We have dedicated a portion of the International Connections Fund to support UK screen industry professionals to attend international markets, festivals and other international events that we have identified as key opportunities. This will lead to increased international collaboration across the screen sector by building global networks for UK screen professionals.
We aim to support UK screen professionals and talent to:
- build mutually beneficial creative relationships with international industry
- discover new international funding opportunities
- discover new international distribution opportunities
This will have ongoing reciprocal benefits for industry professionals and give them the potential to scale-up projects and reach new audiences.
We will organise group attendance to specified strategic markets, festivals or other events that we have identified as relevant around the world resulting in ‘in-kind’ awards to those selected applicants. We have allocated £140,000 per year to support the attendance of at least four professionals at a minimum of four key events each year.
The selection of international events for group attendance will ensure engagement with:
- countries with significant collaboration potential and strong prospects of mutual benefit (for example countries with which the UK has co-production treaties)
- countries or events which are less known to UK professionals where the aim is to discover new opportunities and establish new networks for collaborations
- countries or events where organisations are pro-actively seeking collaboration with the UK and we believe it will be beneficial to the UK screen industry
We are committed to making our funding accessible to all. You can get help if you need support to apply for funding.
Current opportunities:
Group attendance for Black and Global Majority producers at TIFF: The Market in Toronto, Canada in September 2026
Applications are now open: the deadline for applications is 10am on Thursday 18 June 2026
Read the fund guidelines in full before applying.
Since the very first National Lottery draw in 1994, more than £50 billion for good causes has been raised directly through National Lottery ticket sales, funding more than 700,000 projects. As a recipient of National Lottery funding, it is important to publicly acknowledge the source of this funding ensuring that those engaging with your work recognise the value and benefit of this unique Good Cause funding.
If your application is successful, you will be responsible for prominently crediting BFI National Lottery funding and thanking National Lottery players. To communicate this message, you should ensure that the elements of your project which have the potential to engage a broad public audience are capitalised on. More details will be supplied once an award has been made.