New funding opportunity for emerging African storytellers
To be eligible for this opportunity, storytellers must first be members of Africa No Filter’s African Narrative Collective.
Are you a content creator, wordsmith, performance artist, visual artist, or journalist whose work tells African stories beyond stereotypes of poverty, conflict, disease, poor leadership and corruption?
Africa No Filter’s Kekere Storytellers Fund could support your next project.
The fund pays micro-grants to emerging storytellers who are already creating and publishing unique and compelling content that offers fresh and alternative perspectives of Africa, to show a continent that’s innovative, evolving, and creative.
The Kekere Storytellers Fund is Africa No Filter’s way of ensuring that funding — which is limited and rarely accessed by up-and-coming storytellers — reaches artists, journalists, and content creators who share our passion for telling better stories about Africa and telling stories about Africa better.
Eligibility:
You must:
- Be an African based anywhere in Africa or the Diaspora.
- Be under 35 years.
- Be able to express yourself in English or French.
- Have a track record of producing ground-breaking work that challenges stereotypical narratives about your community, country, or the continent.
- Have at least two years of related work experience
- Have a minimum of 5000 followers across Twitter, Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube
- Fall in at least one of the following categories:
- Media/Content creator: Journalist, Blogger, Vlogger, Podcaster, Fiction & Non-Fiction Writer, Photographer
- Artist: Poet, Musician, Spoken Word Poet, Dancer, Painter, Sculptor, Illustrator, Animator.
Ineligibility:
We will not consider:
Applications by filmmakers. See the Last Mile Film Fund for related opportunities.
- Storytellers who do not have evidence of producing work that shifts stereotypical narratives about Africa.
- Funding to buy equipment (cameras, laptops, etc).
- Funding to host/attend an event (workshops, festivals, conferences, etc).
Amount: $500 - $3000.
Deadline: Applications are open until the end of the year, or until we’ve selected 12 - 14 storytellers for the fund.
Please note that applications can only be submitted in either English or French.
Frequently Asked Questions
We're particularly keen on supporting storytellers telling an interesting, unique story about Africa; stories that amplify unheard voices, challenge global perspectives, and introduce contemporary narratives. The Kekere Storytellers Fund allows for lots of creativity and innovation – think about what you want your reader or viewer to take away from this work and the type of impact you want to create, locally and globally.
Your project should be short term, executed between three to six months from the date of getting the funding.
The Kekere Storytellers Fund is designed to support emerging storytellers who may not have a long track record or an extensive portfolio. However, our panellists will need some evidence of related work experience and passion for narrative change. For example, if you are applying for funding for a documentary, you should have some examples of documentaries and films you have worked on. If you want to pitch an editorial series, you must have published features on media platforms. This should not be your first time producing work for your chosen platform or artistic medium.
No. This grant opportunity is open to Africans living on the continent and Africans in the Diaspora.
No. Collectives and media organisations can apply but only one person can send in the application on behalf of the team. Additionally, this person will be responsible for the success and completion of the work.
No. Apply once, using your best idea.
No. Like all our grants, the Kekere Storytellers Fund is only open to artists and organisations already producing unique and compelling content that tells better stories about Africa.
Applications are assessed on a rolling basis. However, candidates will also get a notification on the status of their applications via their portal on our grantmaking platform.
No. The maximum amount for the Storytellers Fund is $3,000. Read more about Who/What We Fund to know about our various opportunities. However, you must first be a member of Africa No Filter’s African Narrative Collective to be eligible for this opportunity.
Please go through our general grants FAQs for more information