LPB Digital Media Funding Program in the United States

Content Priorities

• Programs applying to the Digital Media Fund can be in the genres of the arts, history, science, biography, health, personal storytelling, cultural documentary, mixed genre and narrative. Projects should be designed to bring new audiences to public media and present a range of subjects, issues and viewpoints that complement and challenge existing public media offerings. Programs should integrate strong storytelling techniques that give voice and provide a lens to the diverse Latino community. While projects can take creative risks and reflect personal or individual experience, they must ultimately have resonance for a national U.S. audience.

Funding Categories

• Applicants applying for digital media projects will be expected to complete the project with funds awarded. LPB funding range for the digital category is as follows:
  • Digital Media $10,000 – $30,000
    • Digital Media: Funding to produce and complete “short form” (no more than 15 minutes) programs for primary distribution over the Internet or another public television platform, and can include short films, web series and other mixed digital media content. Eligible activities include: (i) clearance of rights necessary to produce, complete and distribute the program; and (ii) all standard production and post-production and packaging activities.

Eligibility Criteria

• An independent filmmaker or a production entity (i.e., a partnership or organization owned by the individual filmmaker or filmmakers) operating independently from a film studio, commercial broadcast or cable entity.
• Applicants must have knowledge, experience, and/or significant connection to the specific Latino issues(s) and/or community on which the film is based.
• Applicants must retain the copyright, artistic, budgetary and editorial control over the proposed project.
• Applicants applying to the Digital Media Fund are not eligible to apply to the PMCF with the same or different project.
• Applicants must agree to create only one version of the program/film. A re-edited version of the LPB-funded program cannot be re-packaged for another network.
• Applicants must be at least 18 years of age, be citizens or legal residents of the United States or its territories, and have previous film or television experience demonstrated by detailed personnel bios or resumes.
• Applicants are only allowed to submit one application for a project per review period.
• First time, full-length media makers who move forward to phase two will be required to submit a video sample of a shorter finished work that demonstrates their ability to tell a story using the visual medium. Media makers must have been producing other short format productions for at least three years.
• Applicants must shoot and deliver films in HD format.
• Applicants must have produced at least 2 short films.
• Applicants must agree to work with a mentor or script consultant assigned to the project by LPB, when deemed necessary.
• Applicants are required to add General Liability Insurance during the production phase, as well as the E+O insurance upon delivery for the film for PBS distribution.

Ineligible

• Programs/films previously submitted and declined by LPB with no substantial change to the proposal;
• Thesis projects or student films;
• Public television stations;
• Filmmakers or production entities that are foreign-based, owned or controlled;
• Industrial, promotional or advocacy projects;
• Projects for which the exclusive domestic television broadcast rights are not available;
• Projects with a primarily commercial interest;
• Projects whose content or ideas are substantially similar to previously LPB-funded programs currently in production or distribution;
• Current signatories of LPB contracts who have not completed delivery;
• Current signatories re-applying for the same type of funding previously awarded;
• Employees of CPB, PBS, APT, NETA, ITVS and the NMCA.

For more information, visit LPB.