Experiment

Are you ready to get your ideas off the ground and test your work out with an audience?

Apply for £20,000 and access tailored workshops and support to experiment with an idea or develop a project.

Ideal for...

The Experiment strand of funding aims to help artists to:

  • create experimental works, proofs-of-concept or prototypes to test out with small audiences
  • experiment with immersive technology in a way that develops their practice
  • consider access, diversity and inclusion relevant to their project

Focus

Successful applicants will be supported for up to nine months (i.e. for the duration of their projects) with training through our Development Labs, run by Crossover Labs on:

 

  • Narrative
  • User experience 
  • Audience strategy
  • Practical elements such as finance plans, timelines & prototype planning
  • Opportunities to test & refine prototypes with small audiences

Timelines

  • February 2025 Awarded artists announced
  • March - November 2025 Projects carried out
  • Spring 2025 Round two funding opens

Why Apply?

Are you an artist with a curious mind who’d like to explore, experiment and expand your practice?

You could use the funding for:

  • planning, researching and developing, or delivering, a new immersive arts project
  • attending residencies, relevant events and workshops
  • accessing training and other forms of support
  • buying materials, software licences and other technical tools
  • paying artists, technologists and other collaborators
  • hiring studio, rehearsal, exhibition or event spaces
  • researching and integrating accessibility options for audiences’ access needs
  • making audience testing or exhibitions more accessible, diverse and inclusive (by, for eg, paying for BSL interpreters, accessible formats, captioning, etc).
  • marketing your project and developing your audience (Expand and Experiment only)

See the Funding Guidelines for a full breakdown of eligibility costs

Eligibility

You are eligible to apply for an Immersive Arts grant if you:

  • are an individual artist, creative practitioner or creative technologist
  • are an arts-based organisation, small group or collective (10 people or fewer for Experiment and Explore; up to 50 people for Expand)
  • are based in the UK
  • are aged 18 or over
  • have a UK bank account in your own name.

See the Funding Guidelines for more information.

How to apply

To apply for a grant, you’ll need to create an account in our application portal. We recommend reading this step-by-step guide before you start your application.

Apply now to:
Explore
Experiment
Expand

Please apply for the full amount stated for each strand.

When to apply

Applications for Round 1 of funding are now closed. Round 2 of Immersive Arts funding will open in Spring 2025.

Sign up to our newsletter to find out more.

Explore and Experiment applicants will be notified in February 2025.

Anyone applying to Expand will be contacted in January 2025, when shortlisted applicants will be invited to an interview.

Apply now to ExploreExperiment or Expand.

Access support

You can apply by audio, video or text, and 
in English or Welsh, or British Sign Language. If you need to apply in a different format or require additional support (like sign language interpreters), then please just let us know. We may be able to provide financial assistance.

Requesting
access support
for applications

If you need this information in any other format, access support to apply, or have any other access questions, 
send us an email or call or text on 07123 456 789.

Note our phone is only staffed during daytime working hours – if you call outside those hours just leave a message and someone will get back to you.

The deadline for access support is 4 November 2024, four weeks before the application deadline, which gives us a bit 
of time to ensure you get the support you need.

Access support
for funded projects

We can provide additional funding to successful applicants to support a range of access requirements (eg, paying a support worker, scribe or sign language interpreter).

Mentoring and training support offered along with the funding can be adapted for those with access requirements and/ or caring roles.

For example the Development Labs run by Crossover 
Labs as part of the Experiment awards will have three alternative, flexible options:

  • Residential – one week (five days).
  • Online – five days spread over five weeks.
  • Relaxed track – ten half days over a longer 
duration in response to each cohort, with 
online and in person options.

Get in touch to find out more.

Have any questions?
Visit our FAQs page here

Submission Checklist

  • Watched our Inspiration Day Session or our Funding Webinar on YouTube?
  • Downloaded the Funding Guidelines & read the FAQs?
  • Downloaded the Application Form to work out your answers offline?
  • Used the Schedule & Budget templates to help you map out your ideas?
  • Checked the Guidance on fair pay on page 18-19 of the Funding Guidelines?