Sadler’s Wells Opens £6,000 Short Film Commissions and Dance Digital 2027 Submissions

Sadler’s Wells Digital Stage is offering three international dance-film commissions worth £6,000 each, while also opening global submissions for its 2027 Dance Digital film festival.

Sadler’s Wells has launched two new opportunities for filmmakers and dance artists working across dance and moving image, including three funded short-film commissions and an international call for films for Dance Digital 2027.

The London dance organisation’s Digital Stage programme is offering three £6,000 commissions under the theme The Future Remembers.

Applications for the commissions are open internationally and close on 22 November 2026.

Separately, filmmakers from around the world can now submit completed work for Dance Digital 2027, with an early deadline of 6 December 2026 and a final deadline of 10 January 2027.

For short filmmakers whose work incorporates choreography, movement, performance or dance documentary, the two calls provide different routes into the programme: one funds the creation of new films, while the other is designed for completed work seeking festival exhibition.

Three filmmakers will receive £6,000 commissions

The Future Remembers programme will commission three new short dance films responding to ideas around memory, legacy, responsibility and the future.

Each selected project receives a £6,000 commission, together with production support from Sadler’s Wells.

The call is open to dance artists aged 18 or over, including applicants based outside the UK.

Artists may apply individually, as a group or through a company. The £6,000 fee remains the same regardless of the number of collaborators involved.

Filming can take place anywhere in the world.

Applicants do not necessarily need an established filmmaker attached when they apply. Sadler’s Wells says its producer can help selected artists develop their ideas and source creative collaborators, while its in-house filmmaker may also provide editing support depending on availability.

Artists who already work with a filmmaker or production team can propose those collaborators in their application.

However, external filmmaking, equipment and other production costs must be covered within the £6,000 commission.

Films should be designed specifically for the screen

The commissioned projects are intended as Dance on Screen films with a maximum runtime of approximately four minutes.

Rather than simply documenting a stage performance, Sadler’s Wells describes Dance on Screen as work created specifically to be experienced through film.

The three new films will respond to the Future Remembers theme, which asks artists to consider how the future might look back on the choices, environments and cultural legacies being created today.

Applications require information about the artist’s existing creative work and an outline of the proposed film idea.

Shortlisted artists are expected to be interviewed in December 2026, with the successful projects beginning development in January 2027.

The finished films are scheduled to premiere as part of Dance Digital 2027 in November 2027.

Dance Digital 2027 is also accepting completed films

Filmmakers who already have completed dance-related films can instead submit directly to Dance Digital.

The festival is accepting entries internationally across several categories.

For short filmmakers, the most relevant are:

• Short Dance on Screen — maximum 25 minutes
• Short Documentary / Behind the Scenes — maximum 25 minutes
• Films by Young People — lead artists aged 21 or under
• Made for Social Media — maximum three minutes

Feature-length dance films over 25 minutes are also accepted.

The Made for Social Media category follows a separate submission process through Instagram or TikTok, with filmmakers required to tag Sadler’s Wells and use the festival’s designated hashtag before emailing the public video link to the Digital Stage team.

The deadline for that category is also 10 January 2027.

Selected shorts can receive awards and digital distribution

Films selected for Dance Digital will screen during the festival in November 2027.

All selected work will also be considered for awards including:

• Best Dance on Screen Film
• Best Documentary / Behind-the-Scenes Film
• Best Film by Young Artists
• Best Film Made for Social Media
• Best Cinematography
• Best Choreography
• Best Score

A selection of films will additionally receive a limited-time release through the Sadler’s Wells Digital Stage platform after the festival.

Filmmakers submitting through the main festival call are expected to be notified by the end of April 2027, ahead of the full programme announcement.

Films previously submitted to Dance Digital 2026 cannot be resubmitted unchanged for the 2027 edition.

The first Dance Digital attracted entries from 55 countries

The expanded 2027 call follows the inaugural Dance Digital festival held earlier this year.

According to Sadler’s Wells, the first edition received 415 submissions from 55 countries, including work from Senegal, Syria and Peru.

Forty-five films ultimately screened in the festival programme.

The event combined conventional screenings with documentaries, work created for social media, networking, mentoring and immersive VR and XR projects.

Several films previously commissioned through Sadler’s Wells Digital Stage have also gone on to receive recognition elsewhere.

Emma Farnell-Watson and Kieran Lai’s Aṁṁonia and Mythili Prakash’s Mollika, produced through an earlier commission programme, were nominated for Best Short Film at the National Dance Awards and later screened at international dance-film events.

Laura Steiner’s Más Glow, created through the subsequent The Floor Is Yours commissions, was selected for the San Francisco Dance Film Festival.

Which opportunity should filmmakers apply for?

The distinction between the two calls is important.

Filmmakers and dance artists who want support to create a new short film should consider The Future Remembers commission, where three projects will receive £6,000 each.

Filmmakers who already have a completed dance film or documentary should instead look at the Dance Digital 2027 festival submission.

The key dates are:

• £6,000 short-film commission deadline: 22 November 2026
• Dance Digital early deadline: 6 December 2026
• Dance Digital final deadline: 10 January 2027
• Successful commission projects begin: January 2027
• Festival selection notifications: By the end of April 2027
• Dance Digital festival: November 2027

Filmmakers looking for other current production-support opportunities can also explore Indie Shorts Mag’s coverage of the Shore Scripts Short Film Fund, which offers funding for both new productions and shorts already in post-production.

For filmmakers working where cinema, choreography and performance intersect, Sadler’s Wells offers an unusually practical combination: direct production funding for new projects alongside an international festival route for completed work.

Before applying, artists should decide whether they are seeking production support or festival exhibition and then review the requirements for the relevant programme in full.