wiki_ghostguild/content/articles/canada-council-funding.md

title	description	category	tags	accessLevel	author	publishedAt
Canada Council Funding		strategy		member	Baby Ghosts	2025-11-10T10:42:09.229Z

Fund your game with Canada Council

Notes based on 2022 webinar with program officer Megan Leduc, who has been working with Canada Council 10 years with Explore and Create team.

• CC gets back to people with questions within 3 days.
• Must create an account in the portal first.
  • Log in or check eligibility.
  • Pick the type of artist you are - Individual or Group/Organization.
  • Pick artistic practice - Digital Arts or Media Arts (can select both).
  • New and Early Career profile also available.
  • Self-identify: Priority groups.
    • Indigenous (also Creating Knowing and Sharing program).
    • BIPOC.
    • Language minority.
    • Deaf/disabled.
  • Submit CV to verify experience.
  • Once approved, all grants you’re eligible for appear in the portal.
• Games are art, according to Canada Council.
  • Tech-based art has been funded for 40 years.
• Upcoming cutoff date - October 5, results end of February.
  • Can apply after but results will be later.

Research and Creation

• Early phases of your project - everything up to prototyping.
• Test out new tech, tinker, research.
• Up to $25,000 per year, up to 2 years.

Concept to Realization

• Usually up to $60,000 (exceptional projects go to $100,000).
• Peer assessors are artists across disciplines from across the country.
  • High level tech needs contextualization as assessors are probably unfamiliar with games.

What they support:

• Looking for independent artist-driven projects - you are the lead and own the rights.
• Artistic projects with an artistic vision.
• Creators, directors but not production companies.
• Do not support commercial projects.
• Check with Council before submitting to clarify eligibility.

Top Tips

1. Read the entire application ahead of time. Don’t be repetitive and include everything in your first question.
2. Read the assessment/scoring criteria ahead of time (on each program page) and focus on:
   1. Impact (contribute to artistic development, advance artistic practice, knowledge of practice - different for different programs).
   2. Artistic merit (samples, rationale, outcomes).
   3. Feasibility (capacity and experience to undertake project - history of previous work, samples, reasonable budget, including other revenue and ability to provide reasonable working conditions).
3. Be authentic, ensure you have a hook.
4. Be clear and concise - don’t be too in your head. Get another person to look at your application.
5. Be consistent throughout your application.
6. Support materials:
   1. Show your experience and ability to carry out your project.
   2. Assessors will only spend 10 minutes with this. Put important stuff at the top.
   3. Include samples, drafts, storyboards for the project.

• Criteria is used to rank all applications and as many projects are funded as there is budget.
• Recommended projects sometimes get redistributed funds throughout the year.
• Priority groups are sometimes pulled from below the success criteria line to be funded.
• Disability - honour system, self-identified.
• Barriers - contact them 2-3 weeks before deadline for assistance.
• Access support - grant that covers costs incurred while applying (can be applied for after the fact).

Eligibility: It all comes down to artistic project (fundable) vs. commercial product (not fundable).

• A T4A slip is issued at the end of the year. It is not a gift but taxable income.
• Council is not a producer and takes no rights to your project.