Coexistence Documentary Fund (Research Grants)

Coexistence Documentary Fund (Research Grants) is sponsored by Who Let The Docs Out. The Coexistence Documentary Fund supports short, feature, and episodic documentary projects that examine the ethical stakes of using animals in modern society. This grant offers research grants for projects in their earliest phase.

Who Let The Docs Out | Secure Funding Today – Apply Now For the films that need to exist — and the filmmakers brave enough to make them. Who Let The Docs Out is a filmmaker-led nonprofit organisation, combining grant-making, community, mentorship, and distribution support for impact documentary filmmakers around the world.

We're not a traditional fund, we don't just write cheques and wave goodbye, we're in the trenches alongside you; from that terrifying blank page at the research stage, all the way to the screen. We exist because the planet, animals and the people fighting for both, deserve films that are impossible to ignore. IN THE LAST 6 MONTHS, WHO LET THE DOCS OUT HAS AWARDED TO 24 DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKERS.

We give out doc grants for every stage, ‘cos funding is dang hard. We also advise philanthropists and foundations, ‘cos picking the films with the biggest potential for impact is also dang hard. We connect the great films with the smart funding, so everyone wins.

Your creative fuel. A global community of impact filmmakers coming together to champion great work, spark new collaborations, and share insightful knowledge. It’s a place to connect, grow, and amplify your voice, proving that together, our power to create change is limitless.

Here’s where all that industry intel becomes your strategic advantage. Filmmakers have access to distribution strategies, impact campaigns, audience building, and positioning. It’s about empowering you to make the smartest choices.

Front-row access to live sessions with industry pros (plus recordings, ‘cos we know the grind is real). You get a grant calendar, a member database to find your crew, a curated doc watch list, and even the world’s largest ethical systems docs database. It's all the good stuff in one place, so you can focus on making an impact.

We’ll connect you with a seasoned filmmaker who knows this journey inside and out. They've walked the path and are ready to share their insghts with you! Transformative, and occasionally responsible for friendships that outlast the mentorship itself.

The industry changes fast. So, we stay obsessed with what’s working right now . We dig into which festivals are best suited, what characters are resonating with audiences, and where the most effective distribution is happening.

All this intel is yours, so you’re not navigating blind. We believe documentary film can change the world . Not in a bumper-sticker way, but in a Food For Profit leading to lobbyist resignations way.

In a The Game Changers shifts cultural conversations about protein way. In a your film hasn't been made yet, but absolutely should be way. We envision a world where impactful documentary films reach mainstream audiences, inspire individual action, ignite cultural shifts, and drive the transformation of systems of consumption.

Behind-the-scenes from the alliance, member film launches, festival dispatches, grant deadline reminders, and the kind of industry commentary that's just a little too spicy for a formal newsletter... Follow along, share your films, and help us look credible in front of the big institutional funders we're trying to impress. (That last part is only slightly a joke.)

Ready to shake the system? If you're making a documentary that challenges power, exposes injustice, or asks hard questions about how we treat animals and the planet, this is your community. Apply for funding.

Access the resources. Find your people. Discover films worth backing.

The films that need it the most, are rarely the ones that get it. Every dollar you put in goes directly to grants, mentorship, and the infrastructure that keeps independent filmmakers moving forward. What's coming out of Sundance and Berlinale?

Which filmmakers are doing something genuinely new? We'll keep you in the loop.