Today, GLAAD launched glaadgrants, which provides completion funding and professional mentorships to content creators for in-progress works that advance GLAAD’s mission of amplifying diverse voices from the LGBTQ community. This comes as part of GLAAD’s goal to develop a pipeline of talented LGBTQ content creators that can move into the mainstream of Hollywood and be top of mind for the entertainment industry.

“Our vision is to support and inspire content creators to tell stories that accelerate acceptance of LGBTQ people here at home and around the world,” said GLAAD President & CEO Sarah Kate Ellis. “With a special emphasis on under-represented LGBTQ people, GLAAD’s work empowers real people to tell stories and amplify their voices, and glaadgrants is our latest initiative towards that goal.”

Those interested in applying can visit glaad.org/grants to learn about submission and application guidelines, as well as FAQs. The deadline for entries to be received is 5:00 p.m. PT, on Friday, March 24^th, 2017.

According to GLAAD’s 2016 Studio Responsibility Index, only 17.5% of all major film studio releases in 2015 included LGBTQ-identified characters, with decreased racial diversity over the preceding year. And of the 895 series regular characters expected to appear on broadcast primetime programming within the 2016-2017 season, according to GLAAD’s most recent Where We Are On TV Report, only 4.8% were counted as LGBTQ.

This brand new initiative was established to ensure that innovative and creative LGBTQ stories in entertainment media are supported with needed funding. Additionally, creators of short or long form, scripted or documentary, digital or film content will have guidance from experienced and professional mentors, all in an effort to help them share their vision.

To complement completion funding, mentorships will provide an opportunity for knowledge, experience, and support to be provided by experienced and successful media professionals promoting best practices of quality filmmaking and digital storytelling through peer-to-peer support, ultimately enhancing the quality of the grant-recipient’s production.