National fund France, Paris

Avance sur recettes avant réalisation (advance on receipts before production)

Run by CNC, Centre national du cinéma et de l'image animée (French national film center)

The oldest selective aid in French cinema, created in 1960, and still the one that gets first features financed. A writer can file a feature project without a producer attached, which is rare for production money. Three separate commissions read first films, early careers and established directors, so a debut is not judged against a fourth feature.

Repayable, amount not statedOpen to writers in FranceA writer alone or a production company

Next dates not yet published

The money

Amount
Amount not statedAn advance on the film's receipts. The amount is set per project and is not published on the page.
What it is
RepayableA loan, an advance on receipts or a conditionally repayable grant: it is paid back only out of what the film earns.
To apply
Free

Who can apply

Applicant
A writer alone or a production company
Where you write
In France
Rules
The screenwriter, director or another co-author may file directly if they hold French or EU nationality or resident status in France; the delegate production company may also file. The film must be made wholly or mainly in French or a regional language of France, with exceptions for documentary, animation and opera adaptations. Three commissions sit by career stage: first films, second and third films, fourth films and beyond.
Stages
Production
Formats
Feature, Animation, Documentary
Language of the application
French

When to apply

The fund works in fixed rounds. The next dates are not yet published; we add them when they are. Each session has a single filing day from 8 am to 5 pm; the page gives September 2026 as the filing month and lists result dates through December 2027, but no filing day for 2027 yet.

Also open to writers in France

See every fund for France

WritingFranceNational fund

Aide à la création de séries (series creation aid)

CNC, Centre national du cinéma et de l'image animée (French national film center)

A single EUR 40,000 payment for an experienced series writer to build a new show from scratch, with no producer required.

Next deadline Feb 1, 2027A writer aloneSeries

range€40kGrantcloses in 92 days

WritingFranceNational fund

Aide au parcours d'auteur (author's career aid)

CNC, Centre national du cinéma et de l'image animée (French national film center)

Not a project grant but time: EUR 20,000 for an author with a track record to think before writing the next thing, with no synopsis or producer required.

Next dates not yet publishedA writer aloneFeature, Short, Series, Documentary, Animation

range€20kGrantbetween rounds

More production funding elsewhere

See all production funding

ProductionCompletionUnited StatesRegional fund

AFS Grant

Austin Film Society

Texas filmmakers have their own state fund: cash for features and shorts in production or post, with camera and finishing packages on top.

Next dates not yet publishedA writer with a producerFeature, Short, Documentary

up to$20kGrantbetween rounds

ProductionUnited StatesRegional fund

Minnesota Film Production Grant

Jerome Foundation

The Minnesota twin of Jerome's New York City grant: up to USD 30,000 of production money for early career directors who take creative risks, applied for in two steps each fall.

Next deadline Nov 24, 2026A writer with a producerFeature, Short, Documentary, Animation

up to$30kGrantcloses in 23 days

ProductionUnited StatesRegional fund

New York City Film Production Grant

Jerome Foundation

A production grant for New York City directors near the start of their careers, in any moving-image form from animation to documentary.

Next deadline Nov 24, 2026A writer with a producerFeature, Short, Documentary, Animation

up to$30kGrantcloses in 23 days

ProductionCompletionUnited StatesBroadcaster

BPM Open Call

Black Public Media

Public television's fund for Black nonfiction stories runs one call a year: five projects get USD 20,000 and a place at PitchBLACK, where one leaves with up to USD 150,000 of production…

Next dates not yet publishedA writer with a producer or a production companyDocumentary

range$150kInvestmentbetween rounds

Also useful

Where Creative Europe's development money goesEvery MEDIA development grant since 2014, by country, company and year.Fellowships and labsPrograms that pick a few writers and work with them for months, on the events pages.How to write a treatmentThe document a development application is built on, step by step.Screenwriting eventsContests, labs, festivals and conferences, with their deadlines.