Stimuleringsfonds

In January 2026, we processed applications that could not be submitted in time at the end of 2025 for the Creative Industries Kick-start Grant Scheme – Design and the Creative Industries Kick-start Grant Scheme – Digital Culture. A technical problem in the application system on the first day of both subsidy periods meant that we could not guarantee a level playing field.

19 March 2026

A total of 66 projects were submitted to the advisory committee, of which 29 could be supported. These are small-scale projects, experiments and preliminary studies with a grant contribution of up to € 10,000. Grants specialist Carlijn Limburg reflects on the selection.

general

Within the field of design we see a wide range of disciplines this round, with a notable representation of textile design, graphic design and product design. Many projects focus on materials research, with speculative design being a recurring approach. Themes such as circularity, ecological engagement and healthcare and welfare recur regularly, with the latter sometimes involving a personal motive. In addition, several projects call attention to communities and identities that are less visible.

The themes within digital culture are also diverse. The projects span live performance, speculative fiction, ‘serious games’, media preservation and art-science. AI is a recurring theme, but it is deployed in very different ways. Social criticism plays a major role, with projects questioning digital capitalism and the ethics of new technologies.

selection

Some notable projects include:

Depicting Dark Waters – Alice Baker
With Depicting Dark Waters, Alice Baker depicts various species of European cold-water corals in glass. The project is a continuation of her graduation project with small glass models. Now she wants to portray a more complete ecosystem. The aim is to make coral visible and to raise awareness about local deep-sea ecosystems. The start-up phase focuses on collaborative research with marine biologists and experimentation with glass techniques, as a basis for future larger works.

Invisible Seams – Boris Kollar
Invisible Seams is an experiment by Boris Kollar that explores how fashion can be made accessible through sound rather than sight. The project was inspired by his own experience of progressive vision loss. Via fashion sonics, storytelling, sound recordings and sound design, Kollar aims to create an audio work that lets people with visual impairments experience fashion. The end result is a playful documentation that explores fashion beyond the visual, but is also interesting for a sighted audience.

Is Anyone Waiting for Me – Samone
The project Is Anyone Waiting for Me by Samone (Sam Yazdanpanna) explores the shared history of Afro-Iranian and Afro-Caribbean communities. The project focuses on themes such as migration, slavery, colonialism and resilience. By means of a digital graphic novel, dance, music and an interactive website, the stories of these communities are interwoven with mythological elements. In this way, Sam Yazdanpanna aims to create new connections between these cultures.

Butterfly_Parable – Stef Veldhuis
Butterfly_Parable by Stef Veldhuis is a research project about the biocomputers that use human brain cells in computer systems. Veldhuis investigates how neurons can control digital simulations via this kind of biocomputer. For this purpose, Veldhuis is developing a ‘dream virus’: a code that gradually transforms brain cells’ data into fragments of the Babylonian lullaby, the oldest lullaby in the world. The project is working towards an audiovisual work that generates a digital tranquillity and explores the boundary between technology and biology.

numbers

On the opening day of the third subsidy period of the 2025 Kick-start Grant Scheme, a technical problem prevented 106 applicants within design and digital culture from submitting their applications on time. As this led to an uneven playing field, the decision was taken to nevertheless consider these applications in this round.

After a check on the formal criteria, a total of 66 applications were submitted to the advisory committee (47 in design and 19 in digital culture). The committee gave 29 projects a positive assessment (19 in design and 10 in digital culture). With the available budget (€ 474,000), all of these 29 projects could be awarded grants. The round has resulted in an underspend totalling € 203,947. This amount will be added to the Creative Industries Festivals Grant Scheme.

follow-up

No new rounds of the Creative Industries Kick-start Grant Scheme will open in 2026 for the fields of design and digital culture (read more about this adjustment in this post). The budget that the Fund had earmarked for these fields in the Kick-start Grant Scheme will be partly added to the Design and Digital Culture rounds. With a larger budget, more projects can be supported within those rounds. The Design Grant Scheme is open again from 12 August to 18 August 2026, and the Digital Culture Grant Scheme from 12 August to 19 August 2026.

You can submit your grant application from 15:00 CE(S)T on the opening date of the subsidy period, and until 16:00 CE(S)T on the closing date.

Header image: Inverting the Skies Around You – Ellis Holman