State of the Arts: Media Arts

As we bid 2022 goodbye and welcomed 2023, we asked National Endowment for the Arts discipline directors to reflect on the current state of their artistic field. We were curious both about the highlights of 2022 as well as upcoming challenges—and reasons to be optimistic—for 2023. Here's what NEA Media Arts Director Jax Deluca had to say.

What were you most excited about within your discipline in 2022?

At the end of last year, we co-published a landmark field briefing outlining high-level challenges and opportunities related to the U.S. infrastructure serving independent filmmakers and media artists. Produced in partnership with the Sundance Institute through our Independent Film and Media Arts Field-building Initiative, we publicly released this document at the New Orleans Film Festival during an event hosted by Indie Media Arts South, a regional collective working to strengthen the independent sector across the greater South, with a focus on equity and sustainability.

Intended as a tool to educate policymakers and decisionmakers, the briefing demonstrates how the U.S. arts infrastructure serving independent filmmakers and media artists is a valuable incubator for creative talent and a catalyst for innovation within the $192 billion U.S. film industry. The briefing is an essential resource to show how creative successes in the independent film sector lead directly to economic growth, entrepreneurship, and the global position of the American film industry as a talent pool. For example, the briefing mentions: “Ryan Coogler made Fruitvale Station as an independent film in 2013, just five years before directing Black Panther, which grossed over $1.3 billion worldwide and became the ninth-highest-grossing film of all time." Further, it gives accolades to the robust network of small and medium-sized film and media arts organizations (many, of which, are NEA grantees) collectively working “behind the scenes” to cultivate and support diverse independent voices, as well as provide opportunities for the public to experience and engage with independent storytelling as a catalyst for conversation and community empowerment.

The briefing sheds light on how this field promotes voices vital to the health of our democracy, and also gives readers a primer on real concerns facing those in the field today, such as the impact of frenzy of mergers and acquisitions, shifting business and distribution models, the gutting of the theatrical distribution market for independent films post-pandemic, and the lack of a social safety net for freelance workers and small business owners that comprise a large portion of this field.

I hope our constituents use this document to promote the contributions of the independent film and media arts field to the wider arts sector and beyond, including aspects such as strengthening communities through the power of storytelling, and leverage increased investments into regional initiatives and organizations, such as local film festivals, professional networks, youth media training programs, and artist incubator labs supporting artists and community storytellers. These initiatives affect the economy and culture of a region in ways that feed the national industry, while actively working towards a more inclusive and equitable arts ecosystem.

What are the challenges facing artists and arts organizations in your discipline as we head into 2023?

The global pandemic continues to disrupt the independent film sector, which is comprised of local, regional, and national film and media arts organizations, film festivals and independent cinemas, cultural institutions, content distributors, public broadcast entities, small production companies, artist collectives, and individual artists and arts workers. While the Independent Film and Media Field Briefing (as mentioned earlier) outlines some of these challenges, one question remains distinct:

Where do we go from here?

The film and media arts field aren’t alone in this quest. The rising costs of production, decreased in-person attendance numbers, and an overall loss of revenue are stark realities shared across the broader arts and cultural field (see recent blog post by my colleague, Brandon Gryde, NEA Director of Presenting & Multidisciplinary Works). On top of this, a heightened expectation to maintain a level of virtual engagement adds a new layer of complexity due to the increased personnel and technical costs involved, and the lack of a clear pathway toward monetizing these additional activities. Further, this expectation comes at a time when arts organizations and audiences may find themselves in less fluid economic positions than pre-pandemic times.

I look forward to more conversations with the sector as we “figure this out together” and explore ways to build awareness of the interconnected issues, systemic challenges, and opportunities facing both the independent film and media arts field and the broader arts and cultural sector. Knowledge-sharing in this way can strengthen connectivity by uniting artists and organizations across artistic disciplines toward a shared purpose: a stronger, more sustainable and equitable arts ecosystem for organizations, artists, arts workers, and audiences. This is a time of adaptation and anticipating needs of the future, and I firmly believe investing in stronger inter-disciplinary relationships could result in new partnerships and initiatives that could unlock the ‘next level’ of resilience and survival as a sector.

Who are the ones to watch (individuals or organizations) in the coming year?

Great question! There are so many organizations and individuals that come to mind, so it might be more useful to point you toward a handful of NEA resources that will instantly connect you with the names of hundreds of individuals and organizations doing phenomenal work across the United States. Here is the list of resources, and a few reasons why you should be interested:

Resource #1: Independent Film & Media Arts Field-building Initiative

• You will find resource this useful if: Your work involves improving career pathways in the arts, with a focus on the inclusion of individuals and historically underserved communities whose opportunities might be limited by geography, ethnicity, economics, or disability.
• Resource Overview: The initiative includes quarterly field meetings bringing together a knowledge-sharing network of more than 800 individuals representing artists and collectives, film and media arts organizations, film festivals, independent cinemas, cultural institutions, content distributors, broadcast entities, arts service organizations, and funders from 47 states and one U.S. territory.
• Where to find the list of organizations: A full organization list is available at as an appendix within the Independent film and Media Arts Field Briefing.

Resource #2: Tech as Art: Supporting Artists Who Use Technology as a Creative Medium

• You will find resource this useful if: You are interested—or involved—in initiatives focused on supporting artists or organizations working at the intersection of arts and digital technology. In addition, arts leaders (from any arts discipline) may find this document useful to identify potential partners, artists, technologists, or innovative initiatives that engage arts audiences with technology.
• Resource Overview: The report is the result of a two-year research initiative exploring the multifaceted creative practices of artists who engage with digital technologies. The research examines the creative infrastructure supporting tech-focused artistic practices and provides insight into the existing challenges and opportunities faced by artists and organizations working at the intersection of arts and technology.
• Where to find the list of individuals and organizations: Hundreds of artists and organizations are featured throughout the report, which is intentionally written as an introduction to this multi-faceted field of practice. In addition, the appendix includes nine artist case studies (pages 85-102) and a list of organizations mentioned as artist resources during the research phase of the field scan (pages 114-120).

Resource #3: Regional Trends in Tech as Art: Supporting Artists Who Use Technology as a Creative Medium

• You will find this resource useful if: You work in the creative sector and intend to develop initiatives that engage artists or audiences using digital technology or emerging media forms, such as augmented or virtual reality, or other interactive or immersive art forms. State, regional, and local arts agencies serving as support infrastructure for the broader arts and cultural field would also benefit from this regional report.
• Resource Overview: Sourced from seven virtual convenings bringing together 100+ artists, funders, administrators, academics, writers, educators, activists, and other community leaders, this is a summary report outlining regional challenges, existing assets, and practical steps for building digital capacity in the arts field across the nation.
• Where to find the list of individuals and organizations: The appendix includes a list of roundtable attendees, which include 100+ artists, funders, administrators, academics, writers, educators, activists, and other regional field leaders, interested to continue these conversations and build stronger interdisciplinary relationships.

Jax Deluca was appointed to the position of Media Arts Director at the National Endowment for the Arts in January 2016. In this position, she oversees the NEA’s grant portfolio and field-building resources for arts organizations across the country working in film, video, audio, immersive technology, and other emerging media forms.