ARTIST DEVELOPMENT › FUND YOUR FILM › SOUND AND CINEMA FELLOWSHIP
Sound and Cinema Fellowship
Overview
The SFFILM/SFCM Sound and Cinema Fellowship is a collaboration between the San Francisco Conservatory of Music (SFCM) and SFFILM’s Artist Development program. Since 2024, the fellowship brings together local filmmakers from SFFILM’s FilmHouse Residency and students from SFCM’s Technology and Applied Composition (TAC) program, pairing directors and student composers to create original scores and sound design for short films. Designed to support emerging artists across disciplines, the program fosters creative collaboration between film and music, helping participants develop new skills, expand their networks, and bring original cinematic works to life through sound.
Fellowships will be awarded to three to five Bay Area projects once a year in the fall, for projects in post-production. In addition to a cash grant of up to $2,000, recipients receive access to the FilmHouse (located in the Presidio in San Francisco) and benefit from SFFILM’s comprehensive and dynamic artist development programs. The completed films will premiere in a special showcase at the 70th Annual San Francisco International Film Festival (April 22–May 2, 2027). Fellows will receive a Festival badge and be invited to industry events and programs.
Since 2024, the SFFILM/SFCM Sound and Cinema Fellowship has supported projects including Betsy Tsai’s Along Away, A.K. Sandu’s America, We Beg Your Pardon, Florencia Manovil’s Camino, Steven Raven Liang’s Oscar’s Return, Elivia Shaw’s Breathing Room, Andrés Gallegos’s The Darkest Night and Maria Victoria Ponce’s Perm and Circumstance.
Timeline
- Applications open July 23, 2026
- Final Deadline Sept 3, 2026
- Recipients notified in September 2026
Who Can Apply
- Filmmakers must be at least 18 years old.
- Filmmakers may not be an SFFILM or San Francisco Conservatory of Music employee or member of any SFFILM or San Francisco Conservatory of Music Foundation Boards.
- Applicants must be actively engaged in one of the following phases: production or post-production and should be in post-production in Fall 2026.
- Primary applicants must be the director for the film.
- Applicants can submit a short and feature, fiction and non-fiction.
- Project may not be work for hire.
- Project budgets shall be $3,000,000 or under including all phases of production.
- Projects may reapply and must include what significant progress has been made since the last submission.
How to Apply
To begin the application process, navigate to the “Apply Now” page to review the required items for submission. If you have not yet created an account for the SFFILM Grant Platform, please do so (please note: this is separate from your SFFILM member account). Once you have created a user profile, please select ‘Sound and Cinema Fellowship’ from the dropdown menu and complete the core questions.
Email grants@sffilm.org if you have any questions
FAQs
Do I need to live in the Bay Area to be eligible for the Sound and Cinema Fellowship?
Yes, the Sound and Cinema Fellowship is for Bay Area filmmakers.
What stages does the Sound and Cinema Fellowship support?
This fellowship supports feature and short films in the post-production stage. Films can be non-fiction or fiction.
How much funding can I expect?
Applicants will receive up to $2,000 depending on the amount of projects awarded.
Is there a budget cap?
Yes, the film’s budget must be below $3 million.
Is there a limit to the number of times I can apply?
No, there is no limit. Projects may reapply and state what significant progress has been made since the last submission.
I would like to submit my project to more than one SFFILM grant. Are there additional fees?
You are welcome to submit your application for consideration for multiple SFFILM grant opportunities. Please be sure to review the eligibility for each grant and answer the supplemental questions each grant requires. There is an additional submission fee for the SFFILM Documentary Film Fund and one additional submission fee per application for SFFILM Narrative Grants. These will be available to apply for in early 2027.uires. There is only one submission fee per application.
For more information about our grants and fellowships, visit our FAQ page.