Access

Access Support to Apply

BFI Doc Society funds are committed to making our funding accessible to all. You can get help if you need support to apply for funding. You might need support because you are disabled, neurodivergent or another reason.

What access support can help with

You can get help with:

• accessing our fund guidelines in other formats, like large print or audio
• understanding a fund’s guidelines
• completing an application form
• You cannot get access support to:
• help develop your film or project
• pay for costs already covered by other support you might receive, such as Access to Work
• pay for hardware or software

When you can get support

You can ask for support if you’d like to apply to any of the BFI Doc Society funds. We advise that you seek access support at least 3 weeks in advance of a fund application deadline.

You can get support:

• before applying
• while making an application
• after an application has been submitted, if we ask for more information or a meeting

How to get additional support with your application

We work with TAPE Community Film and Music to provide access support. TAPE is an award-winning, community arts charity based in North Wales. You can contact TAPE by telephone on 01492 512 109 or by emailing hello@tapemusicandfilm.co.uk. Asking for support or sharing information about yourself will not negatively affect your application.

BSL Introductions to BFI Doc Society Funds:

Introduction to BFI Doc Society Features Production Fund in British Sign Language.

Introduction to BFI Doc Society Expanded Screen Fund in British Sign Language.

** Coming Soon **

Introduction to BFI Doc Society Development and RAD Fund in British Sign Language.

Introduction to BFI Doc Society Made of Truth Fund in British Sign Language.

Audio Guidelines:

BFI Doc Society Features Production Fund Audio Guidelines

BFI Doc Society Expanded Screen Fund Audio Guidelines

BFI Doc Society Made of Truth Fund Audio Guidelines

** Coming Soon **

BFI Doc Society Development and RAD Fund Audio Guidelines

Easy Read Guidelines:

BFI Doc Society Made of Truth Fund Easy Read Guidelines

** Coming Soon **

BFI Doc Society Features Fund Easy Read Guidelines

BFI Doc Society Expanded Screen Fund Easy Read Guidelines

BFI Doc Society Development and RAD Fund Easy Read Guidelines

Access Production Costs:

If any of your key creatives, contributors or crew have personal access needs that will incur additional costs during the production of your project, you can include these costs in your application.

We define such needs as specific support required by people who are disabled or have a physical or mental health diagnosis, which will result in a verifiable additional cash cost to your production budget. This might, for example, be a BSL interpreter to work with members of cast or crew; additional transport or accommodation costs for disabled team members; or a personal assistant for a team member who requires assistance during the production. If applying for production funds these costs may also cover key creatives or contributors access to festivals and distribution opportunities once the film is complete. If you require support for such costs, you must secure quotes setting out the work quoted for and include them in your budget under the category Access support.

If you’re asking for the maximum award amount, you can apply for access costs on top of this if you need to (for example, if you can’t cover these costs in full using the total other finance available to you plus the maximum award amount).  The access budget cannot pay for costs already covered by other support you might receive, such as Access to Work. TAPE community and Film can also support you in creating an initial access support budget.

On each production we will set out a payment schedule for your access costs and may ask for evidence of expenditure as part of your delivery. If you have a large access support request we may request that you work with an access coordinator to finalise the access support budget. If you have another key financing partner we may ask them to contribute to access support costs above the maximum award amount.

For projects we are already supporting in production who did not originally request access support, an additional access support award can be made, via application, if circumstances for key creatives or contributors change throughout production.

Data protection notice

Any personal information and details that you share with TAPE Community Music and Film about your project may be shared with the BFI. Information about the kind of access support you get will also be shared with the BFI. If the support you get is for a fund managed by one of the BFI’s partners, this information will also be shared with the organisation managing that fund. This information will only be used by the BFI and its partners for monitoring purposes and it will be kept confidential. It would not be used as part of the application assessment process.