No. We can transfer the funds to our grant winners directly.

No. We support a diverse group of filmmakers and projects both locally and internationally that tell universal stories. Each grant opportunity has different requirements and we encourage all applicants to read through the prerequisites before applying.

The Rainin Grant is a narrative feature grant that supports projects focused on themes of social justice in the screenwriting, development, and post-production stages. In addition to a cash grant of up to $25,000, recipients secure a 2-month residency at FilmHouse and benefit from SFFILM’s comprehensive and dynamic artist development programs. The Rainin Grant welcomes filmmakers in the US and internationally who can commit to spending time developing the film in San Francisco.

The Westridge Grant is a narrative feature grant that supports projects focused on themes of social issues and questions of our time in the screenwriting stage only. In addition to financial support, grantees receive guidance through peer engagement, feedback, and artistic development from SFFILM, the Westridge Foundation and a dedicated screenwriting advisor. There are no residency requirements for this grant. The Westridge Grant welcomes filmmakers whose stories take place in the United States.

Eligible projects can apply to both funds at the same time for the same stage, but a project can only receive one grant per stage. (For example, you could not receive a Rainin screenwriting grant and a Westridge screenwriting grant, but you could receive a Westridge Screenwriting grant one year and a Rainin development grant the following year.)

At this time, SFFILM only funds feature-length fiction and documentary films, and does not have funds available for series, pilots, or shorts. 

The residency program supports filmmakers working on documentary, fiction, and hybrid feature-length films as well as shorts and episodics.