Stray Short Film Grant
Make the film only you can make.
Four selected US filmmaker applicants receive a $5,000 production grant.
Application window
July 1 to August 1, 2026
Activity window
July 16 to September 6, 2026
Grant
$5,000
Eligibility
US filmmakers
The Stray Short Film Grant rewards filmmakers who show up on the platform by submitting work and engaging with signal.
Submit your application by August 1, 2026. Grant activity begins July 16, 2026 and counts through September 6, 2026. Activity helps identify finalists, then eligible finalists are reviewed before four US filmmakers receive a $5,000 grant.
What selected filmmakers receive
$5,000 Production Grant
Funding to support production costs for your short film.
Visibility Through Stray
Your work may be featured across Stray's platform, editorial, community, and social channels.
Audience Feedback
Build signal on the platform through submissions and engagement. Audience insights follow your activity.
Pathway to Feature Development
Winners upload completed films to build signal on Stray, opening the door to feature-budget development.
How activity is used
Applications for the 2026 Stray grant opened on July 1, 2026. Eligible platform activity is measured beginning July 16, 2026 and continues through September 6, 2026. Platform activity and community contribution are used to identify grant finalists. Eligible finalists are then reviewed by the Stray team based on their application, submitted materials, project potential, activity quality, and eligibility. Activity may include watching, sharing, boosting, tagging or badges, referrals, and contributing work to Stray, where supported by the grant's active tracking rules. Suspicious, automated, internal, self-inflated, or otherwise ineligible activity may be excluded. The highest activity score does not automatically guarantee selection as a winner.
Eligibility
Who can apply
- Must be a US-based filmmaker
- Signed up to the site and submitted a grant application by August 1, 2026
- Applications submitted before August 1 remain eligible for grant activity beginning July 16, 2026
How winners are chosen
- Eligible platform activity begins July 16, 2026 and is measured through September 6, 2026
- Activity and community contribution identify a finalist group for review
- Finalists are reviewed for eligibility, attribution, application materials, project potential, and fairness
- The highest activity score does not automatically guarantee selection as a winner
- Four selected US filmmakers each receive a $5,000 grant
- Winners upload completed shorts to the platform to build signal and compete for a feature budget
Get started
Join the competition
Applications opened July 1, 2026. Apply by August 1, 2026. Eligible platform activity is measured beginning July 16, 2026 and counts through September 6, 2026.
Questions about the grant? Reach out at Stray Community or follow @_straycompany.