The Open Society Institute’s Documentary Photography Project has a couple of upcoming deadlines for Grant opportunities- the Production Grant deadline is Friday, March 20 at 5pm, and the Distribution Grant deadline is June 19, 2009. These are some fantastic opportunities for funding and support, definitely worth looking into.
The Open Society Institute Documentary Photography Project and Arts and Culture Program announce a grant opportunity for documentary photographers from Central Asia, the Caucasus, Afghanistan, Mongolia, and Pakistan. Approximately 20 grants in the amount of $3,500 each will be awarded to photographers to produce a discrete body of work on a current human rights or social justice issue in the region. Grantees will also be assigned an internationally recognized photographer as a mentor to work with in workshops at the beginning and end of the grant and throughout the grant term.
The aim of the Documentary Photography Project is to support creative work that uses photography as a means of critically exploring current social problems. The project priorities are to support photographers who address the following questions:
- How can photography support efforts to promote human rights and social justice?
- How can photographers develop effective partnerships with organizations that work to promote social justice and human rights?
- Within the conditions of a particular national cultural space, how can documentary photographers develop innovative ways to exhibit work that addresses problems related to the creation of open societies?
For more information, see Production Grants: Guidelines
Traditional media offer limited opportunities for presenting documentary photographs in a way that creates a meaningful and lasting impact on the communities or issues addressed in the images. The Open Society Institute’s Documentary Photography Project is offering a grant to documentary photographers who have already completed a significant body of work on issues of social justice to collaborate with a partner organization and propose new ways of using photography as a tool for positive social change.
All photographers must have another entity (such as a nonprofit, NGO, or community-based organization) that will work with the photographer to design an innovative distribution strategy that targets specific communities and advocates for social change. The partner must engage with the photographer to accomplish these goals-and not just fund or publish the project.
Grants of $5,000 to $30,000 will be awarded.
For more information, see Distribution Grants: Guidelines