Upcoming Funding Deadlines:

• October 30: Final call for submissions to Ford Foundation’s JustFilms documentary funding program! JustFilms supports feature-length documentary films that investigate critical social justice issues central to the Ford Foundation’s priorities, intersectional representation, innovation in storytelling, and production viability & independence. Submit here. 

• October 31: The Kodak x First Flights Short Film Fund allows emerging talent worldwide to test their ideas before embarking on a feature film. Grants of up to $10,000 are available towards the production costs of all scripted genres and documentary short film content. Two winners will receive rolls of Kodak 16mm film stock, and one filmmaker will receive a comprehensive $10,000 post-production package from Periscope. Apply here.

• October 31: The Mycoskie-UC Berkeley Psychedelic Documentary Fellowship aims to empower a new generation of filmmakers exploring the burgeoning field of psychedelics. They are offering three distinct types of grants: research and development grants (up to $10,000), production and post-production grants (up to $20,000 to support the production or post-production of a feature-length documentary), and student grants (up to $5,000 for the production of a short form documentary). Read more here.

• November 3: The Sundance Merata Mita Fellowship honors Māori filmmaker Merata Mita’s legacy by supporting Indigenous women directors globally. Fellows receive a cash grant, travel to the Sundance Film Festival, and access to Sundance Institute’s creative resources and mentorship. The Fellowship is open to U.S.-based and international filmmakers who identify as women and are working on a feature film. Learn more. 

• November 7: The A.I.R. Fellowship program annually awards six emerging women and non-binary visual artists in NYC with a fully-funded 12-month fellowship. Fellows receive professional development workshops, mentorship toward their first solo exhibition in NYC, and a $3,000 stipend. Eligible applicants are women or non-binary artists based in NYC who have not had a solo show in the last decade. Apply here.

• November 17: The Pillars Artist Fellowship, sponsored by Netflix, is back for its third cycle to support 10 bold, visionary screenwriters and directors in the U.S. and U.K. who are amplifying Muslim stories and shaping the future of film and television through authentic, community-rooted storytelling. Fellows will receive a $40,000 unrestricted award, mentorship from industry experts, and all-inclusive learning retreats in NYC, London, and LA. Submit here. 

• November 19: The National Geographic Society is looking for innovative education projects that empower learners to care for and protect our planet. The Future of Learning Request for Proposals is open to educators, researchers, and community innovators working at the intersection between science and storytelling. Grants up to $20,000 are available for emerging leaders and up to $100,000 for more advanced projects. Apply here. 

• November 20: Rough Edges has opened applications for their Subtext Artistic Research Fellowships, exploring Gender and the Documentary. The Fellowships are open to women, trans, and queer researchers and practitioners. They especially encourage voices belonging to marginalized groups. Four fellowships will be awarded with Rs 75,000 each alongside mentorship from Rough Edges. Learn more.

• November 20: The BFI UK Global Screen Fund is a multifaceted fund designed to boost international development, production, distribution, and promotion of UK screen content. There are three funding tracks: International Co-production, International Distribution, and Business Development, with co-production grants of up to £300,000 available for selected projects. Submit here.

• November 30: From the Heart Productions is offering the annual Carole Dorothy Joyce Grant to support student filmmakers. The grant is open to high school and university students globally, for short or feature documentaries with budgets under $50,000 that positively impact society. The winning project will receive a $3,000 grant, as well as mentorship, production services, and discounts on a variety of equipment and services. Apply here.

• December 11: Hot Docs’ Slaight Family Fund is a documentary film fund dedicated to documentaries that demonstrate Canadian music’s role in the world. The Fund also welcomes international music stories told through the lens of Canadian filmmakers. 3-5 projects will be selected per year and supported with production grants ranging from $15,000 to $60,000 CAD. Learn more about this opportunity here.

• December 19: Akademie Schloss Solitude is accepting applications for its residential fellowships for the 2026–2028 cycle. International artists, researchers, and cultural professionals from all disciplines can apply for a six- or nine-month fellowship. The program is open to individuals with two to ten years of independent practice after completing their training, regardless of age. Fellows will receive a monthly stipend of €1,300, a 6- or 9-month residency in Stuttgart with a furnished live/work studio, and covered travel expenditures. Submit here.

• December 21: Look Aside Films has opened its Short Film Fund to support emerging voices in the industry. The Fund is open to projects of all genres from filmmakers across all degrees of experience or past work. The winning short film will receive a £5000 cash grant, and ten shortlisted films will receive support from Look Aside and their industry partners. Learn more here.

• January 15, 2026: TorinoFilmLab’s Audience Design Fund 2026 supports feature-length international co-productions at the distribution stage with both funding and strategy coaching. Two projects will be awarded grants of €45,000 each, as well as consulting with audience engagement experts to design innovative outreach plans for their film release. Apply here. 

• January 16, 2026: The LEF Moving Image Fund offers support to New England documentary filmmakers. New England-based directors or producers can apply for up to $15,000 in production funding or $25,000 in post-production funding for feature-length documentaries. Early development and preproduction phases are also supported through separate cycles, with available grants of $2,500 and $5,000 respectively. Learn more here.

• January 30, 2026: The Whickers Film & TV Funding Award is accepting proposals for its 2026 round. Open to emerging documentary filmmakers worldwide, the award offers a main production grant of £100,000 to the winner and £20,000 to the runner-up. Shortlisted finalists will pitch their projects at Sheffield DocFest in June 2026. Apply here. 

• Rolling: The Pulitzer Center provides grants to cover the hard costs of reporting projects. Grants are open to all journalists: writers, photographers, radio producers, and filmmakers; staff journalists as well as freelancers. Deadline is rolling, find out more here.

• Rolling: All Facts co-founder and documentarian Adam Bhala Lough is launching a new documentary development grant inspired by the #stayinla movement. The STAY IN LA Grant is designed to give local documentary filmmakers the boost they need to get their projects off the ground & help bring vital local stories to life in LA. Read more. 

• Rolling: The Sustainability Prize, launched by Creo and Sony, offers filmmakers passionate about communicating key themes linked to the Sustainable Development Goals with $5,000, Sony digital imaging equipment, and promotion across Sony’s channels. The work of the winners will also get the chance to be honored at a showcase hosted by the United Nations Foundation and Sony Pictures. Apply here. 

• Rolling: The Undocumented Filmmakers Collective is providing an unrestricted grant for UFC members. The grant can be used for any production costs, festival fees, or even some much needed self care! Applications are open and rolling for the rest of 2025. Submit here. 

• Rolling: The BFI Doc Society Fund supports and nurtures independent non-fiction films and immersive projects by UK filmmakers: prioritising expansive, director-led storytelling. They offer both a shorts fund and a features fund. The Fund offers support of up to €150,000 for feature documentaries and immersive non-fiction projects. Apply here.

• Rolling: The Adobe Creative Residency Community Fund provides support to creators during times of extraordinary hardship, empowering creators of all backgrounds to have access to the tools and inspiration they need. The Community Fund aims to respond to global events that directly impact the wellbeing of creators. Adobe is currently focusing their Community Fund efforts on providing support to creators who have been directly impacted by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Learn more. 

• Rolling: Panavision’s New Filmmaker Grant Program offers grants for camera equipment and post-production services. The equipment grant provides use of Panavision digital or film camera packages, while the post-production grant works with Light Iron to provide new filmmakers with access to final color and finishing services. Only available in the US. Apply here. 

• Rolling: The British Council Travel Grant Fund is helping filmmakers bring their work to the global stage. Whether your short or feature is screening at an eligible festival, lab, or co-production forum, you may qualify for support. Learn more here.

• Rolling: International Women’s Media Foundation has launched the 2025 Ukraine Reporting Grant. This program supports journalists from local and regional outlets in the U.S., France, and Germany in producing in-depth projects or underreported stories from Ukraine that will resonate with their respective home communities. The IWMF will approve fifteen to twenty reporting grants (average size of $8,000). Apply here.

Workshops, Labs, and Pitches:

• Fall 2025: DCTV’s Fall Workshop Lineup is packed with everything you need to take your creative skills to the next level! Participants will learn hands-on from industry experts in an accessible, supportive environment. Workshops include: DaVinci Resolve, Non-Fiction Scriptwriting, AI Filmmaking, Documentary Budgeting, and many more! Learn more.

• November 1: Cine Qua Non Lab’s 2026 Storylines Lab is now open for applications! The Lab provides an opportunity for independent filmmakers from around the world to work intensively on the creative development of their projects in an environment designed to foster professional collaboration and offer high-quality support for project development. Apply here.

• November 3: In honor of social justice leader Michael Latt, Sundance Collab is holding a 2026 Cultural Impact Residency. The residency supports early-career, underrepresented storytellers whose work is rooted in creative, cultural, and social impact. Up to eight fellows will be selected across three tracks: screenwriting/TV writing, writer/directing, and documentary filmmaking. Read more.

• November 7: The Gotham Film & Media Institute is seeking emerging U.S. producers for the 2026 Rotterdam Lab Fellowship. Two selected fellows will attend the Rotterdam Lab, a five-day workshop during International Film Festival Rotterdam’s CineMart (Jan 30 – Feb 4, 2026) designed to build producers’ international networks and industry experience through panels and speed meetings. Apply here. 

• November 9: Submissions are open for the 2026 Big Sky Pitch! Big Sky’s headline event of the DocShop Filmmaker’s Forum, the Big Sky Pitch is held during the Big Sky Documentary Film Festival and invites up to ten film teams the chance to pitch their feature length documentary works-in-progress to a panel of top commissioning editors and funders of documentary film. Learn more.

• November 17: The Deutsche Welle (DW) Journalism Traineeship is recruiting for its 18-month international journalism training program based in Germany. Twelve aspiring journalists from around the world (German and English knowledge is mandatory) will be selected for this paid traineeship, which combines rigorous seminars with practical rotations in DW’s newsrooms and an assignment at one of DW’s international bureaus. The program runs from January 2027 through June 2028, and trainees will earn a monthly salary. Apply here.

• November 26: The call for applications is now open for the EuroDoc26 Cohort program. EuroDoc is an intensive training program and global network for mid-career producers in creative documentary filmmaking. The flagship workshop runs March-October, and they consider all forms of creative documentary: features, series, essay, animation, archival, and more. Submit here.

• December 1: Ready to turn your factual project into reality? Documentary Campus is calling for excellent projects from emerging filmmakers and digital creators working in documentary and factual storytelling for their training program, Masterschool. Develop your project in high quality workshops alongside key markets and festivals across Europe, and pitch on a world stage to funders, broadcasters, and more. Read more.

• December 3: The IF/Then x The Redford Center Nature Connection Pitch is an open call for U.S.-based filmmakers to pitch short documentary works-in-progress exploring how reconnecting with nature can heal people, communities, and the planet. Five finalist teams will be selected to pitch their projects at the DC/DOX Festival in Washington, D.C. with up to $30,000 in funding awarded to the winning project. Learn more here.

• December 15: In connection with Eurodoc’s first session of their EURODOC26 program, a group of up to 10-12 producers will have the opportunity to attend an intensive 5-day workshop in partnership with Porto/Post/Doc Film & Media Festival, focusing on the development of their documentary project. This local group session is open to producers based in Portugal. Learn more here.

• December 16: The Sony Future Filmmaker Awards provide emerging talent from across the world with the creative momentum to push their careers forward. Shortlisted filmmakers are flown to Sony Picture Studios to attend an awards ceremony and a bespoke industry immersion program. Apply here.

• December 18: The Woman Directing Mentorship is open for submissions through December 18. SeriesFest and Shondaland are partnering on their 7th cycle of the Mentorship, a competition designed to discover aspiring female-identifying directors with unique voices and provide a launchpad for their careers. Learn more.

• December 30: Women in the Director’s Chair’s Career Advancement Module is a six-month online program for mid-career women and non-binary Canadian filmmakers working in scripted media. Up to six directors per cohort receive one-on-one career coaching, industry networking sessions, and festival immersion opportunities to help place their projects. The program has no tuition cost for participants. Apply here. 

• January 9, 2026: The Ouray Film Sabbatical offers creative support, rest, and community for filmmakers (in any role), film writers (critics, academics, journalists), and film programmers (festivals, theaters, and filmmaker education), all through a fully-funded residential experience in Colorado’s San Juan Mountains. VC members can use the code “ofs50percent” for 50% off the submission fee, bringing it down to $15. Apply here.

• January 28, 2026: Sheffield DocFest’s MeetMarket is one of the world’s premier documentary pitching forums, connecting selected projects with 150+ international funders, broadcasters, distributors, and festival programmers. It welcomes feature-length or episodic documentaries at early development, production, or rough-cut stage from both new and veteran filmmakers worldwide. Read more here.

• February 1, 2026: IDFA Project Space is a talent development lab for first- or second-time documentary directors looking to develop their projects under the guidance of renowned filmmakers and industry mentors. The program runs from June to September 2026, combining online workshops with a week-long, in-person residency in Amsterdam. Submit here.  

• Rolling: Submit your documentary for Educational Distribution with GOOD DOCS! If your latest doc is based on education and engaging with students about rarely heard stories then this is where your next application should be. Find out more here.

• Rolling: Sunny Side of the Doc is launching the Sunny Academy, a brand-new support program for emerging documentary talent. Learn all they have to offer here.

• Rolling: Field of Vision has relaunched their free mentorship & consultation service! Filmmakers from around the world can sign up for consultation about Professional Development, Technical Assistance, Pitch Training, Story Development, Distribution Strategy, and more. Sign up today!

• Rolling: More to Her Story is always looking for pitches from women in journalism. They believe in solutions journalism and its power to drive real-world change. In a world where women’s rights are increasingly under threat, they champion the voices of female journalists and use their stories as catalysts to drive lasting change. Pitch here. 

Upcoming Festival Submission Deadlines:

• November 14: Be part of the 15th edition of East Doc Platform (EDP) –– the largest industry event for documentary filmmakers in Central and Eastern Europe. EDP is accepting submissions from directors and producers with creative documentary projects, and will help connect them with international decision-makers and gain access to key networking opportunities. Read more.

• November 15: The DocsBarcelona International Documentary Film Festival’s call for film submissions is now open. The 29th edition of DocsBarcelona will take place May 7–17, 2026 in Barcelona, featuring ten days of screenings, industry activities, and six competitive sections. The festival will award over a dozen prizes totaling nearly €20,000 to outstanding documentaries. Apply here. 

• November 16: One World Romania is seeking film submissions for the 19th edition of the International Documentary & Human Rights Film Festival. They are looking for documentary films that serve as a vehicle for social and political change. They accept films of any length, including children/youth docs. Submit here.

• November 19: Tribeca is accepting submissions for the 2026 Tribeca Festival, taking place June 3-14 in New York City. They are open to entries across feature films, shorts, TV/online series, games, podcasts, and immersive storytelling. The official submission deadline for most categories is November 19th, 2025. Apply here.

• November 30: Submissions are now open for the DOC. Coimbra Festival 2026. If you are a filmmaker with a feature or short documentary, this is your opportunity to showcase your work at an incredible film festival in Portugal, taking place March 17-22, 2026. Learn more.

• December 11: The Festival International du Film de Fribourg is accepting submissions, with its Official Selection –– the International Competition: Features Films and the International Competition: Short Films –– focusing on works from Africa, Asia, Latin America, Near and Middle East, and Eastern Europe (outside the EU). For more information and the list of eligible countries, click here.

• December 15: Submit your documentary for the 41st DOK.fest München! You can additionally submit your film for their special awards: German Documentary Music Award, VFF Production Award, VFF Production Talent Award, or all inclusive Award. Submit here.

• January 5, 2026: Film submissions for Mountainfilm 2026 are open! Mountainfilm brings together a community of filmmakers and changemakers, showcasing documentary films that celebrate adventure, activism, social justice, environment, and indomitable spirit. They accept and screen feature and short films on a broad range of subjects, but are particularly interested in work that focuses on mountains –– both physical and symbolic. Apply here.

• January 8, 2026: Hot Docs 2026 is now accepting film submissions for the annual festival, taking place in Toronto from April 23-May 3, 2026. Hot Docs showcases over 200 documentaries from around the world each year and accepts Canadian and international documentaries of any length. Learn more here. 

• January 11, 2026: The inaugural Taos Film Festival in New Mexico is seeking short and feature-length narrative and documentary films from around the world. This new festival champions independent voices and offers submission fee waivers for New Mexico filmmakers. Selected films will be showcased April 23-26, 2026 in Taos and compete for awards such as Best Documentary Feature. Submit here.

• February 10, 2026: The American Black Film Festival is taking place from May 27-31, 2026 in Miami Beach. Submissions are now open for narrative features, documentary features, series, voices of culture, African stories (deadline Dec 31st), AI & XR storytelling showcase, and the HBO Short Film Award. Submit here.

• February 13, 2026: DC/DOX is accepting films for consideration for its fourth edition, running June 11-14, 2026 in Washington D.C. The festival accepts feature documentaries and short documentaries, and gives preference to films that have not yet premiered in Washington D.C. DC/DOX provides abundant networking opportunities and social events, as well as a series of panels, master classes, and workshops. Submit here.

• February 13, 2026: Celebrate 30 years of indie film at Rooftop Films’ Summer Series in NYC! Summer Series is open for submissions of shorts and features of all genres. Every filmmaker who submits will receive two free tickets to a Rooftop screening, and selected films will be screened throughout summer 2026. Learn more.