ArdorComm Media News Network
August 26, 2026
The Indian Institute of Creative Technologies (IICT) and Netflix have announced scholarships for 100 students and working professionals across India, covering up to 80% of course fees for six programmes in animation, visual effects, gaming and comics.
The initiative is part of the Netflix India Storytelling Initiative, launched earlier this month after Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos met Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his India visit. The programme seeks to strengthen India’s creative talent pipeline by providing industry-oriented training across the Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming and Comics (AVGC) ecosystem.
The scholarships will cover two one-year diploma programmes — Interactive Comics & Sequential Arts and Visual Effects Mastery — along with four six-month certificate courses in Virtual Art Department Content Creation, Media Tech Workflow, Art of Character Animation, and E-Sports & Gaming Management.
Supported by the Netflix Fund for Creative Equity, the scholarships are available to both students and working professionals from across the country.
Netflix is also involved in shaping the academic content of the programmes. The company has contributed to the curriculum for IICT’s Visual Effects Mastery and Media Tech Workflow courses, with an emphasis on current industry workflows, technologies and professional practices.
The partnership is aimed at strengthening the connection between India’s expanding creative talent pool and the evolving requirements of the global AVGC-XR industry.
Chanchal Kumar, Secretary, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting and Chairman of the IICT Board, said the collaboration would bring industry expertise into academic training and help prepare professionals for the changing global creative sector.
Monika Shergill, Vice President, Content, Netflix India, said the initiative would provide aspiring storytellers with access to specialised training in animation, visual effects, gaming and comics, while exposing them to industry expertise.
Dr Vishwas Deoskar, CEO of IICT, said the partnership would help incorporate industry perspectives into curriculum development, professional workflows and the skills expected from students.
The initiative has also received support from the broader AVGC-XR industry. Munjal Shroff, Chairman of the FICCI AVGC-XR Forum and Co-Founder and COO of Graphiti Studios, said industry-linked talent development would be important for India’s ambitions in the AVGC-XR sector.
IICT is India’s national centre of excellence for the AVGC-XR sector and was established by the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting in collaboration with the Government of Maharashtra, FICCI and CII. The institute currently operates from the NFDC Complex on Pedder Road in Mumbai, while its permanent 10-acre campus is being developed at Film City, Goregaon.
The 100 scholarships across six specialised programmes are intended to combine financial support with practical, industry-focused education, creating new opportunities for talent entering India’s animation, VFX, gaming, comics and emerging creative technology sectors.