Indigenous Arts Individual Project Funding

This funding provides up to $18,000 to support the development of an individual Indigenous artist, arts administrators, or an ensemble of artists in Alberta by providing funding for a specific cultural or artistic project.

Deadline information

September 2, 2025

March 2, 2026

Who can apply

Individual eligibility criteria

The AFA celebrates and supports diversity and is committed to creating equitable, inclusive, and accessible programs for all, free of barriers and discrimination. We recognize the unique contributions all artists make towards our community, and encourage applicants representing diverse communities, including Indigenous peoples, racialized communities, women, people with disabilities, and the 2SLGBTQIA+ community.

To be eligible for individual project funding, you must be a resident of Alberta. This means you:

are a Canadian citizen, permanent resident, or Protected Person with an open work or study permit from inside Canada
have had your primary residence in Alberta for at least one full year before applying
ordinarily live in Alberta for a least six months of each year with the exception of attending a formal program of study

You must be in good standing with the AFA with no open or outstanding projects or reporting to apply. Previous grant recipients must ensure all final reporting has been approved by the AFA before new applications are accepted.

Applicants, including ensembles or collectives, must not be incorporated under either provincial or federal legislation.

Collaborating artists, ensembles, and collectives

Collaborating artists, ensembles, and collectives are eligible to apply to this program if all project co-owners meet the individual eligibility criteria as defined above.

The AFA defines project co-owners as:

those who share in the ownership or copyright of the created work
those who have a significant financial stake in the project

For the purposes of this funding opportunity, in addition to the lead applicant, co-owners include, but may not be limited to, the following:

Dance projects: choreographers and producers
Film and Video projects: writers, directors, and producers
Literary Arts projects: writers and writers/illustrators
Music projects: ensemble and band members, and song writers
Theatre projects: directors, playwrights, choreographers, lyricists, and composers
Visual Arts and New Media projects: visual artists, curators, directors (time-based or performative media), and composers or writers (audio or text-based work)

Unless identified as retaining ownership or copyright of the work, contributors who are not normally considered co-owners include, but may not be limited to, the following:

For all artistic disciplines: Mentors, Elders, and Knowledge Keepers
Dance projects: dancers, performers, designers, stage managers, videographers
Film and Video projects: performers and/or narrators, director of photography, assistant directors, production designers, art directors
Literary Arts projects: story/script editors, contracted illustrators/visual artists, beta readers, interview subjects
Music projects: session musicians, producers, arrangers
Theatre projects: dramaturgs, stage managers, designers, performers
Visual Arts and New Media projects: studio assistants, technicians

Project co-owners must select a lead applicant to submit the application. The lead applicant must ensure all co-owners are listed in the application and is responsible for submitting the complete application before the program deadline.

If the project is approved for funding, the lead applicant is also responsible for receiving and managing any funds and completing any related reporting for the project.

If you are unsure whether an artist should be listed as a co-owner in your application, please contact your Arts Development Consultant as listed below.

What does this funding support?

Please note, AFA funding is not assured for any project.

Types of projects

Through this opportunity, you may apply for project funding to support artistic and cultural activities:

artistic and cultural production
marketing
research
training and career development

Artistic and cultural production includes the development, creation, and production of a work.

projects should be confined to a distinct phase of a work
Alberta individual artists that have been contracted by commissioners to create a specific work are eligible to apply for project support through this funding opportunity

Marketing includes a program of activity for a specific period that promotes, advertises or disseminates work created by Alberta's Indigenous artists, and/or develops audiences for the artist's work.

Research includes a program of activity for a specific period of time that supports or results in the development of an artistic or cultural project. This may include the gathering of natural materials.

Training and career development in Indigenous arts can include:

workshops
master classes
retreats
mentorship programs
professional development
courses of study in art forms, including working with mentors or Elders

Eligible expenses

You can receive up to $18,000 to support your project. You may apply for up to 100% of eligible expenses that are directly related to carrying out your proposed project. These expenses may include, but are not limited to:

contracted artist and/or technician fees
commission fees
production
promotion and publicity
transportation and accommodation
mentorship costs, such as honoraria and protocol, or fees for mentors or Elders, as well associated travel and accommodation and living costs for mentors
tuition or training fees
royalties
administration and contract fees
basic living/subsistence expenses (housing, local transportation, food, child care, dependent care) up to $3,000/month
other expenses and supplies considered by the AFA to be reasonable and necessary

Ineligible expenses

Expenses and activities that are ineligible for AFA project funding include:

expenses for capital purchases, such as buildings or property, or for capital development, and studio construction or renovations
recreational training projects
specific component activities undertaken as part of a course of study
contracts for ongoing activities or artists pursuing projects similar in scope to usual activities with commissioner
expenses already incurred prior to the application submission, including grant writer fees

How to apply

We only accept applications through the Grant Administration Tracking and Evaluation (GATE) Front Office online application system. We must receive your online application through GATE Front Office no later than 11:59 p.m. Mountain Time on the deadline date, unless the deadline falls on a statutory holiday or a weekend when it will be extended until the next working day. Please give the system time to process your application so that we receive notification of your submission before the deadline falls.

applicants may submit only one application to the AFA each deadline across all disciplines
the AFA does not accept incomplete applications
applications must be received prior to the commencement of the project
projects involving more than one artist must be submitted by one individual on behalf of the ensemble or group

We do not accept separate applications for the same project.

GATE Front Office username registration

First-time applicants will require a GATE Front Office username and password. Email us at registrationafa@gov.ab.ca to get your login information at least five business days prior to the application deadline.

Please include:

your legal name
the funding opportunity to which you are applying
your email address.

Your username and password will be sent to the email address provided.

What to submit

For detailed step-by-step instructions, please download the GATE Front Office user guide.

GATE Front Office online formlets:

applicant information: Legal name and Confirmation of the applicant status (minor/Albertan)
if you are under the age of 18 years at the time of application, a parent or legal guardian must e-sign the Applicant Agreement as the designate for the funding, and be responsible for
- the completeness and accuracy of the application in full
- receipt and use of funding
- reporting on the use of funds
- serving as contact person for any inquiries relating to the grant
contact information for primary applicant
- ensembles must designate one contact person for all requirements of the grant as the primary applicant
- this designated individual must e-sign the Applicant Agreement
address: Street and mailing address for the primary applicant
general information: Confirmation of the application category (art production, marketing, research, or training/career development) and applicant status (individual/ensemble)
project description: A brief project description (20 words) and the project start and end dates
project co-owners: A listing of the project co-owners involved in the project, their position or role, and confirmation of Alberta Residence
individual applicant agreement: A declaration of agreement with the statement of conditions e-signed by the primary applicant or designate
project expenses: A listing of project expenditures in Canadian dollars
project revenue: A listing of non-AFA revenues in Canadian dollars
- the difference between expenditures and revenues will comprise the grant request to the AFA with the funding not exceeding $18,000

Attachments:

The GATE Front Office attachment section indicates that not all attachments are required for submission. This is because they are only required for certain types of projects (e.g. marketing plan for a marketing project). It is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure that all attachments noted in the guidelines are submitted with their application according to project type.

Please submit the following attachments:

an artistic resume of no more than four pages
- indigenous traditional artists may submit a description of their traditional Indigenous arts background and other relevant cultural history
- resumes of all project co-owners involved in the project
Detailed project description, including an outline of the objectives, planned activities, timelines, and expected results and impact on the applicant's artistic development
- appropriate protocols and permission from the community to use traditional tribal knowledge must be addressed
- in keeping with oral traditions, Indigenous project descriptions are welcome as oral submissions no longer than 3 minutes in length
- for more information on how to submit oral project descriptions, contact the Arts Development Consultant for this program, prior to the application deadline, at the contact information below.
commission applicants must submit a completed and signed contract with the commissioner and a plan for the exhibition, presentation, display, publication, screening or performance of the commissioned work
official invitations, confirmations, or itineraries
a detailed marketing plan
applicants who have been accepted into a mentorship must provide a letter of agreement as proof of acceptance and support from the mentor, Elder or cultural resource person
additional support materials that may assist in the assessment process
- all support material should be scanned into a single file and attached to the online application

Applicants may be asked for additional information.

Format

wherever possible, support material should be uploaded as an attachment into GATE (up to 4 MB)
for files too large to include as attachments in GATE, they may be submitted via email to IndigenousAFA@gov.ab.ca as email attachments or downloadable links
- please format your subject line: <your first initial, last name and project number>, eg. "H.Lee AIPG-56-172631"
- please ensure link contains downloadable files (MP3 or MP4 preferred)
alternatively, please mail a hard copy CD or USB to 10708 – 105 Ave, Edmonton, AB, T5H 0A1
- please include your first initial, last name and project number on the CD or USB
- support material must be submitted or postmarked no later than 11:59 p.m. Mountain Time on the deadline date

How will my application be assessed?

This funding is administered at the discretion of the AFA board on a project-by-project basis.

Staff convene an expert panel to consider all eligible grant applications submitted to each grant deadline. The expert panel assesses the merit of each application both on its own terms and in relation to all other applications received for a given deadline.

Assessment of a project is based on the following general criteria:

the impact of the project on both the applicant and the artistic genre in Alberta
the artistic, educational or promotional merit of the project
the appropriateness of the project budget showing commitment from all partners as applicable
the ability of the applicant to carry out the proposed project
the project and individual’s connection to Indigenous culture and community

Assessment also takes into account the applicant's:

artistic and technical ability to carry out the proposed project
level of training, experience and expertise
performance and achievements to date
personal objectives

All expert panel recommendations are reviewed by the AFA board and all decisions are final. Funding is not assured for any project.

Learn more about expert panels and how the AFA adjudicates funding requests for all programs.

When will I hear?

Grant recommendations are made to the AFA board of directors. Successful recipients will be notified upon board approval, generally between four to six months from the application deadline.

We gather general comments about the applications and share them on the Adjudication page. The expert panel does not record specific comments about individual applications.

Conditions

Funding is intended for the purposes described in your application. By accepting funding, you agree to undertake the project as proposed in your original project description.

If you do not receive the full grant amount requested, you are still required to complete the project as proposed if you accept the grant:

you must return the grant funds if the project cannot be completed as proposed

If you require a change to your project including outcomes, location or an extension to your final report due date:

you must submit a request in writing for approval by the AFA
the request must be submitted prior to the change being made and/or before your project completion date
the AFA may consider a single extension per funding opportunity

Funding recipients are responsible for informing the AFA of how funds were spent and outcomes of the project:

you must return funds if reporting requirements are not met
you must return unused portions of funding to the AFA

Any funding recipient who does not provide a report prior to the date noted in the successful notification document, or does not fulfill any conditions associated with a grant or whose report is not approved will be made delinquent and ineligible for further funding from the AFA for a period of three years from the time the delinquency is resolved.

New applications will not be accepted until your previous project is completed and the final report is received and approved by the AFA.

Previous funding recipients must have met reporting requirements in order to be eligible to receive subsequent funding from the AFA.

The AFA, or our authorized representative, may examine a funding recipient's financial and other records to ensure that the funding is being, or was, used for its intended purpose.

We require a complete and satisfactory final report submitted to GATE that demonstrates that funding was spent on the activities described in the application.

Funding acknowledgement

Whenever possible, you must acknowledge the AFA for financial support in any publicity prepared in relation to the project, including electronic, print, or visual material.

Download versions of the AFA logo and guidelines for usage.

Reporting

In your final report, you must complete the following GATE Front Office formlets:

Individual Project Evaluation with a completed project outcomes questionnaire
Project Expenses with a complete and accurate financial accounting for final project expenses in comparison to the original budget submission
Project Revenues with a complete and accurate financial accounting for all revenues received for the project

Include the following mandatory attachments as part of your final report:

One of the following samples of work produced, performed, or created from the following list
- submit one file of 1-10 visual images representative of your completed project
- submit one audio file representative of your completed project
  - files must be no longer than 5 minutes in length, in MP3 or AAC format, and no larger than 8 MB in size
- upload a list of work produced into GATE Front Office and submit one video file representative of your completed project as an attachment or link to a downloadable file to IndigenousAFA@gov.ab.ca
  - files must be no longer than 5 minutes in length, in MP4, AVI, MOV, MPEG, or WMV format
  - please see Format section (above in How to apply) for detailed submission instructions, including how to submit video files when appropriate to your project reporting
- submit one file of completed written or literary work as representative of your completed project
if your project was for marketing, include proof of touring costs (i.e. receipts or itinerary) or sample of promotional material in lieu of visual, audio, video, or written sample
if your project was for training or career development, include your tuition receipt in lieu of visual, audio, video, or written sample

When applicable, include:

Samples of promotional materials related to the project, such as social media or website screenshots, posters, and/or programs showing funding credit to the Alberta Foundation for the Arts where appropriate
Samples of reviews, interviews, publications, or other media in which the project was mentioned
Other support material, if applicable, such a travel itinerary, confirmation of attendance at an event, invoices for studio time, other production costs, etc.

Helpful resources

Visit the Help and Resources section of our website to:

download the new Front Office User Guide
read application tips for individual artists that will help you write a stronger grant application
find tips for developing digital images to attach to your grant application

Working on your project budget? Download budget examples for Indigenous Arts individual project funding to help guide you.

Including a video in your additional support materials? Download video submission instructions for Indigenous Arts grants.

Project grant recommendations are made by Expert Panels. Their comments can be useful tips to help you improve your application.