Alfred P. Sloan Fellowship and Commissioning Grant
Grants and fellowships from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation supporting film, television, and stage projects that portray science and technology accurately and engagingly across multiple partner organisations.
Overview
The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation's Film Program is one of the most extensive science-in-storytelling funding ecosystems in the world. Rather than operating a single grant program, the Sloan Foundation funds partnerships with dozens of film festivals, labs, film schools, and production organisations that each administer their own Sloan-branded fellowships, development grants, and commissioning awards. Across all these partnerships, the common mandate is consistent: support film, television, and stage projects that portray science, technology, and scientists accurately, compellingly, and without cliche.
The Sloan Foundation has been active in film funding for more than two decades, and its cumulative investment has supported hundreds of projects including award-winning features, documentaries, and shorts that have screened at Sundance, Tribeca, Berlin, and other major festivals.
How the Ecosystem Works
The Sloan Foundation does not accept direct applications from filmmakers for most of its film funding. Instead, it funds institutional partners who administer Sloan fellowships and grants within their own programs. Current Sloan film partners include:
- Sundance Institute -- Science-in-Film initiative with lab fellowships and the Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film Prize
- SFFILM -- Sloan Science in Cinema Filmmaker Fellowship and Stories of Science Development Fund
- Film Independent -- Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Grants for narrative features
- Tribeca Festival -- TFI Sloan Filmmaker Fund
- Multiple film schools -- Development funding and commissioning grants administered through university film programs
Each partner program has its own eligibility requirements, application deadlines, and award amounts. Filmmakers should identify which partner program is most relevant to their project's format, stage, and geographic location before applying.
Commissioning Grants
Some Sloan partner programs include commissioning grants for specific types of projects -- particularly narrative scripts and documentary treatments centred on scientific subjects. These commissions are awarded through the partner organisation rather than directly by the Foundation.
Eligibility
Eligibility varies by partner program. Common requirements across most Sloan film programs include: the project must be a scripted narrative or documentary film (not a commercial or educational video); science, technology, or scientists must play a central role in the story; and the portrayal must be substantively accurate and engaging rather than using science as a superficial backdrop.
Who Should Apply
Narrative and documentary filmmakers with a project that places science, technology, or scientists at the centre of its story. The appropriate application route is through a Sloan partner program rather than directly to the Foundation. Filmmakers should review all current Sloan partner programs to identify the best match for their project's format and stage.
See Also
For the SFFILM-specific Sloan fellowship, see the Sloan Science in Cinema Filmmaker Fellowship entry. For the SFFILM documentary Sloan track, see the SFFILM Sloan Science in Cinema Fellowship entry.
