Photo by Prime Cinematics
Black Public Media (BPM) issued its 2024 open call for projects that center Black culture, characters, communities and concerns. A total of $175,000 will be awarded this year to U.S. documentary projects currently in pre-production, production or post-production, and intended for public media distribution. The 2024 submission portal goes live on September 3, and closes on September 30 at 11:59 p.m. ET.
Since its inception, BPM has invested more than $17 million toward iconic documentaries and emerging media projects about the global Black experience.
This year BPM, a national media arts nonprofit that trains talented storytellers and funds and distributes their works, welcomes feature-length documentary projects in a range of formats, styles, subject matter and genres, including those that target specific viewers such as children and teen audiences. The projects should be compelling, nuanced stories that add the point of view, experiences and concerns of the Black communities to the larger public discourse.
“Each year we are amazed to see the myriad, layered stories which are bubbling up from all corners of this country from such gifted creatives,” said BPM Executive Director Leslie Fields-Cruz. “We look forward to helping these makers bring their important work to American viewers.”
Applicants must be the producer or director of the project with at least three years of professional producing and/or directing experience, or must have a senior producer attached to the project. The applicant must be able to complete the project within 18 months. Additional requirements can be found at the submission portal.
This fall, a panel of media professionals across the industry will evaluate the proposals in a two-tier review process that assesses the project idea and story, production readiness, production team, project budget and work sample. And in December, BPM will announce the five applicants who will receive a $5,000 stipend, an invitation to its talent development program and the opportunity to participate in PitchBLACK, the largest pitch competition for independent filmmakers and creative technologists developing new projects about the global Black experience.
One of these projects will win a $150,000 PitchBLACK Award for a broadcast-length or feature project.
BPM’s 2024 Open Call is supported by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Netflix, the MacArthur Foundation, the Tarver Walls Foundation, Paramount+, the New York Community Trust, the Jerome Foundation, the Tides Foundation, Acton Family Giving and Gimlet.
