Netflix, IICT Announce Scholarships for 100 Students Across India’s AVGC-XR Sector

The Indian Institute of Creative Technologies (IICT) and Netflix have announced scholarships for 100 students, offering up to 80% financial support across six professional programmes aimed at strengthening India’s next generation of storytellers and creative-technology talent.

The initiative follows Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s August 5 meeting with Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos, after which the Netflix India Storytelling Initiative was launched to strengthen India’s creative talent pipeline and equip emerging professionals with industry-relevant skills across the Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming and Comics (AVGC) ecosystem. The sector is being positioned as an important driver of India’s “Orange Economy.”

The scholarships cover two one-year diplomas in Interactive Comics & Sequential Arts and Visual Effects Mastery, along with four six-month certificates in Virtual Art Department Content Creation, Media Tech Workflow, Art of Character Animation, and E-Sports & Gaming Management. The opportunity is open to students and working professionals across India, with the scholarship portal indicating support ranging from 50% to 80% of applicable programme fees. Applications are open until September 30, 2026.

Netflix has also contributed to the curriculum for IICT’s Visual Effects Mastery and Media Technology Workflows programmes, aligning training with contemporary production workflows and global industry standards. The scholarship builds on the 2025 IICT-FICCI-Netflix partnership, which introduced curriculum development, workshops, masterclasses and industry mentorship for AVGC-XR students.

The move comes amid a wider national push to develop creative-technology skills. In 2026, the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting and IICT, in partnership with Google and YouTube, launched a separate initiative offering 15,000 AI-skilling scholarships for media, entertainment, animation, gaming and digital storytelling.

IICT, established by the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting with the Government of Maharashtra, FICCI and CII, is India’s national centre of excellence for AVGC-XR. It currently operates from the NFDC Complex, Pedder Road, Mumbai, while its permanent 10-acre campus at Film City, Goregaon, is under development.