Channel 4 has opened submissions for its Emerging Indie Fund, which aims to give a leg-up to small indies outside London.
The fund offers financial and development support, a commissioning editor mentor and online sessions from across C4 in areas such as scheduling, sustainability, creative diversity, business strategy, legal and commercial strategy.
Indies must have a turnover of below £3m to apply and entries are due by 15 October, with C4 to notify all entrants by 8 November. The broadcaster is hosting an online Q&A at 12.30pm on 30 September.
C4 head of indie relations Rebecca Thompson and director of commissioning operations Emma Hardy head up the fund and work with relevant commissioning editors in assessing entries.
Last December, C4 chose 11 indies from around 150 entries in its inaugural year, from places including Bristol (Murder in the Car Park producer Indefinite Films); Glasgow (Channel X Hopscotch, which made comedy Home); Wales (The Great House Giveaway [main picture] indie Chwarel); Brighton (Hello Mary, Screendog and Chatterbox) and Belfast (features and formats company Strident).
C4 went on to take a minority stake in one fund member, Manchester-based Salamanda Media, which picked up a daytime commission, Fame in the Family.
The broadcaster also awarded five discretionary grants to Blak Wave Productions (Bristol); Create Anything (Glasgow); Factual Fiction (Yorkshire); Hatchling Films (Manchester); and Proper Job (Bristol).
