FAQsFrequently Asked Questions
What is Documentary Australia? Can I apply to the Documentary Australia Foundation for funding? The Documentary Australia Foundation is a philanthropic initiative to provide information and resources to philanthropic grantmakers, charitable organisations and documentary filmmakers in order to explore, share and enhance their mutual objectives of creating a better society. The Documentary Australia website is a resource for grantmakers, filmmakers and charities with case studies, guides and links into the worlds of documentary and philanthropy. The Documentary Australia Foundation has DGR (Deductible Gift Recipient) status enabling Foundations, individuals and corporations to make tax deductible donations to documentaries. Documentary Australia Foundation does not have a pool of cash to commission or directly fund projects. Who makes the approach to the grantmaker, the filmmaker or the Documentary Australia Foundation? Documentary Australia is a website that offers resources but does not broker relationships between grantmakers, filmmakers and charities nor does it offer advice. Filmmakers do their own research, make their own contacts and raise their own finance but can work with the Documentary Australia Foundation as an avenue through which a donor can make a grant to their documentary. Documentary Australia has an assessment process to determine the eligibility of a project for philanthropic support, and will post eligible projects on its approved list on the Documentary Australia website for grantmakers and charitable organisations to consider. If a foundation wants to grant money to a specific documentary how will the Documentary Australia Foundation manage that preference? Documentary Australia can receive submissions from filmmakers who choose not to pursue another partnership, such as collaborating with a charity or not-for-profit organisation, but need to find a way to offer a donor tax deductibility or a foundation DGR status. Documentary Australia will give eligibility status to projects that either have a qualifying certificate as an Australian film, or can clearly demonstrate that they are a bona fide documentary being made by reputable or emerging filmmakers according to Documentary Australia's assessment criteria. The submissions are not judged stylistically. They are assessed with reference to whether the subject, approach and outreach potential are appropriate for philanthropic support. A foundation can name a preferred recipient for a grant and Documentary Australia will manage that preference after it is satisfied that the particular documentary meets the criteria outlined in the application on the Documentary Australia website. DGR Status is Deductible Gift Recipient Status that is endorsed by the Australian Taxation Office. Organisations with DGR status are able to offer tax deductions to foundations who make grants to the organisation. Visit the ATO website for more information on www.taxreform.ato.gov.au This also enables individuals and corporations the ability to make tax-deductible donations. Does the filmmaker need to have deductible gift recipient (DGR) status? No. The filmmaker doesn't need to have DGR status. But the foundation will need to make their grant through either a charitable organisation (which as DGR status) or the Documentary Australia Foundation. The filmmaker will need to partner with a charity or not for profit organisation, or work with the eligibility status provided by the Documentary Australia Foundation in order to attract grants from philanthropic foundations or to receive tax deductible donations from individual or corporate donors. Can a foundation give a grant through the Australian cultural fund (see ABAF) to a production company (PTY LTD) rather than an individual filmmaker? No. Only individual donors or corporate donors can make grants to organisations or individual arts practitioners through ABAF and the Australia Cultural Fund (ACF). Grants can be made through the ACF to organisations who are registered non-profits but don't have DGR status or to individuals. Grants cannot be made to incorporated production companies or registered businesses, only to individuals. What kind of agreement does a filmmaker need to have with a charity if they are also seeking government film financing? If a filmmaker has interest from a government funding agency they will have to show that they have the rights to produce the documentary. The charitable organisation should not have any copyright in the production. Each relationship between filmmaker and charity will be unique and may require a letter of agreement covering expectations, responsibilities, issues of access and use of footage. It is essential to put agreements in writing to make expectations clear on all sides. Will private grants be considered marketplace attachment for the government funding agencies if there is no television pre-sale? In principle the agencies are not against co-funding with private grants, but they will need to be convinced that the program will reach an audience. Filmmakers will have to illustrate a marketing strategy and detailed plan on how to reach an audience in order to convince government funding agencies to invest in a project that has no broadcaster attached. In principle the agencies are not against co funding with private grants, but they will need to be convinced that the program will reach an audience. Submissions should be made and will be judged on a case by case basis. For more information see agency endorsements in the World of Documentary section in Our Community on www.documentaryaustralia.com What kind of criteria will foundations use to assess the documentary? Foundations and grantmakers will assess documentary proposals according to the fit with the priorities of the foundation. A foundation is looking for ways to motivate and sustain social change and therefore the outreach or impact of a program is of utmost importance. They will assess the documentary with the same set of criteria they use to assess any project that comes to them, according to their guidelines, aims and objectives. Visit the Philanthropy Australia web site to explore the links to Foundation web sites in Australia. These will highlight the criteria for each individual Foundation along with their areas of interest. Will the criteria set by foundations (for measuring the impact and reach of a program) satisfy the audience requirements of government funding agencies? The filmmaker will need to outline an outreach strategy that demonstrates a plan to reach a broad and targeted audience. Without a broadcaster attached, it is untested as yet to whether a government, funding agency will accept the same measures of impact as a foundation. Grantmakers however, are equally keen to attract a broad audience for work they have supported so a television screening is optimal. With or without television, a strategic outreach plan that includes community screenings, broadband and educational distribution with accompanying study guide materials, is necessary to satisfy audience targets, irrespective of whether your sources of funding are government or private. Measuring the social impact of a project or program is a difficult and intangible process, whether it be audience numbers or emotional affect. The relationship between the philanthropic sector and government film finance is new and untested territory and initially will be defined by individual cases. Can I co-finance a film with private funding and a public broadcaster? In Australia there is no problem with co-financing a project with private funding and SBS, or with the commercial or pay television channels. The ABC has regulations about sponsorship but there is a clear distinction between sponsorship and a private grant. A grant is never sponsorship and is an unencumbered donation without a requirement for the filmmaker to push any particular editorial line. However the filmmaker needs to consult with the ABC at an early stage to guarantee that there are no issues of conflict or endorsement. There are many examples of philanthropic support to documentaries that are broadcast on the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) network in the USA. These examples offer models where the sources of finance are in no way related to the subject matter of the film nor could be seen to influence its content. A strong argument can already be made using these examples to help clarify the distinction between sponsorship and philanthropic support. What is the difference between a philanthropic grant and private sponsorship? A philanthropic grant provides no financial return to the grantmaker and demands no editorial involvement, product placement, branding or strategic logo profile. Generally an acknowledgement in the credits (a major acknowledgment if the grant is a key funding component) and thank you is required along with the expected courtesies of invitations to screenings and updates on outreach. Private sponsorship asks for high profile acknowledgement, key logo placement and the recognition of association that implies editorial and commercial interests are being served. Whilst the requirements of a foundation are negligible, there are typically stringent reporting requirements. The filmmakers need to keep the grantmaker regularly informed about the progress and activity of the film. The more feedback and information the filmmaker provides, the greater their chance of receiving recurring funding from the grantmaker. In terms of the fine line between the supposed neutrality of the filmmaker and the promotion of a charity, could there be conflicting interests between them? Charitable organisations promote causes and support projects that are aimed to alleviate social issues. Generally their business is to promote the causes they represent rather than to promote themselves. They are non profit organisations that do not benefit from commercial return. Not all documentaries will be suitable for this kind of partnership. Only those documentaries that are aligned with the aims of the non profit organisation will be appropriate, where there are no conflicting interests. See Case Studies where filmmakers have worked with charities to great effect in A Guide for Filmmakers and A Guide for Charities at www.documentaryaustralia.com.au No. It is not permissible to repay the grant. Unlike investment, grantmakers are looking for a return on social capital, not a return on investment. How do I find relevant foundations to approach? You can find foundations and non profit organisations working in your area of interest in the course of your research. Doing basic Google searches will uncover like minded people and projects. Look for sponsors and funders amongst the acknowledgements of programs with similar themes. There is a registered list of charities and a charity book as well as countless websites in the non-profit and Non Government Organisation (NGO) sector. Philanthropy Australia has a website that lists over a thousand foundations, trusts and private funds with a published directory of contacts listing fields of interest. The Documentary Australia Foundation website has a section in Our Community, in the World of Philanthropy with associated websites and links to get you started. How do I approach foundations when many of them say they do not accept unsolicited submissions? Find a non profit organisation or charity that would make a suitable partner for your project and prepare a submission to a foundation together. If you have found a foundation that you would like to approach, find out which charitable organisations they do support and try to partner with them. Your association with a credible charitable organisation will help your application. What is the best way to approach charities? It is best to approach charitable organisations with an idea for partnership. First research which charities might be the most appropriate and assess your own project as to its suitability for philanthropic support. Once you have a shortlist, visit them with a good knowledge of what they do and in what kinds of projects they are already involved. Know how your project can complement or extend the work they do already. Determine if they already work with media. Meet them to discuss their priorities and learn why those areas are a priority for them. Take some case studies with you of films in the same area that have had an impact. Begin a dialogue and be open for it to grow into a collaborative partnership, rather than just seeking support for your idea. You may be inspired to interpret some of their priorities into a documentary that you develop together from the start. Work together in the outreach strategy for the finished film. Some foundations and charities already support documentaries. How does this happen and is it acknowledged and accepted by the broadcasters and funding agencies? There are a number of successful partnerships between filmmakers and charities. Several case studies are described in the guide to charities and in the case study section of the Documentary Australia Foundation website. These have come about by either the filmmaker approaching the charity or the charity becoming aware of the work of a filmmaker and offering to help or work together in some way. Broadcasters and funding agencies in general do not have a problem with this kind of partnership as long as the charity has no editorial control over the documentary. Will broadcasters and government agencies support and encourage private grants to documentary filmmakers and allow it to increase the producer's equity? Yes. The government is seeking ways to attract private money to the film industry so there is no reason to discourage this initiative. There is also support for a sustainable industry and a key to this is building equity for the producer. A system that allows grants will build greater sustainability than any other model. See industry endorsements in Our Community section, World of Documentary at www.documentaryaustralia.com How do I get on the approved list on the documentary australia foundation website? At the Documentary Australia Foundation website you will find guidelines and an application form to apply for eligibility status. The questions there are an indication of the kinds of questions you will find from most grantmakers. The answers you provide will form the basis of most applications you will make for private funding. The key questions are: |
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