NYC Women’s Fund FAQ
GENERAL FAQ
No. Applicants do not need to have a Fiscal Sponsor for their project. If you project already has a Fiscal Sponsor and you wish to include this organization in the funding process, you may.
No. Applicants can apply in only one category with one project.
We understand that there are times when artists work together on projects and that can be explained in the project narrative, but there should be only one lead applicant for the proposal. Only one application may be submitted per project. Only one application may be submitted by any production company, theatre company, or collective.
You have the option of including notes and comments about your Work Samples in the metadata field. Once you have selected and uploaded your file, an additional, metadata field, will appear in the application form. Please include additional information about the Work Samples here.
I have been funded through the NYC Women’s Fund in the past, am I eligible to apply again?
Yes. Past recipients of the NYC Women’s Fund are eligible to apply again in Cycle 4. However, in addition to the category guidelines, the previously funded project must be completed and all NYFA reports must have been successfully submitted prior to November 1st, 2022. This applies to Theatre companies, even if the Lead Artist is different.
All funded projects will receive 50% of the award distribution at the beginning of their contract.
- Media projects will be eligible to receive the next 40% of the award when the project has reached picture lock. Media projects will be eligible to receive the last 10% of funds when the project is completed and they have scheduled a public access date and method.
- Music projects will be eligible to receive the next 40% of the award when their project has finished recording. Music projects will be eligible to receive the last 10% of funds when the project is completed and they have scheduled a public access date and method.
- Theatre projects staging live, in-person performances will be eligible to receive the last 50% of the award once they’ve contracted a third-party venue and supplied rehearsal dates and a full list of their creative team.
- Theatre projects staging online-only performances will be eligible to receive the next 40% of the award once they’ve supplied rehearsal dates and contracts for all artists involved. Online theatre projects will be eligible for the last 10% of funds at premiere.
Yes. Funded projects must complete a final report via Submittable clearly outlining how the NYC Women’s Fund was used to complete the project along with sharing information on attendance numbers and public access plans or outcomes.
No. All projects must still be in process.
Applications are reviewed by external panelists through 3 elimination rounds, producing a smaller pool for each round.
In the first two rounds, panelists review all applications remotely and vote online. A third discussion round is then held in which panelists meet online to discuss applications and collectively select the award recipients.
BUDGET FAQs:
No. First and foremost, the NYC Women’s Fund is meant to support artist and production fees. It is not an appropriate use of funds to purchase equipment or capital goods. Equipment rentals are acceptable.
Yes, however only 20% of the NYC Women’s Fund award amount may be allocated to marketing, promotion and distribution.
To answer this, please include an itemized list with dollar amounts for the requested NYC Women’s Fund allocation for your project. This list should account for the full spend of the requested NYC Women’s Fund award amount.
For example, if you’ve requested $20,000 in total from the NYC Women’s Fund, your answer to this question could look something like this:
Artist Fees: $13,000
Equipment Rental: $5,000
Marketing & Distribution: $2,000
Total: $20,000
Applications that do not specify how the NYCWF award will be spent are ineligible.
FILM-SPECIFIC FAQs:
The NYC Women’s Fund is a finishing grant for film and media projects. Principal photography must be completed at the time of application.
support?
No. Principal photography should be completed by the time you apply. All Work Samples must be from the project you plan to use the NYC Women’s Fund to complete. We understand that this may be unfinished footage.
No. Work Samples don’t have to be one continuous sequence, but can be made of several
shorter scenes. Each Work Sample should clearly communicate important moments and be
representative of the scope and overall arc of the project. If you have multiple scenes, we
suggest having a black screen or some other way to indicate that a new scene is starting.
No. Please only choose one format, either upload your long format Work Samples directly to your application form, OR supply a link (included access information) in the available field(s) in the application form. As noted, recipients will be notified about the award in March 2022, if your Work Sample is password protected, please do not change the password before then.
No. We ask that short work samples be uploaded directly into the application.
Yes, but please note that principal photography must be completed on all in-progress episodes. Please also explain the synopsis and direction for any new episodes and how they will build on or differ from those submitted.
Yes, but no more than 20% of the grant may be used for these expenses.
Either (i) 75% of its total shooting days take place in New York City, or (ii) 75% of its production costs are “qualified production costs.” “Qualified production costs” means the below-the-line production costs only to the extent such costs are incurred directly in New York City and are attributable to the use of tangible property or the performance of services within New York City directly and predominantly in the production (including pre-production and post-production) of a qualified film.
No, the project can be about any subject, set anywhere, but it needs to be the budgetary restrictions outlined above.
Yes.
- Closing Credits should include the following: “With support from: The NYC Women’s Fund for Media, Music and Theatre by the City of New York Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment in association with The New York Foundation for the Arts.”
- Social Media: Within the 2-week period following the grant award and the 2-week period following the release of the project, grantees must post a minimum of five (5) social media posts acknowledging the support from The NYC Women’s Fund for Media, Music and Theatre by the City of New York Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment in association with The New York Foundation for the Arts. Please note, this is a minimum of five (5) across various channels, not per channel.
MUSIC-SPECIFIC FAQs:
Examples of projects may include, but are not limited to:
- An album produced by a woman-identified producer and/or engineer;
- A classical music album written by a living woman-identified composer;
- An album by a woman-identified singer/songwriter;
- A jazz album featuring a woman in a prominent musical role, such as vocals, guitar, or drums;
- A music video for an original recording by a woman-identified artist;
- A hip hop album by a woman-identified performer; or
- Any other type of recording that meets the objectives of the grant.
Among the expenses which can be covered are:
- Studio rental fees and related costs.
- Instrument and equipment rental fees.
- Production session fees for musicians, songwriters, composers, arrangers, music producers, programmers, engineers, and/or 3 technicians.
- Mixing and mastering services of qualifying music productions.
- Production of a music video.
- Marketing, promotion, and distribution of the recording (no more than 20% of the total grant award).
The grant funds projects in any musical genre, including, but not limited to: Alternative; Americana; Blues; Classical; Country; Dance; Electronic; Experimental; Folk; Gospel; Hip Hop; Jazz; Latin; New Music; Opera; Pop; Rap; R&B; Rock; and Soul.
Yes.
- Digital Distribution: For all projects distributed digitally, grantees will be required to include in liner notes and credits on an appropriate page of their websites the following: “With support from: The NYC Women’s Fund for Media, Music and Theatre by the City of New York Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment in association with The New York Foundation for the Arts.”
- Physical Distribution: For all projects distributed in physical form, grantees will be required to include the following phrase in the project’s liner notes: “With support from: The NYC Women’s Fund for Media, Music and Theatre by the City of New York Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment in association with The New York Foundation for the Arts.” Grantees should also include the Made in NY logo.
- Social Media: Within the 2-week period following the grant award and the 2-week period following the release of the project, grantees must post a minimum of five (5) social media posts acknowledging the support from The NYC Women’s Fund for Media, Music and Theatre by the City of New York Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment in association with The New York Foundation for the Arts. Please note, this is a minimum of five (5) across various channels, not per channel.
THEATRE-SPECIFIC FAQs:
Applicants can be:
- A playwright with a completed script looking to self-produce;
- An independent producer;
- A theatre company;
- Any other entity, either commercial or non-profit, committed to producing the work by March 31, 2024.
Yes, but this cannot be a recital or concert version, all productions need to be fully-staged by March 31, 2024 and have a minimum of five performances in NYC.
created?
Yes. You can submit a work sample from the last created work and give a detailed description of your prompts, research, work methods, or other materials which will give the panel of clear sense of the upcoming project.
Yes, please specify to what extent the work will be shown online.
Yes.
- Programs (whether physical, digital, or both) should include the following: “With support from: The NYC Women’s Fund for Media, Music and Theatre by the City of New York Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment in association with The New York Foundation for the Arts.” Grantees should also include the Made in NY logo.
- Social Media: Within the 2-week period following the grant award and the 2-week period following the release of the project, grantees must post a minimum of five (5) social media posts acknowledging the support from The NYC Women’s Fund for Media, Music and Theatre by the City of New York Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment in association with The New York Foundation for the Arts. Please note, this is a minimum of five (5) across various channels, not per channel.
NAVIGATING SUBMITTABLE:
Step-by-step guidance for using the Submittable platform and setting up a free account is available here.
We highly suggest using a laptop desktop computer to complete your application on the platform. For a smoother performance, we recommend using either Firefox or Chrome as your browser. If you’re already using Chrome, please clear the browser cache and cookies. Additionally, please make sure you are using the most up to date version of your browser.
If you are still running into technical issues, you can reach out to Submittable’s Support team directly via the contact form, Submitter Support, or via the support email address [email protected] so that they can troubleshoot directly.
NYFA staff do not have access to your Submittable account.
We strongly encourage that you apply at least 2 days before the deadline in case technical difficulties come up to allow us time to assist your application. In the event you encounter technical difficulties on the last day and as a result cannot get your application in on time, NYFA cannot extend the deadline regardless of the cause of the problem you may have encountered.
No. All applications must be submitted online via the Submittable platform. To request an accommodation or assistance in applying, please email [email protected]. We ask that requests for accommodation be made as soon as possible, preferably two weeks prior to the deadline, to allow adequate time for staff to support you in submitting an application on time.
Instructions for scanning documents on an iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch are available here. Instructions for scanning documents on an Android device using Google Drive are available here.
This free online tool can help you convert to a wide variety of file types.
You have the option of including notes and comments about your work samples in the metadata field. Once you have selected and uploaded your file, an additional metadata field will appear in the application form. Please include additional information about the work samples here.
By completing this information you are helping NYFA secure future funding. Your responses will remain anonymous and will not be linked to your identifying information. NYFA is committed to supporting individuals from all backgrounds and disciplines and will continue to work towards values of equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility across all programs. Read NYFA’s DEIA statement on our website: https://www.nyfa.org/Content/Show/About-NYFA
