California Humanities is pleased to offer CDP NextGen, a funding opportunity through the California Documentary Project grant program in support of California’s next generation of documentary mediamakers age 18 and under.
Donor Name: California Humanities
State: California
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 09/15/2023
Size of the Grant: up to $15,000
Grant Duration: 1 year
Details:
CDP NextGen invites applications from California-based nonprofit organizations and public agencies, including schools and libraries, with established track records in youth media programming to provide training and support to emerging mediamakers in the creation of short, insightful nonfiction films and/or podcasts that tell original stories about life in California today.
California Humanities seeks compelling and accessible projects that reflect a broad cross-section of young Californians’ stories, bring new and previously unheard perspectives to light, and help to reveal the breadth and range of California’s cultures, peoples and histories.
Purpose
- If California is at times seen as an indicator of where the United States is headed, then the state’s 9 million young people under the age of 18 will play an increasingly significant role in shaping who they are and the issues that they care about both regionally and nationally in coming years. CDP NextGen is designed to nurture California’s next generation of documentary mediamakers and help bring a broad range of young Californians’ perspectives to bear on the subjects and issues that both divide and unite them. CDP NextGen intends to support short documentary films or podcasts that shed light on not only the problems they face, but also on the solutions that youth are proposing and the futures they envision.
- The focus of proposed projects may take many forms, though all should address subjects and issues relevant to the lives and experiences of young people in California today and should emerge from the interests, cares, concerns and inquiries of the participating youth mediamakers.
- California Humanities is particularly interested in projects that, in addition to providing technical training in media production, actively support young Californians in thinking critically about media messages. Competitive proposals will also encourage reflection and deepened understanding of subjects and issues relevant to participants’ lives and communities.
The Role of Humanities
- CDP NextGen supports documentary media productions that use the humanities to provide social, cultural, and/or historical context and broadened perspective. The humanities grow out of an interest in the language, literature, thought, and history of humankind. They emphasize analysis, interpretation, and exchange of ideas. Humanities disciplines include, but are not limited to, history, philosophy, literature, folklore, ethnic studies, religious studies, gender studies, ethics, jurisprudence, and qualitative approaches in the social sciences. These fields are differentiated from—though not exclusive of—the creative expression of the arts or the quantitative explanation of the sciences or social sciences.
- California Humanities encourages applicants to make use of relevant humanities expertise in planning and implementing projects and to approach subject matter from a perspective informed by the humanities—e.g., make use of existing or new scholarship and research on the topic for context and perspective; ask informed, critical questions; and seek to foster insight, reflection and thoughtful analysis on the part of the audience. CDP NextGen Grants also require that a humanities expert (academic scholar, humanities professional, or culture bearer) serve as an advisor to the project.
Funding Information
- Applicants may request funding up to $15,000. California Humanities grant funds must be matched by at least a 1:1 amount of cash or in-kind contributions from non-federal sources.
- The maximum grant period is one year (November 1, 2023 – October 31, 2024), though school- based projects may request an extension to align with academic calendars
- Grant funds may be used to support eligible project-related activities and expenses during the grant period, including but not limited to: stipends for youth participants, production and post- production costs; honoraria for humanities advisors; salaries and fees for staff and other personnel directly involved in the project; supplies and materials, public presentation, publicity and promotion; etc. Some restrictions apply, including a 10% cap on indirect costs, organizational overhead and fiscal sponsorship fees.
Eligibility Criteria
- California-based non-profit organizations with tax-exempt status or state/municipal public agencies such as arts councils, schools, universities, tribal governments, or libraries may apply for the CDP NextGen grant. Individuals and organizations lacking tax exempt status may not apply directly for funding but can apply under the auspices of a fiscal sponsor. Eligible applicant organizations and project directors must:
- Be in good standing with California Humanities (e.g., without unfulfilled reporting requirements), if a previous grant recipient.
- Not have an open grant or application under consideration or submit more than one application per California Humanities deadline, unless acting as a California Humanities-approved, multi- application fiscal sponsor or a college, university, public library system, or arts council.
For more information, visit California Humanities.
