Funding competition Media Cymru: Greening the screen fund

UK registered organisations can apply for a grant funding request between £75,000 and £250,000. The funding is to scale-up products, services or processes that will reduce the carbon footprint of the screen industry in the Cardiff Capital Region.

This competition is now closed.

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Competition sections

Description

Greening the Screen Cymru Scale-Up Fund is delivered by Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), on behalf of Media Cymru and Ffilm Cymru Wales. Media Cymru is a consortium of 23 organisations led by Cardiff University. This competition is funded by UKRI Strength in Places and will invest up to £600,000.

Media Cymru’s aim is to turn the Cardiff Capital Region (CCR) into a global hub for media innovation with a focus on green and fair economic growth.

This competition aims to support UK registered organisations to scale-up sustainable products, services or processes that will green the screen industry in the CCR.

Informed by BAFTA albert's Screen New Deal research, projects must reduce the negative impact the sector has on the environment. BAFTA albert's Screen New Deal focuses on delivering a zero-carbon and zero-waste future through key impact areas:

  • energy and fuel
  • transport
  • circular economy and waste, including catering
  • data capture and dissemination, expertise, technical insight, production planning, and reporting across the supply chain

Funding type

Grant

Project size

Applicants can apply for grant funding between £75,000 and £250,000.

Who can apply

Your project must:

  • have a primary focus within the film and media sector
  • demonstrate significant environmental benefit to the media industry, particularly the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions
  • demonstrate a commercially viable business model or potential for long term financial sustainability
  • have a total grant funding request between £75,000 and £250,000
  • contribute match funding towards project delivery
  • last between 12 and 24 months
  • start by 1 April 2024
  • end by 31 March 2026
  • carry out at least 75% of its project work in the Cardiff Capital Region (CCR)
  • intend to exploit the results in the CCR

You must only include eligible project costs in your application.

Under current restrictions, this competition will not fund any procurement, commercial, business development or supply chain activity with any Russian or Belarusian entity as lead, partner or subcontractor. This includes or goods or services originating from a Russian and Belarusian source.

Lead organisation

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
  • academia
  • technology, for example, IT, software, electronics and computer services
  • energy and fuel
  • transport
  • circular economy services and waste management, for example, production space and infrastructure, costumes, catering
  • manufacturing and materials, for example, set materials and props

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
  • research and technology organisation (RTO)

Each partner organisation must be invited into the Innovation Funding Service (IFS) by the lead to collaborate on a project. Once accepted, partners will be asked to login or to create an account and enter their own project costs into IFS.

Non-funded partners

Your project can include partners that do not receive any of this competition’s funding, for example non-UK businesses. Their costs will count towards the total project costs.

Subcontractors

Subcontractors are allowed in this competition.

Subcontractors can be from anywhere in the UK and you must select them through your usual procurement process.

You can use subcontractors from overseas but must make the case in your application as to why you could not use suppliers from the UK.

You must provide a detailed rationale, evidence of the potential UK contractors you approached and the reasons why they were unable to work with you. We will not accept a cheaper cost as a sufficient reason to use an overseas subcontractor.

All subcontractor costs must be justified and appropriate to the total project costs.

Number of applications

A business, community interest company (CIC) or not for profit can only lead on one application but can be included as a collaborator in two further 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) cannot lead but can collaborate on any number of applications.

Previous applications

You cannot use a previously submitted application to apply for this competition.

We will not award you funding if you have:

Subsidy control (and State aid where applicable)

This competition provides funding in line with the Subsidy Control Act 2022. Further information about the Subsidy requirements can be found within the Subsidy Control Act 2022 (legislation.gov.uk).

Innovate UK is unable to award organisations that are considered to be in financial difficulty. We will conduct financial viability and eligibility tests to confirm this is not the case following the application stage.

EU State aid rules now only apply in limited circumstances. Please see our general guidance to check if these rules apply to your organisation.

Further Information

If you are unsure about your obligations under the Subsidy Control Act 2022 or the State aid rules, you should take independent legal advice. We are unable to advise on individual eligibility or legal obligations.

You must always make sure that the funding awarded to you is compliant with all current Subsidy Control legislation applicable in the United Kingdom.

This aims to regulate any advantage granted by a public sector body which threatens to, or actually distorts competition in the United Kingdom or any other country or countries.

Funding

A total of up to £600,000 is available to fund projects in this competition. Awards will be between £75,000 and £250,000 per project. Funding will be in the form of a grant.

If your organisation’s work on the project is commercial or economic, your funding request must not exceed the limits below. These limits apply even if your organisation normally acts non-economically but for the purpose of this project will be undertaking commercial or economic activity.

For industrial research projects, you could get funding for your eligible project costs of:

  • up to 70% if you are a micro or small organisation
  • up to 60% if you are a medium sized organisation
  • up to 50% if you are a large organisation

For experimental development projects which are nearer to market, you could get funding for your eligible project costs of:

  • up to 45% if you are a micro or small organisation
  • up to 35% if you are a medium sized organisation
  • up to 25% if you are a large organisation

For more information on company sizes, please refer to the company accounts guidance.

If you are applying for an award funded under State aid Regulations, the definitions are set out in the European Commission Recommendation of 6 May 2003.

Research participation

The research organisations undertaking non-economic activity as part of the project can share up to 30% of the total eligible project costs. If your consortium contains more than one research organisation undertaking non-economic activity, this maximum is shared between them. Of that 30% you could get funding for your eligible project costs of up to:

  • 80% of full economic costs (FEC) if you are a Je-S registered institution such as an academic
  • 100% of your project costs if you are an RTO, charity, not for profit organisation, public sector organisation or research organisation

Your proposal

The aim of this competition is to support UK registered organisations to scale-up sustainable products, services and processes that will green the screen industry in the Cardiff Capital Region (CCR).

Informed by BAFTA albert's Screen New Deal research, projects must reduce the negative impact the sector has on the environment. BAFTA albert's Screen New Deal focuses on delivering a zero-carbon and zero-waste future through key impact areas:

  • energy and fuel
  • transport
  • circular economy and waste, including catering
  • data capture and dissemination, for example, expertise, technical insight, production planning, and reporting across the supply chain

Your project must:

An assessment panel which includes representatives from Ffilm Cymru and Cardiff University as well as other research and industry representatives will select and fund projects from the applications received.

Portfolio Approach

We want to fund a variety of projects across:

  • geographic sub-regional balance
  • impact area and transformational opportunity
  • range of technologies and technological maturities
  • zero-carbon and zero-waste targets
  • social value
  • collaboration opportunities with SMEs in the supply chain
We call this a portfolio approach.

Specific themes

Your project can align with one or more transformational opportunity areas identified in the BAFTA albert's Screen New Deal route map to sustainable film production:

  • production materials, for example, responsible procurement and reuse
  • energy and water, for example, alternatives to diesel, transport and generators, renewables, reduction, studio and equipment efficiency
  • studio buildings and facilities, for example, repurposing and smart building management
  • studio sites and locations, for example, changing modes of transport, reducing waste including catering and circular production
  • production planning, for example, digital collaboration tools, virtual planning and production, and shared infrastructure

This list is not exhaustive.

Research categories

We will fund industrial research projects and experimental development projects, as defined in the guidance on categories of research.

Projects we will not fund

We will not fund projects that:

  • are early-stage research and development or feasibility studies
  • do not demonstrate the potential to positively impact on the environment of the CCR and Wales
  • do not demonstrate clear advancement of product, service or process such as technology and potential application or novel application of existing technology to solve environmental challenges
  • have disproportionate involvement of non-UK based partners or subcontractors
  • do not meet the competition eligibility or scope
  • do not address the size, potential and access to market for the innovation
  • do not evidence the potential for their project to have significant positive environmental impact
  • do not evidence the potential for their project to have significant positive economic impact, growth and scale-up of the business, product, service or process
  • do not commit to sharing their knowledge and outputs with the Ffilm Cymru Wales, Media Cymru and wider industry

We cannot fund projects that are:

  • dependent on export performance, for example giving a subsidy to a baker on the condition that it exports a certain quantity of bread to another country
  • dependent on domestic inputs usage, for example giving a subsidy to a baker on the condition that it uses 50% UK flour in their product

18 September 2023
Competition opens
21 September 2023
Online briefing event: Watch the recording
1 November 2023 11:00am
Competition closes
23 January 2024 4:12pm
Applicants notified

Before you start

You must read the guidance on applying for a competition on the Innovation Funding Service before you start.

Before submitting, it is the lead applicant’s responsibility to make sure:

  • that all the information provided in the application is correct
  • your proposal meets the eligibility and scope criteria
  • all sections of the application are marked as complete
  • if collaborative, that all partners have completed all assigned sections and accepted the terms and conditions (T&Cs)

You can reopen your application once submitted, up until the competition deadline. You must resubmit the application before the competition deadline.

What we ask you

The application is split into 3 sections:

  1. Project details.
  2. Application questions.
  3. Finances.

Accessibility and inclusion

We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and are committed to making our application process accessible to everyone. This includes providing support, in the form of reasonable adjustments, for people who have a disability or a long-term condition and face barriers applying to us. Watch the video on how we are making our application process more accessible and inclusive for everyone.

You must contact us as early as possible in the application process. We recommend contacting us at least 15 working days before the competition closing date to ensure we can provide you with the most suitable support possible.

You can contact us by emailing support@iuk.ukri.org or calling 0300 321 4357. Our phone lines are open from 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday (excluding bank holidays).

1. Project details

This section provides background for your application and is not scored.

Application team

Decide which organisations will work with you on your project and invite people from those organisations to help complete the application.

Application details

Give your project’s title, start date and duration.

Research category

Select the type of research you will undertake.

Project summary

Describe your project briefly and be clear about what makes it innovative. We use this section to assign the right experts to assess your application.

Your answer can be up to 400 words long.

Public description

Describe your project in detail and in a way that you are happy to see published. Do not include any commercially sensitive information. If we award your project funding, we will publish this description. This could happen before you start your project.

Your answer can be up to 400 words long.

Scope

Describe how your project fits the scope of the competition. If your project is not in scope it will not be sent for assessment. We will tell you the reason why.

Your answer can be up to 400 words long.

2. Application questions

The assessors will score all your answers apart from question 1. You will receive feedback for each scored question. Find out more about how our assessors assess and how we select applications for funding.

You must answer all questions. Your answer to each question can be up to 400 words long. Do not include any website addresses (URLs) in your answers.

Question 1. Applicant location (not scored)

You must state the name and full registered address of your organisation and any partners or subcontractors working on your project.

We are collecting this information to understand the geographical location of all applicants.

Question 2. Need or challenge

What is the business need, technological challenge, or market opportunity behind your innovation?

Explain:

  • the main motivation for the project
  • the business need, technological challenge or market opportunity
  • whether you have identified any similar innovation and its current limitations, including those close to market or in development
  • any work you have already done to respond to this need, for example, if the project focuses on developing an existing capability or building a new one
  • the wider economic, social, environmental, cultural or political challenges which are influential in creating the opportunity, such as incoming regulations and using our Horizons tool if appropriate

Question 3. Approach and innovation

What approach will you take and where will the focus of the innovation be?

Explain:

  • how you will respond to the need, challenge or opportunity identified
  • how you will improve on any similar innovation that you have identified
  • whether the innovation will focus on existing technologies in new areas, the development of new technologies for existing areas, or a totally disruptive approach
  • the freedom you have to operate
  • how this project fits with your current product, service lines or offerings
  • how it will make you more competitive
  • the nature of the outputs you expect from the project, for example, reports, demonstrator, know-how, new process, product or service design, and how these will help you to target the need, challenge or opportunity identified

You can submit one appendix to support your answer. It can include diagrams and charts. It must be a PDF, up to 2 A4 pages long and no larger than 10MB in size. The font must be legible at 100% zoom.

Question 4. Team and resources

Who is in the project team and what are their roles?

Explain:

  • the roles, skills and experience of all members of the project team that are relevant to the approach you will be taking
  • the resources, equipment and facilities needed for the project and how you will access them
  • the details of any vital external parties, including subcontractors, who you will need to work with to successfully carry out the project
  • if your project is collaborative, the current relationships between project partners and how these will change as a result of the project
  • any roles you will need to recruit for

You can submit one appendix, with a short summary of the main people working on the project to support your answer. It must be a PDF, up to 4 A4 pages long and no larger than 10MB in size. The font must be legible at 100% zoom.

Question 5. Market awareness

What does the market or markets you are targeting look like?

Describe:

  • the target markets for the project outcomes and any other potential markets, either domestic, international or both
  • the size of the target markets for the project outcomes, backed up by references where available
  • the structure and dynamics of the target markets, including customer segmentation, together with predicted growth rates within clear timeframes
  • the target markets' main supply or value chains and business models, and any barriers to entry that exist
  • the current UK position in targeting these markets
  • the size and main features of any other markets not already listed

If your project is highly innovative, where the market may be unexplored, describe or explain:

  • what the market’s size might be
  • how your project will try to explore the market’s potential

Question 6. Outcomes and route to market

How are you going to grow your business and increase long term productivity as a result of the project?

Explain:

  • your current position in the markets and supply or value chains outlined, and whether you will be extending or establishing your market position
  • your target customers or end users, and the value to them, for example, why they would use or buy your product
  • your route to market
  • how you are going to profit from the innovation, including increased revenues or cost reduction
  • how the innovation will affect your productivity and growth, in both the short and the long term
  • how you will protect and exploit the outputs of the project, for example through know-how, patenting, designs or changes to your business model
  • your strategy for targeting the other markets you have identified during or after the project

If there is any research organisation activity in the project, describe:

  • your plans to spread the project’s research outputs over a reasonable timescale
  • how you expect to use the results generated from the project in further research activities

Question 7. Wider impacts

What impact might this project have outside the project team?

Describe and, where possible, measure the economic benefits from the project such as productivity increases and import substitution, to:

  • external parties
  • customers
  • others in the supply chain
  • broader industry
  • the UK economy

Describe and, where possible, measure:

  • any expected impact on government priorities
  • any expected environmental impacts, either positive or negative
  • any expected regional impacts of the project

Describe any expected social impacts, either positive or negative, on, for example:

  • quality of life
  • social inclusion or exclusion
  • jobs, such as safeguarding, creating, changing or displacing them
  • education
  • public empowerment
  • health and safety
  • regulations
  • diversity

Question 8. Project management

How will you manage your project effectively?

Explain:

  • the main work packages of your project, indicating the lead partner assigned to each and the total cost of each one
  • your approach to project management, identifying any major tools and mechanisms you will use to get a successful and innovative project outcome
  • the management reporting lines
  • your project plan in enough detail to identify any links or dependencies between work packages or milestones

You must submit a project plan or Gantt chart as an appendix to support your answer. It must be a PDF, up to 2 A4 pages long and no larger than 10MB in size. The font must be legible at 100% zoom.

Question 9. Risks

What are the main risks for this project?

Explain:

  • the main risks and uncertainties of the project, including the technical, commercial, managerial and environmental risks
  • how you will mitigate these risks
  • any project inputs that are critical to completion, such as resources, expertise, and data sets
  • any output likely to be subject to regulatory requirements, certification, ethical issues and other requirements identified, and how you will manage this

You must submit a risk register as an appendix to support your answer. It must be a PDF, up to 2 A4 pages long, and no larger than 10MB in size. The font must be legible at 100% zoom.

Question 10. Added value

How will this public funding help you to accelerate or enhance your approach to developing your project towards commercialisation? What impact would this award have on the organisations involved?

Explain:

  • what advantages public funding would offer your project, for example, appeal to investors, more partners, reduced risk or a faster route to market
  • the likely impact of the project outcomes on the organisations involved
  • what other routes of investment or means of support you have already approached and why they were not suitable
  • how any existing or potential investment or support will be used in conjunction with the grant funding
  • what your project would look like without public funding
  • how this project would change the R&D activities of all the organisations involved

Question 11. Costs and value for money

How much will the project cost and how does it represent value for money for the team and the taxpayer?

In terms of your project goals, explain:

  • your total project costs
  • the grant you are requesting
  • how each partner will finance their contributions to your project
  • how this project represents value for money for you and the taxpayer
  • how it compares to what you would spend your money on otherwise
  • the balance of costs and grant across the project partners
  • any subcontractor costs and why they are critical to your project

3. Finances

Each organisation in your project must complete their own project costs, organisation details and funding details in the application. Academic institutions must complete and upload a Je-S form.

For full details on what costs you can claim see our project costs guidance. You can also view our Application Finances video.

Background and further information

Media Cymru

The Media Cymru Consortium is one of the largest investments in creative industries innovation made in the UK. Through research, development and innovation (RD&I) the Media Cymru Consortium aims to enable and stimulate the growth of the Welsh media sector and creative industries.

Media Cymru's goal is to use innovation as a key driver of green and fair economic growth to develop a global hub in the Cardiff Capital Region.

Our work is underpinned by four pillars:

  • Growth – to drive economic growth through R&D and innovation
  • Global – to increase international awareness of the media sector in Wales and encourage international collaborations
  • Fair – to create a fair, equal and diverse media sector
  • Green – to significantly reduce the negative environmental impact of the media sector

Cardiff Capital Region

The Cardiff Capital Region (CCR) embraces the 10 local authority areas covering South East Wales. These include:

  • Blaenau Gwent
  • Bridgend
  • Caerphilly
  • Cardiff
  • Merthyr Tydfil
  • Monmouthshire
  • Newport
  • Rhondda Cynon Taf
  • Torfaen
  • Vale of Glamorgan

We will be looking for projects that can deliver benefit across these areas.

Working with Media Cymru and Ffilm Cymru Wales

Media Cymru is working to deliver a range of innovation projects across the programme working with partners from industry and academia. Please explore our website and see how we could support your project.

Ffilm Cymru Wales is dedicated to advancing a sustainable film sector, which is inclusive, innovative, and green. Our values and work are framed against the Wellbeing of Future Generations Act, setting out the need for a prosperous and resilient Wales, but also for a globally responsible Wales, promoting sustainable development and contributing to environmental well-being. It is vital that businesses, public services, third sector and government work together to achieve these collective goals.

Ffilm Cymru Wales has an overarching Green Cymru programme which aims to support screen sector professionals and companies in Wales to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. The programme looks to support a film sector in Wales that is not only better equipped to combat emerging challenges from climate change and other environmental issues but also continues to grow sustainably.

Ffilm Cymru Wales is a partner in the Media Cymru programme responsible for the Greening the Screen Scale-Up Fund. Ffilm Cymru is also a key partner in the Screen New Deal Transformational Plan for Wales which this competition supports.

Data sharing

This competition is jointly operated by Innovate UK, Media Cymru and Ffilm Cymru (each an “agency”).

Your submitted application and any other information you provide at the application stage can be submitted to each agency on an individual basis for its storage, processing and use. Any relevant information produced during the application process concerning your application can be shared by one agency with the other, for its individual storage, processing and use.

This means that any information given to or generated by Innovate UK in respect of your application may be passed on to Media Cymru and Ffilm Cymru and vice versa.

Innovate UK is directly accountable to you for its holding and processing of your information, including any personal data and confidential information. It is held in accordance with its Information Management Policy.

Innovate UK, Media Cymru and Ffilm Cymru are directly accountable to you for their holding and processing of your information, including any personal data and confidential information. Data is held in accordance with their own policies. Accordingly, Innovate UK, Media Cymru and Ffilm Cymru will be data controllers for personal data submitted during the application.

Innovate UK complies with the requirements of GDPR, and is committed to upholding the data protection principles, and protecting your information. The Information Commissioner’s Office also has a useful guide for organisations, which outlines the data protection principles.

Find a project partner

If you want help to find a project partner, contact Innovate UK KTN.

Support for SMEs from Innovate UK EDGE

If you receive an award, you will be contacted about working with an innovation and growth specialist at Innovate UK EDGE. This service forms part of our funded offer to you.

These specialists focus on growing innovative businesses and ensuring that projects contribute to their growth. Working one-to-one, they can help you to identify your best strategy and harness world-class resources to grow and achieve scale.

We encourage you to engage with Innovate UK EDGE, delivered by a knowledgeable and objective specialist near you.

Next steps

If you are successful with this application, you will be asked to set up your project.

You must follow the unique link embedded in your email notification. This takes you to your Innovation Funding Service (IFS) Set Up portal, the tool that Innovate UK uses to gather necessary information before we can allow your project to begin.

You will need to provide:

  • the name and contact details of your project manager and project finance lead
  • a redacted copy of your bank details
  • a collaboration agreement, if required
  • an exploitation plan

In order for us to process your claims, you must make sure you have a valid UK bank account. It is possible that it can take several weeks for a new account to be created. We would recommend starting this process as early as possible to avoid any delays to you project start date.

The bank details you give to us must relate to a UK high street bank that is regulated by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA). The account must have a BACS clearing facility and be in the same company name as your application.

If you have any doubts that your bank account will not meet Innovate UK's funding criteria, you can use the sort code checker. If you input the sort code and find a tick next to the ‘BACS Direct Credit payments can be sent to this sort code’, this will give you an indication that the bank account you hold is acceptable.

Finance checks

We will carry out checks to make sure you are an established company with access to the funds necessary to complete the project.

You must check your IFS portal regularly and respond to any requests we have sent for additional information to avoid any delays.

Failure to complete project setup may result in your grant offer being withdrawn.

Your Grant offer letter (GOL)

Once you have successfully completed project setup, we will issue your GOL.

The GOL will be made available on your IFS portal. You will need to sign and upload this for us to approve before you can start your project. If your GOL is approved on or before the fifteenth of the month, it will be dated from the first of that month. If your GOL is approved after the fifteenth, it will be dated the first of the next month.

You must not start your project before the date stated on your GOL. Any costs incurred before your agreed start date cannot be claimed as part of your grant.

If your application is unsuccessful

If you are unsuccessful with your application this time, you can view feedback from the assessors. This will be available to you on your IFS portal following notification.

Sometimes your application will have scored well, and you will receive positive comments from the assessors. You may be unsuccessful as your average score was not above the funding threshold or your project has not been selected under the portfolio approach if this is applied for this competition.

Contact us

If you need more information about how to apply or you want to submit your application in Welsh, email support@iuk.ukri.org or call 0300 321 4357.
Our phone lines are open from 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday (excluding bank holidays).

Need help with this service? Contact us