About the opportunity
What this programme is offering
We offer grants to help filmmakers attend international Labs to develop their projects and careers, and producers to attend Co-Production Forums.
What can I apply for?
You can use our Travel Grants to support participation in:
Labs – attendance at an eligible creative development lab for producers, writers, or directors working on feature and XR projects and looking to develop skills and networks internationally
Co-Production (‘co-pro’) Forums – attendance at an eligible market/co-production forum for producers with feature or XR projects.
You can use the grants for:
Travel
Accommodation
Disability access support
Participation fees
We also offer grants for Shorts and Feature filmmakers to attend festivals, and XR creatives to attend showcases.
Where can I travel to?
You can apply for a grant to travel to any of the Labs or Co-production Forums on the Key List. This can be found on the following link. There is also a downloadable PDF version.
This list is reviewed regularly. We can very occasionally consider offering small discretionary grants for Labs not currently on this list on a case by case basis. To discuss a discretionary award request for Labs not listed above please contact Films@britishcouncil.org. June 2026 - Owing to very high demand on our list of eligible events, as well the impact of rising costs for international travel, discretionary granting is currently closed for applications.
How much can I apply for?
Grants are a contribution towards and will rarely cover the full cost of your trip.
Awards for Lab Grants are capped at £6,000 but rarely exceed £3,000. We cannot support a filmmaker or project with more than one lab grant in any single year.
Awards for Co-Production Forum Grants are capped at £2,000. Each film or project can receive a maximum of two grants.
The Grant amounts we can can offer each year each year are determined by the number of UK projects selected and are subject to available funds.
Am I eligible?
You must be over 18 and a UK resident or citizen, and must have been accepted on to an event on our Key List.
Eligible applicants must have been selected by one of the eligible events on our ‘Key List: Labs and Co-Production Forums’.
For Co-production Forums and where a Lab is project-based, the selected film or project must be a UK production or co-production.
For Lab attendance priority is given to those who are yet to make (or who are developing) their first feature.
Each film or project can receive a maximum of one grant per event.
We can not accept applications for travel to a Lab or Forum that has already taken place when the application is made. You must apply at least two weeks before the event start.
How to apply