2026 CAC Individual Artist Fellowships FAQs
ABOUT THE PROGRAM
Q: What is the California Arts Council Individual Artist Fellowship (CAC IAF)?
A: The Individual Artist Fellowship program provides unrestricted funding to artists and culture bearers to support their creative practice. Awards are determined through a panel review process and administered locally in Los Angeles County by Los Angeles Performance Practice (LAPP) and funded by the California Arts Council (CAC).
Q: How do you define an artist?
A: “Artists” for this opportunity are defined as self-identified artists, culture bearers, creative workers, and culture makers working in any artistic discipline including but not limited to visual, performing, literary, and media arts. This definition aligns with the language used by the California Arts Council.
Q: What does it mean that Los Angeles Performance Practice is the administering organization?
A: The California Arts Council funds this program statewide. Los Angeles Performance Practice manages the Individual Artist Fellowship program locally for Los Angeles County including outreach, application administration, panel coordination, and award distribution. We also provide professional development and social opportunities for fellows throughout the one-year fellowship period. External reviewers independently review and score applications. Artists who have worked with us in the past receive no preferential treatment in the review process.
Q: Is this a first-come, first-served award?
A: No. All applications submitted by June 6, 2026 at 11:59 PM PT will be reviewed equally. There is no advantage to submitting early.
Q: What is the fellowship period?
A: The fellowship period runs for 12 months, from September 1, 2026 through August 31, 2027.
Q: What support will I receive as a fellow, and are there any requirements?
A: Fellows receive an unrestricted financial award, along with access to optional opportunities for connection and professional development, such as gatherings, workshops, or peer exchange. Fellows are expected to accept and sign the fellowship agreement and fill out a survey at the end of their fellowship.
Q: Is the fellowship tied to a specific project?
A: No. This fellowship is not project-based. You are applying as an individual artist, and the panel will review your overall creative practice and impact.
ELIGIBILITY
Q: I belong to an ensemble or a collective. Can we jointly apply as a group?
A: No. Applications must be submitted by an individual artist, as designed by the California Arts Council. However, your work may be collaborative or collective in nature.
Q: Do I need to live in Los Angeles?
A: Yes. You must reside in Los Angeles County.
Q: Does my work have to be based in Los Angeles?
A: Not exclusively. Your work can take place within or outside of Los Angeles County, but you should demonstrate impact within the community you serve locally, regionally, and/or statewide.
CHOOSING A TIER
Q: How do I know which tier to apply to?
A: We encourage you to review the descriptions of each tier carefully and select the one you most identify with. You can also look at the additional questions required for Established and Legacy applicants and consider which you are best positioned to answer. All application questions are listed in our guidelines. Browsing last cycle’s fellows in the catalog on our website can also help you get a sense of each tier in practice.
Q: Are the tiers of funding dictated by the age of the recipient?
A: No. Tiers reflects where the artist or cultural practitioner is in the various stages of their artistic practice, not their age or fixed number of years in the field. We encourage each applicant to review the tier descriptions thoroughly and determine which best represents their own unique practice at the time of submission.
Q: Can I apply to more than one tier?
A: No. You may only apply to one tier.
THE APPLICATION
Q: Where do I apply?
A: Applications are submitted via WizeHive by Submittable. The link is available at performancepractice.la/cac-iaf. We strongly recommend using a laptop or desktop, not a mobile device or a tablet. The link will take you to a preview of the application. Click the green “Apply” button in the top right corner to begin your application.
Q: Can I preview the application questions before starting?
A: Yes. The full list of application questions is included in the guidelines, which are available on our website. You can review all questions before creating your account and beginning your application.
Q: Can I save my application and come back to it?
A: Yes. You can return and edit your application before submitting.
Q: Can I edit my application after submitting it?
A: No.
Q: Can I submit my application in a language other than English?
A: We are providing translated guidelines to support access. We cannot guarantee that the reviewers assigned to your application will be fluent in any language other than English, so we recommend submitting your final application in English.
Q: What makes a strong work sample?
A: Strong work samples demonstrate your artistic practice in action. We recommend selecting work that reflects your artistic voice, aligns with what you describe in your narrative responses, and allows panelists to meaningfully experience your work.
Q: Should I upload files or include links for work samples?
Both options will be available. It is generally recommended to upload files directly to ensure panelists can easily review your work. If providing a link, please ensure it remains active for the duration of the review period, through August 2026. Do not include a link that must be downloaded in order to view.
Q: Can I submit work samples in different formats?
A: Yes. We recognize that many artists work across disciplines, and we encourage you to submit work samples that best reflect your artistic practice.You may submit up to two work samples in different formats, for example, 10 images and a writing sample of up to 10 pages, or two video clips with a combined length of up to 5 minutes. Each sample must meet the requirements for its specific format category.
Q: What do you mean by promotional video? Can I upload a reel?
A: We define a promotional video as content explicitly geared toward marketing and sales that does not allow panelists to experience the artist’s work. When evaluating work samples, panelists are looking for examples of how your work makes use of time and space, especially if you work in the performing arts or time-based media. Highly edited reels may limit panelists’ ability to review your work as it might be experienced in real time. All media combined must not exceed 5 minutes, and we recommend each individual clip be at least 1 minute in duration.
Q: Is there a place to provide context for my work samples?
A: Yes. There is a field in the application where you can provide a brief description or context for each work sample. Consider using the space to help the panel to better understand what they are taking in, why you chose it, and how it connects to your practice.
Q: Are the word counts for application questions strict limits?
A: No. The word counts are recommendations, not strict limits. They are intended to help keep applications clear, focused, and accessible for panelists to review. Longer responses are not given additional weight. We encourage you to be concise and intentional.
Q: Is there a preference between written responses versus audio recordings?
A: No. There is no preference. Written and audio responses are held to the same criteria. One format is not advantaged over the other. We encourage you to choose the format that allows you to communicate your ideas most clearly and authentically.
Q: What should I include in my artist CV or resume?
A: Your resume should reflect your artistic work and experience. This may include exhibitions, performances, publications, collaborations, residencies, professional experiences, community engagement, and other relevant activities. You may include collaborative work. It does not need to be exhaustive. It is a way to represent your practice and trajectory as an artist. Please do not include student work that was solely conducted in a pedagogical context.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Q: How do I articulate how my work has impacted my community?
A: We encourage you to describe how your work engages with and impacts the communities you are in relationship with. Impact can take many forms and does not look the same for every artist. As you respond to the application questions, you can also reference the review criteria, which notes that impact could encompass race, diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. A resource you may want to consider is the Continuum of Impact guide created by Animating Democracy, which can help you frame social impact through creative work.
Q: Does the community I create my work for and/or with have to be based in Los Angeles?
A: No. Your community does not have to be based solely in Los Angeles. However, you, as the applicant, must reside in Los Angeles County. You will be asked to describe the positive social impact your work has had locally, regionally, and/or statewide.
THE REVIEW PROCESS
Q: Who is on the panel?
A: Panelists are fellow artists, arts leaders, culture bearers, and community members with arts and culture knowledge, a combination of local Los Angeles County residents and national cultural workers. An open form is currently available for anyone interested in serving as a panelist. Last cycle’s panelists are also listed on our website.
Q: How does the review process work?
A: First, our program staff conducts an internal eligibility review. Eligible applications are then shared with multiple panelists for independent scoring. Each application is reviewed by multiple panelists, who score based on the three review criteria: Creative Vision, Aesthetic Excellence, and Community Engagement and Social Impact. Final awards take into account equitable distribution across disciplines, geography, and communities served within Los Angeles County. The number of awards per tier is determined by the number of applications submitted in each tier.
Q: Does Los Angeles Performance Practice staff influence award decisions?
A: Our program team determines the number of fellowships to award in each tier, based on the number of applications submitted. Our team also oversees equitable distribution across disciplines, geographies, and communities served. We work with external program supervisors with national grantmaking experience to oversee this process. No members of our team serve as panelists. And all external panelists submit all scores independently.
Q: What is being done to ensure the review process is fair and equitable?
A: We hold panelist training sessions, define and provide instructions for conflicts of interest, and include training on the Attributes of Excellence in Arts for Change, a widely used framework for recognizing bias when reviewing artwork across disciplines. Panelists are also provided with implicit bias training as part of their onboarding. No demographic data is visible to panelists during the review cycle.
Q: Are applicants who have worked with Los Angeles Performance Practice in the past given any preferential treatment or advantages?
A: No. Artists who have worked with us in the past receive no preferential treatment in this review process.
Q: Does applying to the Individual Artist Fellowships program increase my chances at other Los Angeles Performance Practice programming?
A: No. Applications to this program are reviewed independently and are not considered in relation to any other organizational programs or opportunities.
Q: How many panelists review each application?
A: Every application will be reviewed by at least two panelists. The total number of panelists depends on the volume of applications received.
Q: Are panelists matched to my discipline?
A: Because many artists select multiple disciplines in the application process, we will invite participation from a wide and diverse range of panelists, and will provide review training to those panelists. Applications are assigned at random to the panelist pool.
INFORMATION SESSIONS + SUPPORT
Q: Will the online information sessions be recorded?
A: Yes. Recordings of the online information sessions will be made available on our website after each session.
Q: Will office hours be recorded?
A: No. Office hours will not be recorded.
Q: Can I get one-on-one application assistance?
A: We are not offering individual one-on-one sessions, but you are welcome to email questions to [email protected].