Back to All Grants Media Artists Program: Creation Grants for individuals to support the creation/production of new or in-progress works covering costs of subsistence/materials or production and/or post-production support. Application Deadline October 15, 2025 Grant Category Discipline Apply Guidelines Reach out to a Grant Manager Peter Kingstone Program Manager, Visual & Media Arts 416-392-6802 x 208 peter@torontoartscouncil.org what does this program support? The Visual and Media Arts Projects program provides funding to professional, non-profit Toronto visual arts/media arts organizations, collectives, curators or programmers to pursue one-time or time-limited projects involving the exhibition or distribution of contemporary visual or media arts and/or other activities that contribute to the development of visual arts/media arts in Toronto (for example residencies, artists workshops). The City of Toronto provides funding for this program through its Community Partnership and Investment Program. The maximum grant available in this program is $15,000. Proposed projects must have a secured venue in the city of Toronto or be produced in Toronto and shared online, and have a well-focused audience development plan.You may apply for the following types of projects: Exhibition: an exhibition must present work in a curatorial or critical context. Applicants exhibiting the work of their own members must likewise have a clearly defined curatorial or critical framework informing the selection and exhibition of work. An individual curator may notpresent their own artwork Screening Series: a screening, including film/video festivals, must present work in a curatorial or critical context and must include some work from Toronto artists. Applicants screening the work of their own members must likewise have a clearly defined curatorial or critical framework informing the selection and screening of work. An individual programmer may not present their own media work. Lecture Series: a lecture series must present work in a curatorial or critical context. The audience development plan for the series must include a rationale on how the project contributes to the development of contemporary media and/or visual arts in Toronto. Applicantspresenting their own members must likewise have a clearly defined curatorial or critical framework informing the selection of speakers. Residency/Workshop Series: the audience development plan for the series must include a rationale on how the project contributes to the development of contemporary media and/or visual arts in Toronto. Applicants that have residencies or workshops including their own members must likewise have a clearly defined curatorial or critical framework informing the selection of participants. Due to potential public health restrictions, social distancing rules and venue closures, projects conceived on digital platforms are eligible. Grants awarded may be less than the full amount requested. In all categories TAC will not fund 100% of a project: applicants must indicate a range of revenue sources, which may include donated goods and services. For all categories, project expenses could include: artists fees,production and technical fees, marketing and outreach costs, administrative costs, childcare costs, etc. The payment of artist fees is a requirement in this program. This Program does not fund: Projects that have been completed prior to the announcement of results. Toronto Arts Council does not fund retroactively. Projects with total budgets in excess of $350,000. Project funding solely for the purpose of travel or exhibition of work. Capital purchases, such as tools, equipment, etc. Commissioned, instructional or promotional projects. Promotion and marketing expenses. Pilots for commercial or educational television. Music videos. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA To be eligible for this funding:1 A professional artist is someone who has specialized training in the field (not necessarily in academic institutions), who is recognized as such by their peers (artists working in the same artistic tradition), who has a history of public presentation, publication and/or production and who is committed to devoting more time to their artistic activity if financially feasible. Applicants must be Canadian Citizens or Permanent Residents or have an application pending for Permanent Resident status or be a Protected Person (approved refugee claimant) and, if requested, be able to provide documentation to verify this. Applicants must be residents of the City of Toronto for at least one year prior to the application deadline. Temporary absences of up to 12 months may be considered, subject to written explanation and special permission; please contact the Program Manager. Neither a Post Office Box address nor a studio address can be used to meet the residency requirement. Undergraduate students cannot apply. Applicants must have spent a minimum of one year working on and developing an independent art practice after completing full-time studies. Professional artists pursuing graduate studies may not apply for work related to their program of study. A letter from the graduate program director specifying that the project is not related to the graduate student’s program of studies must be submitted with the application. Applicants must retain full copyright, financial and creative control. Applicants to TAC’s 2024 Visual Artists Program may not apply to TAC’s 2024 Media Artists Program. Individual artists may only receive one discipline-stream project grant and one strategic initiative grant per calendar year, and can only have one open application in each stream at a time. Collaborative proposals (involving a co-applicant) are eligible. For these proposals, one of the applicants must identify a principal applicant. Co-applicants are subject to the same eligibility criteria as single, individual applicant. If the application is successful, the grant payment will be payable to the principal applicant, as listed in the application. Similarly, a T4A slip will be issued to the principal applicant. The only eligible applicant for a film or video project is the director. Producers may not apply as co-applicants Applicants must have created at least one media artwork. Additional Information How do I apply? Applicants register and submit the application through TAC Grants Online. Applications must be submitted no later than 11:59 pm on the deadline dates. TAC does not accept applications by any other means of delivery. You will receive a confirmation email when your application is submitted. Check your spam/junk mail folder if it doesn’t arrive in your in-box. Please download the full Program Guidelines for complete program details and application specifics. TAC Accessibility Grant Projects involving Deaf artists and artists with disabilities may apply for an additional TAC grant by completing the Accessibility Expenses section of the application and including the requisite information in their budget. A TAC Accessibility grant will provide up to a maximum of $5,000 towards accessibility costs for artists incurred during the project. Accessibility costs include but are not limited to: ASL interpretation, audio description, closed captioning, communications assistants, attendant care (including helpers for Elders), support workers and equipment rentals or other supports required to meet artists’ accessibility needs). Application Accessibility Support Applicants who are Deaf or have a disability and need support to complete their grant applications can apply for funds to cover the costs of assistance from Application Support Service Providers. Up to $500 is available per eligible applicant in each calendar year. Please contact your Grant Program Manager at least six weeks before the grant program deadline to determine eligibility, request application support funding, and to review the process for payment to be made to your Service Provider. Requests for application support require approval from the Grant Program Manager. Additional information here. Can I apply to other TAC grants? Toronto Arts Council has two Grant Categories:1. Discipline (e.g.: discipline-specific project grants and operating grants in Theatre, Dance, Music, etc.)2. Strategic (e.g.: Animating Toronto Parks, Artists in the Library, Animating Historic Sites, Artreach, Open Door, etc.) Media Artists Program: Creation is a Discipline program. Applicants may receive a maximum of one Discipline grant per calendar year. Applicants may not apply for more than one Discipline grant at a time. However, we offer other types of granting opportunities through our Strategic Category, and you may be eligible to apply to one of these programs. Please note: if you apply for a Media Artists Program: Creation grant you cannot also apply to another TAC program for the same project. For more detail on our granting categories, go to our About Our Grants page. about our grants TAC recognizes that due to systemic barriers within the broader arts community (e.g. limited mainstream presentation opportunities for artists from equity-seeking communities) that some flexibility may be required in interpreting eligibility criteria to take into account equivalent professional experience and contexts. Potential applicants from equity-seeking communities are encouraged to discuss their eligibility with the Program Manager in advance of submitting an application.