• IPF and CMF renew their joint Short Form Series Development Program
• Total budget of $600,000, with a maximum of $30,000 per project
• Updated program guidelines and FAQs now available
• Application portal opens February 3, 2025, submission deadline March 3, 2025, at 5 PM ET

February 3, 2025 – The IPF and CMF have renewed their strategic partnership for the Short Form Series Development Program, a collaboration that has successfully supported creators since 2020. Designed to foster the development of high-quality, Canadian, original, scripted short-form series, the program has a budget of $600,000, with a maximum funding of $30,000 per project.

The IPF-CMF Development Program supports new and outstanding story-driven content by providing critical funding that will enhance the development of unique creative materials and encourage the incubation of new Canadian talent. The program provides opportunities for insightful creative and business development to help establish the reputation of the funded teams and projects. With this program, these emerging Canadian creators and their projects will be better positioned to attract partners, production financing, and distribution opportunities.

To be eligible for funding, projects must be new and original, conceived as scripted, episodic short-form dramatic content with episodic running times of less than 20 minutes, and be developed in either English or French, among other criteria.

Read the full updated guidelines and FAQs.

Applications will be received and evaluated by a selection committee overseen by the IPF, and final decisions will be made by representatives from the IPF and the CMF.

Applicants may begin to apply to the IPF February 3, 2025 and the deadline to apply is March 3, 2025 at 5pm ET. Funding recipients will be notified in April 2025.

About the IPF:

The Independent Production Fund supports Canadian creators, writers, and producers by providing development and production financing for narrative television and short-form series. Since its inception, the IPF has invested over $90M in over 1,100 projects, including 123 Short Form Series Development projects, 191 Short Form Series Productions, 323 TV Productions, and over 550 Professional Development projects. The IPF is incorporated as a charitable foundation with an endowment valued at approximately $40M. It uses the interest generated by the endowment and return on its project investments for its annual operations and project funding.

About the CMF:

The Canada Media Fund (CMF) fosters, develops, finances, and promotes the production of Canadian content for all audiovisual platforms. In addition, it guides Canadian content towards a competitive global digital environment by supporting industry innovation, rewarding success, promoting diversity of voices, and encouraging access to content through public- and private-sector partnerships. The CMF receives funding from the Government of Canada and from cable, satellite, and IP service distributors across the country. Visit the CMF website for more information.