💰 Funding Deadlines:

• 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 1: Women and the Wind’s Audacious Voyage Grant is offering $10,000 to first-time, female-led, environmentally focused adventure projects. Accepted projects includes films, photo essays, audio pieces, and written narratives. Learn more here.
• September 11: The Working Films Impact Kickstart supports underrepresented filmmakers with resources, impact strategy, and plans to engage future partners and audiences in meaningful ways. Cohorts will receive funds in the range of $10,000-20,000, as well as mentorship, peer community, and more. Apply here.
• September 14: The Voices With Impact Film Production Grant is offering $7,500 to filmmaking teams making impactful five-minute films about mental health. This year’s theme is “Sanctuary.” To view a free grant information session and submit your project, click 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.
• September 16: The People's Media Fund's 2026 Community Voices Open Call will award $600,000 to media-making projects that strengthen social justice movements and community organizing across Greater Philadelphia. Grants range from $10,000-30,000. Applicants do not need to be traditional media organizations. Apply here.
• September 18: Submissions are open for DOC NYC’s Short Lists & Winner’s Circle awards, plus The Louies: a new $100,000 fund for U.S. documentary shorts awarding $20,000-$50,000 to three eligible producers, Learn more here.
• September 20: The Precipice Fund aspires to cultivate a grantmaking culture that emphasizes community over competition. This round of funding will provide over $145,000 for unincorporated visual art collectives, collaborative projects, alternative spaces, and artist-run initiatives. Apply here.
• September 22: The Saul Zaentz Innovation Fund provides support for Baltimore filmmakers. Since 2016, SZIF has supported over 170 Fellows with industry mentorship, funding, and more. The Fund is especially interested in hearing from underrepresented voices in film. Submit here.
• October 5: The Mycoskie-UC Berkeley Psychedelic Documentary Fellowship is now accepting applications for filmmakers exploring the rapidly evolving world of psychedelics. Three documentary filmmakers will be awarded up to $20,000 to support a feature-length film, and five short documentary filmmakers will be awarded up to $10,000. Apply 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:

• August 30: The Bronx Documentary Films Fellowship is a free, year-long program supporting emerging filmmakers from historically underrepresented communities. The 2026-2027 Fellowship is held in-person at the BDC Annex and runs from September-May, with a final screening in June. Apply 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 4: Project C is opening applications for cohort two of their Journalism Creators Lab, seeking early-stage creator journalists across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. The free eight-week program helps emerging journalists take their independent newsrooms to the next level. Learn more here.
• September 8: The FilmNorth Inclusive and Socially Conscious Filmmaking Lab is a free six-week virtual course designed to help filmmakers at any career stage practice greater inclusive and socially responsible filmmaking. Filmmakers in any role are encouraged to apply. Learn more here.
• September 8: Filmmakers Collaborative SF and Re-Present Media's For Us, By Us San Francisco Filmmaker Incubator is a one-year fellowship program that supports a cohort of San Francisco documentary filmmakers from historically marginalized backgrounds. Apply here.
• September 9: The Nonfiction Hotlist is a curated list of standout nonfiction projects across all lengths and formats that connects creators with visibility, industry opportunities, and strategic partnerships. Submit your project for free here.
• September 15: The Janato Film Fellowship, presented by the Azim Premji Foundation, is seeking early-career filmmakers with stories rooted in everyday India and inspired by the country's values. The Fellowship accepts documentary, fiction, hybrid, and experimental work, and will select up to 10 Fellows to receive guidance and mentorship as they hone their craft. Apply 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.
• October 1: The EFM Doc Series Pitch is a new platform curated with DOK.forum in collaboration with Berlinale. The Pitch will bring up to 10 internationally oriented documentary series projects to the European Film Market, connecting them with producers, funders, distributors, and more. Early-stage projects across all subjects will be considered. Submit 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:

• August 31: The International Film Fest Rotterdam will take place Jan 28-Feb 7, 2027 and accepts submissions across genres and film lengths, including creative documentaries, mixed media projects, and experimental works. Learn more here.
• September 8: FIPADOC is seeking submissions of all narrative forms of documentary, from short films to series, as well as immersive experiences. Held each January in Biarritz, France, the festival brings together members of the public and professionals, and is committed to promoting impact and new talent. Submit here. 
• September 11: The 2027 Femme Frontera Film Festival celebrates films made by women and nonbinary filmmakers from around the world, especially filmmakers of color from from border communities. Submissions are open to shorts under 15 minutes and feature documentaries in any genre. Apply 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.
• September 17: The REEL WILD New York Film Festival is New York City's premiere conservation film festival. The call for entries for the 2027 festival, April 7-11 in New York City, is now open for documentary and narrative films addressing conservation, threats to habitats and species, and affected frontline communities. VC Members receive an exclusive 20% discount with the code VCxREELWILD2027. Submit here.
• September 30: The call for entries for the 28th annual Full Frame Documentary Film Festival is now open! Submitted films will be considered for both the NEW DOCS and Invited Program categories. Apply here.
• October 30: Now in its 24th year, the True/False Film Fest is actively seeking work that engages with reality in surprising and expansive ways. Both shorts and features are welcome. Selected filmmakers will be notified by early February. Submit here.
• November 11: Submissions are now open for the 70th edition of the San Francisco International Film Festival. Taking place from April 22-May 2, 2027, the festival offers industry talks, pitch sessions, SFFILM education workshops, and more. Submit your film here.
• December 15: Submissions are open for the 20th edition of Pordenone Docs Fest – The Voices of Documentary, taking place April 6-10, 2027 in Italy's 2027 Capital of Culture. Cinemazero seeks documentaries of high artistic and production quality running over 60 minutes and produced in 2025 or 2026, that are unreleased in Italy and have not been broadcast on television or made available online. Submit here.
• December 17: The Seattle International Film Festival is now accepting submissions for their 53rd annual festival, taking place May 13-23 at SIFF Cinemas with the goal of spotlighting new voices, independents, and films that have yet to break through to US audiences. Apply here.