Documentary Financing Programs (General and Development Funds)

Documentary Financing Programs (General and Development Funds) is sponsored by Impact Partners. This opportunity supports mission-aligned projects and measurable outcomes.

We are looking for extraordinary projects that explore the urgent problems and questions of our time using strong, cinematic language. We support 8-10 projects a year with equity financing. Impact Partners will be slowing down for the end of the summer and will be closing LOI submissions starting Thursday, August 20.

We will reopen applications Monday, September 21. If you have already submitted your application, we will do our best to send you a response before the closure. We welcome you to submit an LOI if you meet these eligibility requirements: Films must have both a director and producer attached.

Either the director or lead producer must have completed a feature-length film. The full budget to complete and deliver the film should be in the range of $300,000-$1. 5million.

Impact Partners focuses on social issue documentaries. Please refrain from submitting if your film does not address an urgent societal problem. We review projects year-round on a rolling basis.

If you are working on a feature-length documentary and are looking for funding, we welcome you to submit a Letter of Inquiry. LOIs should fit on one page and be around 500 words. Please review the LOI guidelines for our general and development funds before submission.

Our team will do our best to respond to your LOI in 4 weeks. If you are invited to submit a full proposal, we will follow up with you directly with next steps. If you have any questions about the LOI or our submissions process or are unsure which fund to apply to, please refer to the FAQ below.

For other questions, please Contact Us. For early-stage projects that have a director attached and some access secured. Letter of Inquiry – Development Financing We’re looking for early-stage projects that have a director attached and have secured some access.

Filmmakers can apply for development financing from $30,000-$100,000 for a variety of reasons, including early production shoots, cutting a trailer or reel, conducting archival research, etc. For projects in development, the LOI should highlight what’s special about your film and your vision for the project. Do you have unique access? Have you discovered an incredible archive or compelling characters?

An LOI for development should include: Logline or short synopsis Confirmed director and producer attached (either must have completed a feature-length film) Background on the film team: directors, producers and any key crew Information on access to key characters, archive or other materials Total budget amount and the financing raised so far (if any).

Note: The full budget to complete and deliver the film should be in the range of $300,000-$1. 5million A requested funding amount for development, including how you plan to use the funds Deliverables you plan to create with the requested funds (i.e. what do you plan to have at the end of the development process?) For projects that are in any stage in the production or post-production stages.

Letter of Inquiry – Production Financing If you are interested in applying to our general fund, the LOI should include: Logline or short synopsis Confirmed director and producer attached (either must have completed a feature-length film) Background on the film team: directors, producers and any key crew Information about the stage of the project Total budget amount and the financing raised so far (include a list of funding sources to date).

Note: The full budget to complete and deliver the film should be in the range of $300,000-$1. 5million Deliverables you plan to create with the requested funds (i.e. what do you plan to have at the end of the development process?) Frequently Asked Questions Should I apply for Development Financing or Production Financing?

Development Financing is for projects that are early on in the filmmaking process. You should apply if you have started developing a documentary feature, and you are looking for seed funding for early production. You can apply for support for any facet of development, including preliminary shoots, cutting a trailer or reel, conducting archival research, or casting characters.

You should apply for Production Financing if your project is in production or post-production. You must have footage available to share in order to apply. If your project is not selected for Development Financing, you are welcome to reapply for Production Financing further on in production.

You can see the LOI guidelines for both funds above. Do you support fiction films? No. Unfortunately, we do not support fiction films, only documentaries.

Do you support short films? No. We only support feature length documentaries. We do not have a minimum length, but generally consider films that are going to be at least 50 minutes long.

No. We currently only support feature length documentaries. Do you accept international films? Yes!

We welcome films from filmmakers around the world. I’m a director and haven’t secured a producer for my upcoming feature. Can I still submit a LOI for it?

Sorry, no. Your film must have a director and producer attached in order to be considered. Do you accept submissions from first time filmmakers? We require that either your director or producer have played the same role on at least one other finished documentary feature.

What stage should my film be in to be considered? We support films in all stages of production, and you are welcome to submit a Letter of Inquiry at any stage. If you are applying for Production Financing and are invited to submit a full proposal we will require a video sample.

If you are applying for Development Financing a video sample or trailer is not required. When is the deadline for the LOI? We do not have a deadline.

We accept LOIs year-round on a rolling basis, and review projects as they come in. What is the average amount that IP commits to a project? Our funding range varies widely depending on the individual film and the funding already in place.

Past support has ranged from $30,000 – $1,500,000. On average, the amount that we invest in a film is between $100,000 and $300,000. Is there an ideal budget amount I should include in my LOI?

Accuracy and fairness are the most important factors to consider when sharing your budget with us. Are you taking into account all possible costs, and are you paying all your contributors (including yourself!) fairly?

The typical budget range for most projects we support is between $300k-$1. 5 million. How long will it take for you to review my film?

Once you submit a LOI, we will get back to you in 4 weeks with next steps. If you are invited to submit a full proposal it will take under 10 weeks for us to review the submission. We may ask for additional materials at any point.

Can you look at my trailer and let me know if I should apply? Unfortunately, no. Since we receive a large number of inquiries, we can only screen your material if we have invited you to submit a full proposal.