Orange County to award more than $5.1 million in cultural tourism grants at ACT Awards

Unidentified Speaker 1, Announcer, said the county will distribute more than $5,100,000 in cultural tourism grants at the ACT Awards. "Tonight, over $5,100,000 will be awarded," the speaker said.

Unidentified Speaker 2, Presenter, described the ACT Awards as "an annual celebration of all of the grantees from our arts and cultural nonprofit community that are recipients of our cultural tourism grants," and said the grants support exhibitions, concerts, series and festivals. "So that's gonna support arts and cultural activities throughout this calendar year that are gonna bring tourists into Orange County," the presenter said.

According to presenters at the event, the awards are distributed through the county's Cultural Tourism Funding Program. Unidentified Speaker 1 said the total announced represents the largest dollar amount the county program has awarded to date. Unidentified Speaker 2 added that the grants are programmatic and that projects are eligible so long as they "generate tourism and bring folks into Orange County."

The presenters noted the grants will fund a range of events, including film festivals scheduled through 2026. The announcement framed the awards as part of "Orange County's strategic investment made in arts and culture." No specific grantee names, award-by-award breakdowns, or grant amounts per organization were provided in the remarks.

Organizers did not provide a timetable for when individual award notices or contracts will be finalized. The event presentation focused on the total award amount, program purpose, and eligibility criteria rather than on detailed award allocations.