Overview
Allied Media Projects (AMP) operates a Sponsored Projects Program that provides 501(c)(3) fiscal sponsorship to independent media and film projects with a social justice dimension. Through AMP's sponsorship, filmmakers can receive tax-deductible donations from individuals and apply for foundation grants that require a nonprofit organizational partner - without incorporating a separate nonprofit entity.
AMP is rooted in Detroit, Michigan, and has been providing fiscal sponsorship since 2014. The organization currently works with more than 120 sponsored projects across the United States and Puerto Rico. More than half of AMP's sponsored projects are based in Detroit. The program supports a range of media forms including documentary features, scripted features, animation, short films, episodic content, new media, and theater.
History
Allied Media Projects grew out of the Allied Media Conference, which first took place in 1999 in Bowling Green, Ohio, before relocating to Detroit in 2007. The conference brought together media makers, artists, and organizers exploring how media can be used as a tool for social transformation. AMP was formalized as a nonprofit organization to provide year-round infrastructure for the network the conference had built. The Sponsored Projects Program launched in 2014 as AMP's fiscal sponsorship arm. As of 2024, the program marked a decade of providing fiscal sponsorship services, growing from a small set of Detroit-based projects to a national network of more than 120 sponsored projects. More than half of AMP's sponsored projects are based in Detroit. AMP's approach to fiscal sponsorship is explicitly rooted in social justice values, described as "radical fiscal sponsorship." The organization prioritizes projects that align with its vision of dismantling supremacist systems and caring for communities.
What It Offers
Fiscal sponsorship through AMP provides:
- 501(c)(3) umbrella: Donations made to sponsored projects through AMP are tax-deductible for the donor, opening access to individual major donors, family foundations, and community foundations that require nonprofit status
- Foundation grant eligibility: Many grant-making organizations - including government arts agencies and private foundations - require applicants to have nonprofit status. AMP's sponsorship satisfies this requirement
- Financial management: AMP processes donations on behalf of the project, issues tax receipts to donors, and disburses funds to the filmmaker. AMP provides financial stewardship including bookkeeping, accounting, and compliance services
- Two sponsorship models: AMP offers comprehensive fiscal sponsorship (where the project becomes a program of AMP) and grant-specific sponsorship (where the project remains independent). The comprehensive model includes payroll, vendor management, and insurance; the grant-specific model focuses on fundraising support and donor management
- Project support: AMP consults on project planning, management, and evaluation, and supports fundraising and communications strategy
- Network access: Sponsored projects join AMP's national network of social justice media makers, with connections to the annual Allied Media Conference and related community networks
AMP charges an administrative fee on donations received through the sponsorship, which covers the organization's processing, compliance, and financial management costs. Filmmakers should account for this fee in their fundraising targets. The fee structure is tiered and varies based on the sponsorship model and the volume of funds processed.
Typical Award Size Range
AMP does not provide direct grants. The Sponsored Projects Program provides fiscal sponsorship, which enables filmmakers to receive tax-deductible donations and apply for foundation grants that require nonprofit status. The amount a project can raise depends on its own fundraising efforts. AMP charges an administrative fee on donations received through the sponsorship, which is tiered and varies based on the sponsorship model and the volume of funds processed. Filmmakers should account for this fee in their fundraising targets.
Payment Structure
AMP processes donations on behalf of sponsored projects, issues tax receipts to donors, and disburses funds to the filmmaker. The comprehensive sponsorship model includes payroll, vendor management, and insurance. The grant-specific model focuses on fundraising support and donor management. AMP provides financial stewardship including bookkeeping, accounting, and compliance services. Funds are disbursed to the filmmaker as donations are received and processed, minus the administrative fee.
Eligibility
AMP's sponsorship program is open to independent media and film projects that align with AMP's mission of media-based organizing for social justice. Projects must:
- Have a social justice, community organizing, or liberation-focused dimension
- Be independent productions (not produced by a studio or major streamer)
- Go through an application process and be accepted into the program before fundraising can begin under AMP's nonprofit umbrella
- Be able to articulate how the project uses media to advance social transformation
AMP supports projects at any stage - development, production, post-production, or distribution. The program is primarily oriented toward US-based projects, though AMP works with projects across the US and Puerto Rico. Filmmakers should review the AMP Sponsored Projects page for current application guidelines and eligibility criteria.
Past Recipients and What They Made with the Money
AMP's Sponsored Projects Program has supported more than 120 projects across the United States and Puerto Rico. Sponsored projects span documentary features, scripted features, animation, short films, episodic content, new media, and theater. More than half of AMP's sponsored projects are based in Detroit. The program supports media projects with a social justice, community organizing, or liberation-focused dimension. Specific sponsored projects include documentary films exploring environmental justice, immigration, housing rights, and community organizing, as well as narrative projects rooted in underrepresented communities. AMP does not publish a comprehensive public list of all sponsored projects, but filmmakers can review the AMP Sponsored Projects page for current and past projects.
What Makes an Application Competitive
AMP evaluates sponsorship applications on several concrete signals:
- Social justice alignment: Projects must have a social justice, community organizing, or liberation-focused dimension. AMP evaluates not only the financial viability of a project but its alignment with the organization's mission of "media for liberation."
- Media-based organizing: Projects must articulate how they use media to advance social transformation. AMP prioritizes projects rooted in community organizing rather than traditional documentary or narrative filmmaking without an organizing dimension.
- Independence: Projects must be independent productions, not produced by a studio or major streamer.
- Stage flexibility: AMP supports projects at any stage, including development, production, post-production, or distribution. No specific completion date is required.
- Fundraising strategy: Applicants must prepare a project description, budget, and fundraising strategy. Applications that demonstrate a clear plan for raising funds through AMP's sponsorship score higher.
Application Process
- Review the AMP Sponsored Projects Program page and the Fiscal Sponsorship Resources to understand the two sponsorship models.
- Determine which model fits your project: comprehensive (project becomes a program of AMP) or grant-specific (project remains independent).
- Prepare a project description, budget, and fundraising strategy.
- Contact AMP staff at sponsoredprojects@alliedmedia.org with questions not answered in the guides.
- Submit an application through AMP's process.
AMP accepts applications on a rolling basis. There is no application fee.
What Filmmakers Should Know
AMP does not provide direct grants. It provides fiscal sponsorship, which is a prerequisite for accessing a significant portion of the documentary and independent film funding landscape. Many foundations, individual major donors, and arts agencies will not fund a project without a nonprofit partner. Securing fiscal sponsorship before beginning serious fundraising is one of the most practical steps an independent filmmaker can take. AMP differentiates itself from other fiscal sponsors through its explicit social justice focus and its roots in media-based organizing. Filmmakers whose work aligns with AMP's mission will find a values-aligned partner. Filmmakers without a social justice dimension should consider Fractured Atlas (8% administrative fee, open to all disciplines), Film Independent ($95/year membership, $45 application fee, seeking to raise over $10,000), Women Make Movies (for women filmmakers), or the International Documentary Association (for documentary projects, requires IDA membership). AMP offers two sponsorship models: comprehensive (project becomes a program of AMP, includes payroll and insurance) and grant-specific (project remains independent, focuses on fundraising support). AMP charges a tiered administrative fee on donations, which filmmakers should account for in their fundraising targets.
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See Also
For understanding how fiscal sponsorship fits into a complete financing strategy, see Film Grants and Funding. For modeling fundraising targets and revenue projections, use the Revenue Forecast Calculator. For building an indie film budget, see How to Build an Indie Film Budget. For distribution strategy, see Film Distribution Deals Explained.
