Serious about being an Artist?

Learn about available resources, funding opportunities, and your rights as an artist.

Film Permits

Resources that support permitting in the mid-atlantic region. Follow links here to learn how to shoot legal for your upcoming project and not risk shut down or arrest. Share with your friends and family before planning your shoot to avoid interruption by police.

  • The Maryland Film Office is an arm of the Maryland Department of Commerce, their mission is to attract productions to film on-location in the state of Maryland, as well as support the State's local film community. Their goal is to make filming in Maryland as easy as possible.

    Maryland Film Office

  • The mission of the Office of Cable Television, Film, Music, and Entertainment (OCTFME) is to produce and broadcast programming for the District of Columbia’s public, educational, and government access (PEG) cable channels and digital radio station; regulate the District of Columbia’s cable television service providers; provide customer service for cable subscribers; and support a sustainable creative economy and labor market the District of Columbia.

    DC Film Office

Clubs & Unions

Learn more about how to grow your business by joining memberships, attending workshops and earning certifications that assist in getting the big jobs. Learn how to price your business according to the industry professional standards.

  • SAG-AFTRA represents approximately 160,000 performers and media professionals across 25 locals in the United States who work in film and digital motion pictures, television programs, commercials, video games, corporate/educational and non-broadcast productions, new media, television and radio news outlets, as well as major label recording artists.

    https://www.sagaftra.org/membership-benefits

  • Professional Photographers of America (PPA) is the world’s largest nonprofit photography association organized for professional photographers, by professional photographers, with 34,000 creative members in more than 50 countries.

    https://www.ppa.com/about

  • ASCAP is a professional organization of 875,000 songwriters, composers and music publishers, founded and governed by its members, and the world leader in performance royalties, advocacy and service for music creators.

    https://www.ascap.com/

Government Paper

Governments fund millions of artists each year and urban media artists often are left out of the loop. Organizations listed here fund artists through their mission and support the advancement of arts in their respective jurisdictions.

  • Search artwork for sale, artists for hire, Arts & Entertainment Districts to explore, galleries, theaters, and more in this one-stop directory of everything arts in Maryland.

    https://msac.org/

  • The DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities (CAH) is an independent agency in the District of Columbia government that evaluates and initiates action on matters relating to the arts and humanities and encourages programs and the development of programs that promote progress in the arts and humanities. As the designated state arts agency for the District of Columbia, CAH is supported primarily through District government funds and in part by the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency.

    https://dcarts.dc.gov/

  • The Virginia Commission for the Arts is the state agency dedicated to investing in the arts for the Commonwealth of Virginia. For more than 55 years – since its establishment in 1968 – the VCA has uniquely elevated Virginia’s arts organizations, inspired communities across the state, and lifted artists of all disciplines through funding and additional resources.

    https://vca.virginia.gov/