💰 Funding Deadlines:

• July 22: Inside Out’s RE:Focus Fund aims to address industry inequities through providing direct financial support to women, non-binary, and/or trans filmmakers telling 2SLGBTQ+ stories. The Fund has distributed more than $300,000 in festival travel grants and professional development programs for filmmakers since its creation. Learn more here.
• July 24: The Berlinale’s World Cinema Fund is accepting applications for production and post-production support through WCF Classic and WCF Europe, backing feature-length projects with a strong artistic vision that are produced in regions whose film industries face structural constraints. Maximum funding is €60,000 per project for production and €40,000 for post-production. Submit your application here.
• July 31: As Los Angeles prepares to host its third Olympic Games in 2028, PBS SoCal is launching the Community Storyteller Initiative, a three-year program commissioning videos from storytellers, documentarians, and content creators that capture the spirit of Los Angeles as it transforms for 2028. Submit here.
• July 31: The AXS Film Fund, a program of AXS Lab, supports independent documentary filmmakers and nonfiction new media creators living with disabilities, awarding up to five grants of $10,000 each to creators at any stage of production. The program centers creators of color living with disabilities and those from historically underserved communities. Apply here.
• August 14: The 2026 Southern Documentary Fund Production Grant will be awarding $15,000 in production funding to seven Southern documentary filmmakers. Selected filmmakers will also receive the opportunity to participate in SDF’s Mentorship Program and have their projects reviewed by Reel South. Submit here. 
• August 14: The Bloomberg Green Docs competition is open to all eligible filmmakers who would like to compete to win a $25,000 grand prize for a short climate documentary. Films must be under 10 minutes and address the urgency of climate change to be considered. Apply here.
• August 15: The Fondation Altercine awards 10,000 CAD and 5,000 CAD grants to documentary filmmakers born and living in The Global South (Africa, Asia, or Latin America) who want to direct a film in the language of their choice that respects the aims of the Foundation. Apply here.
• August 31: The Scottish Documentary Institute’s WRITE NOW Fund creates space for Scotland-based directors to think, write, and plan before the camera rolls. The Fund will offer grants up to £3,000, plus tailored support. The Institute is looking for distinctive, creative, director-led projects. Submit here.
• September 14: A new storytelling partnership between Guardian Documentaries and arte.tv invites filmmakers to pitch short docs on the theme of democracy in Europe today. The initiative seeks deeply human stories and creative approaches that reveal how political shifts are felt, resisted, and defended. Projects at any stage that will be completed by spring 2027 will be considered. Pitch here.
• Rolling: The Outrider AI + Nuclear Reporting Fund supports journalism and multimedia storytelling projects that explain the evolving relationship between artificial intelligence and nuclear weapons. Journalists may receive up to $10,000 for projects, supporting expenses such as travel, research, multimedia production, and more. Deadline is rolling, submit your project here. 
• Rolling: The Pulitzer Center’s Global Reporting Grant supports in-depth, high-impact nonfiction projects that push boundaries and spotlight underreported stories. The Grant is open to journalists, filmmakers, and visual storytellers worldwide, and the typical award amount is $5,000-$10,000. Apply here.
• 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. 

💡 Fellowship, Lab, and Pitch Deadlines:

• July 19: The Better Angels Lavine Fellowship is a post-production program for feature-length documentaries about U.S. history. Fellows receive personalized mentorship, cohort-based workshops, strategic networking and industry guidance, and are awarded $5,000 to support their project's completion and distribution. Apply here.
• July 20: The International Documentary Association’s Getting Real ‘26 biennial conference will be held July 20—23 in Los Angeles’ Little Tokyo and online. The core of the conference brings together participants from diverse independent filmmaking sectors and powerful players from the documentary industry, sparking real conversation and collaboration. Register here.
• July 22: The Undocumented Filmmakers Collective’s Elevate Screenwriter Incubator is back to help undocumented filmmakers master the art of screenwriting. This year’s incubator is focused exclusively on short film development, and the goal is for each participant to end the incubator with a polished script ready for production. Apply here.
• August 3: ProPublica’s Local Reporting Network is taking on 15 new yearlong accountability journalism projects in 2026 across seasonal cohorts, with the fall cohort program accepting applications until August 3. ProPublica will reimburse partner newsrooms for the selected reporter’s salary (up to $80,000 plus a benefits stipend) and pair them with a senior editor as well as additional production support. Apply here.
• August 4: Applications are now open for the 8th edition of the Deutsche Bank Frieze Los Angeles Film Award fellowship! Six emerging LA-based fellows will participate in a four month fellowship to produce short films in response to a prompt, culminating in two cash prizes awarded at Frieze Los Angeles in February 2027. Apply here.
• August 12: DOK Short n’ Sweet, the short film pitch at DOK Leipzig, returns for its tenth edition and is seeking short and/or animated documentaries at any stage with strong points of view and creative visions. Selected projects get three minutes to pitch and four to field questions from the panel, plus a preparatory workshop to make the most of those seven minutes. Learn more here.
• September 1: The Investigative Reporters & Editors’ Chauncey Bailey Journalist of Color Investigative Reporting Fellowship supports journalists of color interested in investigative journalism. Over the course of the year, fellows receive IRE training, mentorship, data services, and support. Applicants must be U.S. journalists of color currently working with a newsroom or independent with at least three years of post-college work experience. Submit here.
• September 23: The Ouray Film Sabbatical offers a fully funded residential experience centered on creative support, rest, and community for filmmakers in any role, film writers, and film programmers. Rather than focusing on advancing a specific project, the Sabbatical is built around the person behind the work, inviting participants to reconnect with their creative lives in Colorado’s San Juan Mountains. Apply here.
• September 30: Harvard University’s Radcliffe Fellowship Program supports 50 scholars, artists, and public intellectuals with demonstrated records of achievement and great promise for future contributions. Fellows will come from around the world to work on an individual project while drawing on the knowledge and resources of the Harvard community. Learn more here.
• Rolling: The Retraction Watch Research Accountability Reporting Fellowship supports up to six U.S.-based journalists covering scientific accountability issues — retractions, fake data, fraud — at research universities or institutions. Newsrooms receive $7,500 in funding, one-on-one mentorship, and four virtual training sessions. Fellows are selected on a rolling basis as early as May 4. 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: 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. 
• Rolling: The Dot Line Space Art Foundation invites artists, collectives, and interdisciplinary practitioners to submit portfolios for Water Bodies & Ecology 2026, a research-driven program exploring water, ecology, climate, memory, and environmental consciousness. Unfolding across two venues over 40 days in 2026, the project includes research, installations, and exhibitions, and is open to all mediums and artistic practices. Apply here.

🎬 Festival Submission Deadlines:

• July 31: American Documentary’s POV is the longest-running independent documentary showcase on American television, presenting films that capture the full spectrum of the human experience from around the world. They accept films of all lengths. Apply here.
• August 14: The 24th annual Big Sky Documentary Film Festival is now accepting submissions for BSDFF 2027, taking place in Missoula, Montana from February 12–21, 2027. Documentary films of all lengths, genres, and subject matters from filmmakers worldwide are welcome. Apply by June 12 to meet the early bird deadline here. 

• September 13: The 12th annual Double Exposure Investigative Film Festival, taking place November 5-8 in Washington D.C., is seeking submissions of investigative documentaries that hold power to account, surface suppressed stories, and make the case for why the record matters. Submit your film here.

• Rolling: Back Pocket Presents is seeking documentary and short film submissions for the 2026 San Francisco Story Fest. This year, the fest is looking for works that explore the theme of “villains” and encourage work that is set in or references the Bay Area. Apply with this form.