Completion Funds

Open Call provides completion funds for single nonfiction public television programs on any subject, and from any viewpoint. Projects must have begun production as evidenced by a work-in-progress video. Open Call funding is only available to independent producers who are citizens or legal residents of the U.S. and its external territories.


Open Call accepts:

•Single programs of standard broadcast length (half-hour or one-hour). In rare cases, when a filmmaker’s skills, subject, and story structure warrant it, ITVS will consider programs at feature lengths.

•Works-in-progress (for nonfiction submissions), i.e. projects that have already begun production

•Programs that can be completed within one year of contract

Open Call does not accept:

Proposals for completed projects seeking distribution

•Series proposals or fictional dramas

•Projects intended solely for theatrical release

There are two funding rounds per year, and the deadlines are typically in mid-January and early August. Applicants may apply with only one project per call. The entire proposal review process takes up to five months. Only one to two percent of Open Call applicants will receive funding.

Open Call is not a grant; ITVS provides a co-production investment in the program.