Deadline: 19-Sep-2025
The Fritt Ord Foundation Grant Program provides support to projects that help promote freedom of expression, public discourse, art and culture.
Eligible Projects include: Archive studies and safeguarding archives, Commemorations, Music projects, Websites and other digital development projects, Organisational development, Educational programmes. Ineligible Projects include: The preservation of cultural artefacts, Physical buildings and infrastructure, Campaigns, activism and information materials, Information films/projects, Feature films, Fiction books, Commemorative publications, Archive and digitisation projects with no outreach component, In-house courses/skills upgrading, workshops with few participants, Closed meetings, Concerts and music recordings, Study tours and field trips, School tours and summer schools, Lobbying, Projects aimed at young children.
Types of Projects include: Events: Fritt Ord supports a number of seminars, conferences, festivals, film screenings and other types of events. Books: Fritt Ord primarily supports manuscript development. The foundation focuses on non-fiction publications, and usually rejects applications for support for novels, self-help books, handbooks, reports and publications related to specific campaigns. Fritt Ord generally does not support books in languages other than Norwegian. Media and Journalism: It is possible to apply to Fritt Ord for support inter alia for article production, journals, podcasts, radio productions, reporting excursions and TV productions. Films: It is possible to apply to Fritt Ord for funding for the development and production of documentary films. It is also possible to apply for funding for promotional activities. Fritt Ord only rarely funds fiction films. Dramatic Art: It is possible to apply to Fritt Ord for funding for script development for theatre performances and the production of theatre performances. In some cases, Fritt Ord also funds dance performances. They have no tradition for funding concerts or projects based solely on music. Photography: Fritt Ord funds photo projects, photojournalism, photo exhibitions and photo-books. Podcasts: It is possible to apply to Fritt Ord for funding for podcast productions. They give priority to documentary podcasts and current events podcasts with well-defined themes – Fritt Ord does not fund fiction podcasts.
Art Projects: It is possible to apply to Fritt Ord for funding for the production of art projects, art films, exhibitions and catalogues. Exhibitions: Fritt Ord funds exhibitions at cultural institutions, museums and other venues. International Projects and Organisations: Fritt Ord mainly funds projects in Norway (or with clear ties to Norway). In special cases, Fritt Ord may help promote freedom of expression in other countries. This funding constitutes a fairly small part of the Foundation’s total, annual allocations. They give priority to international organisations that work to promote freedom of expression, freedom of the press and journalism. Scholarships/Grants: Fritt Ord has a specific scholarship scheme for students, a grants scheme for critics and a grants scheme for political cartoonists. Libraries: Fritt Ord has an annual call for applications from libraries for earmarked funding for the promotion of literature in Norwegian public libraries. Academic Research: Fritt Ord rarely funds research projects or academic reports. On the other hand, they may be interested in funding projects intended to result in nonfiction books or journalism.
To apply for support, applicants must complete a short digital application form and provide a detailed project description, a budget and funding plan, a CV, and any other relevant documents. The project description, between two to eight pages, is the most important part of the application and should clearly outline the project’s scope. The budget must include project costs, self-financing, anticipated revenues, and other support or pending applications. CVs of all participants should be compiled in a single file, and additional attachments such as manuscript excerpts, letters of intent, or broadcasting agreements may also be submitted.
The application form also requires a brief project description, an explanation of what the support will be used for, and a timetable, each limited to 500 characters. All documents must be uploaded in PDF format, as Excel files are not accepted. Physical attachments such as published books or DVDs can be submitted, though they will not be returned unless requested at submission. The deadline for application is 19 September 2025.
For more information, visit Fritt Ord Foundation.
