The Smalls commits to £25,000 annual film fund to encourage the next generation of filmmakers

Not only is film one of the most competitive industries to break into, it is also expensive, costing an average of £10,000 to create a short film. Many ambitious filmmakers have struggled to pursue their dreams because of a lack of funding. Leading video production marketplace, the Smalls, however, has dedicated itself to ensuring that no aspiring filmmaker is ostracised because of funding with its latest initiative, the Smalls Film Fund.

The Smalls connects brands and businesses with a global community of filmmakers to ensure engaging and high quality content is produced. The company prides itself on being at the forefront of filmmaking and believe this initiative will help drive the industry forward. 

Without short film funding like this, beloved directors such as Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg would not have made their directorial debuts. Without the backing of the filmmaking community, Tim Burton and David Lynch would never have created the imaginative shorts which inspired their future works.

The Smalls Film Fund will be the first ever brand-led fund of its kind and pledges to raise £25,000, one of the largest grants available for short filmmaking, to invest into talent and passion of its global filmmaking community. It will provide a launch pad for filmmakers to gain the momentum necessary to create cutting-edge films that will drive their careers.

Co-founder and managing director of the Smalls, Kate Tancred, says, "Here at the Smalls, we live and breathe film. We work with a global network of incredible award-winning filmmakers and we’ve decided it’s time to invest in the next generation, those who will work with the innovative filming techniques of the future and will create exciting worlds for us to lose ourselves in. We are launching a new initiative – the Smalls Film Fund – the first brand-led grant, which will give a filmmaker that first step onto their career ladder, to help them unlock their creativity and share it with the world."

The fund, which will be awarded once a year, will go towards developing and producing a short film that pushes creative, innovative and filmmaking techniques and allows the winner to create their vision. Submissions for the 2017 fund will open next month, providing anyone with a passion for filmmaking the opportunity to submit their short film ideas and be awarded £25,000.