Regional Arts WA
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Let’s face it – hunting for grants can sometimes feel like a full-time job in itself. Between scouring websites, tracking deadlines, and decoding eligibility criteria, it’s easy to miss out on opportunities that could fund your next big creative project.
That’s why we’ve done the heavy lifting for you, rounding up the best arts grants currently open across Australia. Whether you’re a First Nations artist looking to level up your practice, a musician ready to hit the road, or a playwright perfecting your craft, we’ve got something for everyone. So let’s find you some funding before Christmas rolls around.
1. Flourish: First Nations Fashion and Textiles Fund
Fancy $10k to $50k for a First Nations fashion or textile project? This one’s for you. Whether you’re dreaming up new designs, ramping up production, or making your brand shine online, Flourish is the grant to get onto.
Perfect for individuals, organisations, and Art Centres looking to grow, collaborate, or take things to the next level. Just pitch your cracker project proposal showing what you’ll achieve, and you could be funded for up to 12 months of creative goodness starting February 2026 or later.
It’s all about supporting economic, cultural, and social outcomes in the fashion and textile world.
Deadline: November 11th
Amount: $10,000 – $50,000
Apply: https://creative.gov.au/investments-opportunities/flourish-first-nations-fashion-and-textiles-fund
2. Young People First Nations Arts Culture Project Fund
This beauty of a grant is calling all First Nations artists and arts workers aged 18-35.
Think of it as your chance to level up your creative career, whether that’s at home or taking your talents overseas. This grant is all about skills development, career pathways, marketing chops, and building your audience.
You can snag between $10,000 and $20,000 to make your creative dreams happen.
Projects kick off from February 2026, and you’ve got a full 12 months to work your magic.
Deadline: November 11th
Amount: $10,000 – $20,000
3. Creative Futures Fund
The Creative Futures Fund invests in the creation and sharing of Australian stories through exceptional creative projects across all artforms that can clearly demonstrate ambition, audience reach and impact.
The Fund invests in projects through two streams, Development Investment and Delivery Investment.
Development Stream: $150k – $250k
Perfect for creative experimentation, prototypes, and work-in-progress showings that use Australian IP. You’ll need to show a clear pathway to future public presentation and explain how you’ll secure partnerships and funding down the track. Get your work to proof of concept stage so it’s strong enough to attract co-producers and presenters.
Delivery Stream: $250k – $1.5 million
This is the big kahuna for when you’re ready to actually present your work to audiences. Can include final development, production costs, artist fees, the works.
Timeline’s between July 2026 and July 2029.
One application per stream, and they’re pretty clear this isn’t a pipeline. Getting Development funding doesn’t guarantee Delivery funding later.
Deadline: November 11th
Amount: Up to $250k for Development and $1.5M for Delivery
Apply: https://creative.gov.au/investments-opportunities/creative-futures-fund-2025
4. Arts Business: First Nations Development Fund
Need a hand getting your creative business sorted? This fund’s got $10k to $50k up for grabs to help First Nations individuals and micro-organisations build rock-solid business foundations.
Use it for professional development, governance training, capacity building, temporary staff, marketing, seed funding, digital upgrades, or strategic planning (basically everything you need to level up your business game and set yourself up for long-term growth).
Projects start after February 12th 2025, and you’ve got 12 months to make it happen.
Deadline: November 12th
Amount: $10,000 – $50,000
Apply: https://creative.gov.au/investments-opportunities/arts-business-first-nations-development-fund
5. Yamaha Main Stage Music Fund
Calling all musos! Yamaha Music Australia is offering singers, songwriters, producers, and bands the chance to score $5,000 cash plus $5,000 worth of Yamaha gear to kickstart your journey to the main stage. There are three winners up for grabs, one band, one singer/songwriter, and one producer (each walking away with the full prize package).
To enter, simply fill in the form, upload your best upcoming track (max 30MB), and let the judges do their thing. They’ll be looking at your songwriting chops, musicianship, originality, and potential to benefit from the prize. One important heads up for bands: each member needs to use a different email address when filling out the form. Entries close November 15th, with winners announced December 12th.
Deadline: November 15th
Amount: $5,000 in cash and $5,000 worth of gear
Apply: https://au.yamaha.com/en/promotions/main_stage/index.html
6. Grounded Story Grant Program
The Grounded Story Grant Program is back for its second round, supporting early-stage First Nations storytellers to bring projects to life around the theme of Home. Six creatives will each receive $5,000 in direct funding, plus tailored mentorship, coaching workshops, and practical tools like budget templates over six months. Projects can be in any medium; writing, photography, film, visual art, or digital storytelling.
To be eligible, you need to be an early-stage Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander storyteller who’s developing your practice. You should have some past work to show your ability to deliver, though formal training isn’t required. The program runs until June 2026, so you’ll need to be available for online gatherings, mentoring sessions, and workshops throughout.
Deadline: November 25th
Amount: $5,000
Apply: https://www.commonground.org.au/article/grounded-story-grant-home
7. Regional Arts WA Quick Response Grant
Need funding fast? Our Quick Response Grant is designed for those moments when opportunity knocks and you need to answer quickly. Whether you’re an individual artist or an arts organisation responding to an urgent creative need, this grant delivers up to $3,000 for individuals or $5,000 for organisations to make it happen.
It runs every month from February through November, with applications closing at the end of each month. Projects need to kick off between 2 and 12 weeks after each round closes, so it’s perfect for those time-sensitive opportunities that can’t wait for traditional funding cycles. Just make sure you’re based in regional WA and can clearly show why your project needs to happen now. Get in touch at investment@regionalartswa.org.au if you’ve got questions.
Deadline: November 30th
Amount: $3,000 – $5,000
Apply: https://regionalartswa.org.au/funding/quick-response-grant/
8. Arts Short Notice Activity Program
Another one for time-sensitive creative opps, the Arts Short Notice Activity Program (Arts SNAP) is designed exactly for those ‘I needed funding yesterday’ moments. Whether you’re an individual artist or collaborating with a group, this grant helps WA artists and creative professionals jump on regional, national, and international opportunities that pop up at short notice.
You can score up to $5,000 for national and regional opportunities, or up to $10,000 if you’re heading overseas. Just make sure your project kicks off at least 28 days after you submit, and you’ll get a decision in about 28 days. Note that organisations can’t apply for this one, it’s strictly for individuals and groups.
Deadline: December 4th
Amount: Up to $5,000 for national/regional opportunities, up to $10,000 for international
Apply: https://www.cits.wa.gov.au/funding/creative-industries-funding/arts-short-notice-activity-program
9. Contemporary Music Fund Development Program
Got big plans for your music career? The Contemporary Music Fund Development Program is designed to help WA contemporary musicians, bands, and industry professionals grab those career-changing moments. Whether you’re eyeballing professional development, planning tours (local, national, or international), recording new material, or promoting your work, this fund can back you with up to $20,000.
The CMF is all about supporting homegrown talent to produce, promote, and build connections locally and beyond. Priority goes to contemporary music that’s currently being written, recorded, or performed, with a focus on popular music.
The fund opens twice a year, and you can apply twice per financial year (though you can only receive one grant per financial year). Before diving into your application, have a chat with a project officer to make sure you’re on the right track.
Deadline: Check the key dates calendar for current round closings
Amount: Up to $20,000
Apply: https://www.cits.wa.gov.au/department/sign-in/online-grants
10. Strengthening Rural Communities
The Strengthening Rural Communities Small & Vital stream is designed for remote, rural, and regional communities right across Australia, with two distinct funding tiers to choose from.
For grassroots projects, there’s up to $10,000 available for community-led initiatives that strengthen local people, places, and climate solutions (preference goes to communities with populations under 15,000, and you’ve got 12 months to deliver).
If you’re focusing specifically on getting adults online and digitally savvy, the larger leverage grants go up to $50,000 for projects that build digital skills, confidence, and safety, including training and connectivity infrastructure, with an 18-month delivery window.
FRRR particularly wants to see projects that support generational transition, invest in outback and less-resourced communities, build capacity for a just energy transition, or support First Nations-led initiatives that strengthen culture, country, economic participation, and reconciliation.
Applications are rolling and assessed quarterly.
Deadline: December 4th
Amount: Up to $10,000 for grassroots projects and up to $50,000 for larger leverage grants
Apply: https://frrr.org.au/funding/src-small-vital/
11. Rodney Seaborn Playwriting Support Fund
The Rodney Seaborn Playwriting Support Fund is here to help playwrights and theatre practitioners take their craft to the next level. Whether you’re looking to publish a book on playwriting, undertake a course or mentorship, organise workshops and master-classes, set up a website, or explore dramaturgy and other ancillary aspects of the craft, this fund has you covered.
The fund sits alongside the Rodney Seaborn Playwrights Award and is designed to advance knowledge and appreciation of playwriting as an art form. Applications can come from individuals or non-profit arts organisations, and funding is delivered in two stages based on progress reports. Successful applicants will be notified in February 2026.
Deadline: December 4, 2025
Amount: Up to $5,000
Apply: Download the application form and guidelines
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