Attention, Los Angeles-based filmmakers: The Future of Film Is Female and Neon want to give you money for your short films about life in the city. Caryn Coleman’s non-profit organization, dedicated to amplifying the work of all women and non-binary filmmakers early in their career, has teamed up with Neon for its latest short film fund, which will offer three financial grants in the amount of $4,000 and two post-production in-kind grants from Heard City and Nice Shoes.
The Spring 2025 Short Film Fund will offer grants women and nonbinary LA-based filmmakers making a short film in the city. Submissions are open April 18 – May 2 with a notification date set for June 23, 2025. Submissions are open to short films that are under 20 minutes, include all genres, and are not a proof-of-concept. Filmmakers are selected through a no-cost submission process via FilmFreeway. The FOFIF has a cap of 400 submissions.
Of this latest round of grants, FOFIF founder Caryn Coleman told IndieWire, “The Los Angeles film community has experienced tremendous hardships in recent years with COVID, the actors’ and writers’ strikes, rising film costs, and the recent LA fires. The city houses incredible filmmakers, cinemas, and programmers; our goal is that this grant round will help, even in a small way, to support the continuation of production in Los Angeles. We love LA!”
Launched in 2018, the twice-annual FOFIF Short Film Fund offers financial and in-kind post-production services to women and nonbinary filmmakers at any stage in the creation of a short film. Since founding, The FOFIF has been able to help support over 70 filmmaker short film projects (half of which are from Los Angeles) and commits to working with these filmmakers throughout their careers.
FOFIF-supported short films include Crystal Kayiza’s Sundance award-winning “Rest Stop,” and the FOFIF has also supported filmmakers like Alessandra Lacorazza, whose debut feature, “In the Summers,” received the Best Director and Grand Jury Prize at Sundance 2024.
Last year, Coleman and the FOFIF entered the distribution space, crafting a bespoke rollout for Hannah Peterson’s “The Graduates,” a long-time favorite of the organization.
For more guidelines and to submit, head over to FilmFreeway.
