Projects offers two levels of funding: Development and Production.

• Development: Development awards (up to $75,000) enable media producers to collaborate with scholars to develop humanities content and other program elements. Awards must result in a script or detailed treatment(s). You may also use a Development award to plan for outreach and public engagement.
  • Prior to applying for a Development award, you should have:
    • assessed the major humanities scholarship related to the subject
    • identified humanities themes
    • assembled a group of humanities scholars to serve as advisers, and other experts if applicable
    • consulted with the humanities scholars to identity the project’s interpretive ideas
    • formed a media team to see the project through its development period
    • identified resources (such as archival materials and potential interviewees)
  • Development awards may support activities such as:
    • meetings with scholars
    • preliminary interviews preparation of program treatments or scripts
    • production of a work-in-progress or trailer
    • creation of partnerships for outreach activities and public engagement
    • archival and other scholarly research to further development of script and humanities themes
• Production: Production awards (up to $700,000) must result in the production and distribution of radio, podcast, television, and documentary film projects.
  • Prior to applying for a Production award, you should have:
    • conducted extensive research on your subject, including archival work and preliminary Interviews
    • identified humanities themes
    • involved humanities scholars in creating and interpreting the project’s content
    • drafted the script or detailed treatment(s)
    • designed your plans for distribution, outreach, and partnerships
  • Production awards may support activities such as:
    • archival research and rights clearances
    • meetings with scholars
    • additional script development
    • production (including filming, recording, and editing) and distribution
    • development of related resources that explore the humanities content and themes central to the project (e.g., websites and curriculum materials)
    • outreach and public engagement
  • Chair’s Special Awards: Within the Production level, NEH will occasionally make Chair’s Special Awards (up to $1,000,000) for projects of exceptional significance, audience reach, and complexity. A Chair’s Special Award should examine important humanities ideas in new ways and demonstrate the potential to reach especially large audiences. These goals can often be accomplished by combining a variety of program formats, forming creative collaborations among diverse institutions, and significantly expanding the scope and reach of the project. Chair’s Special Awards are rare; NEH typically awards no more than one per year.

Funding Information

• Award Amounts Development:
  • Development projects: Up to $75,000
  • Production projects: Up to $700,000 (up to $1,000,000 for Chair’s Special Awards)
• Period of Performance Development:
  • Development projects: six to twelve months
  • Production projects: one to three years.

Eligibility Criteria

• City or township governments
• County governments
• State governments
• Public and State controlled institutions of higher education
• Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized)
• Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
• Private institutions of higher education
• Special district governments.

For more information, visit Grants.gov.