Media Cymru: Scale up fund
UK registered organisations based in South Wales can apply for £100k-£250k to develop products, services or experiences for the media sector.
Opportunity Details
When
Registration Opens
18/09/2023
Registration Closes
01/11/2023
Award
While there is no maximum on total eligible costs, the grant funding request must be between £100,000 and £250,000. This can cover up to 70% of costs depending on business size and project type.
Organisation
Innovate UK
This competition will be delivered by Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation, on behalf of Media Cymru, a consortium of 23 partner organisations led by Cardiff University. It is funded by UKRI Strength in Places to invest up to £900,000 through this competition.
Media Cymru is a five year programme with the aim to turn the Cardiff Capital Region (CCR) into a global hub for media innovation with a focus on green and fair economic growth.
The aim of this competition is to deliver innovative products, services and experiences to identified challenges and opportunities within the media industry in Wales through R&D grant funding.
Media Cymru Scale Up will invest in companies that can match global competitors in their scale of innovation ambition and skills. We are looking for innovation driven products, services and experiences of scale within the media sector.
Your proposal must demonstrate the potential to positively impact on the economy of the Cardiff Capital Region.
There is also a parallel competition, the Media Cymru Greening the Screen fund, in which you can apply for £75k-£250k to scale-up products, services or processes that will reduce the carbon footprint of the screen industry in the Cardiff Capital Region: click here for details.
-
The lead organisation may be based outside the CCR but justification must be made in your application as to why the project could not be led by an organisation from the CCR. If the lead organisation is based outside the CCR, you must collaborate with an organisation in the CCR.
To lead a project your organisation must:
- be a UK registered business of any size, community interest company (CIC) or not for profit
- be based in the CCR or collaborate with at least one UK registered business, research organisation, public sector organisation or charity, in the CCR
- carry out the project work in the CCR
Collaboration is encouraged within the following sectors and with micro, small or medium-sized enterprises (SME) in the supply chain:
- film, television and media
- games
- academia
- technology for example, IT, software, electronics and computer services
Academic institutions cannot lead or work alone.
Project team
To collaborate with the lead, your organisation must be one of the following UK registered:
- business of any size
- academic institution
- charity
- not for profit
- public sector organisation
A business, community interest company (CIC) or not for profit can only lead on one application but can be included as a collaborator in a further two applications.
If a business, CIC or not for profit is not leading any application, it can collaborate in up to three applications.
An academic institution or research and technology organisation (RTO) can collaborate on any number of applications.
-
Your project must:
- have a primary focus within the media sector
- demonstrate significant potential for economic benefit to the Cardiff Capital Region (CCR) or Wales
- have a total grant funding request between £100,000 and £250,000
- contribute match funding towards project delivery
- start by 1 April 2024
- end by 30 September 2025
- last between 12 and 18 months
- carry out all of its project work in the UK
- intend to exploit the results in the media industry
-
The aim of this competition is to deliver innovative products, services and experiences to identified challenges and opportunities within the media industry in South Wales through R&D grant funding.
Through this fund we are looking to support commercially viable business led innovation.
Your project must:
- address and provide solutions to challenges and opportunities that you have identified and have undertaken work to asses the feasibility of
- demonstrate a realistic potential to deliver economic growth
- actively share knowledge and outputs with Media Cymru and the wider sector
- influence and encourage an innovative approach to developing new products, services and experiences within the sector
- align with Media Cymru programme pillars around Growth, Global, Fair and Green
The Media Cymru programme pillars are:
- Growth, driving growth and productivity through RD&I
- Global, increasing international collaborations
- Fair, creating a fair, equal and diverse sector
- Green, reducing the environmental impact of the sector
We will not fund projects that:
- are early-stage research and development or feasibility studies
- are content creation for example, short films, plays, live music events, feature films and television pilots
- are for general business development
- are one-off art commissions
- do not demonstrate the potential to be economically sustainable
- do not demonstrate clear innovative advancement of a product, service or experience
- have disproportionate involvement of non-UK based partners or subcontractors
(Other exclusions apply, see the link below for a complete list.)
-
Your project can focus on one or more of the following areas:
- advances in the creation of immersive storytelling exploring Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), Extended Reality (XR) and Mixed Reality (MR)
- exploration of products at the convergence of Virtual Production and traditional production
- scalable and flexible Virtual Production solutions
- sustainable and accessible Virtual Production solutions
-
An online briefing event will be held on 21st September 2023: click here to register for a place.
If you would like help to find a collaboration partner, contact Innovate UK KTN’s Creative Industries team.