Funding a documentary

[JEFF SCHEIDER]

I have a documentary I really want to make. Where do I start trying to get funding?

[Brian Dzyak]

There are a variety of organizations which give out grants for documentary projects. Start here:

 

http://www.business.com/directory/media_an...weblistings.asp

 

Here is an example from the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities ( http://leh.org )

http://leh.org/grants/grants_docfilm.pdf

 

The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation is a very large source of funding for many projects so you may also find this useful:

http://www.macfound.org/site/apps/nl/conte...amp;printmode=1

 

And The Annenberg Foundation ( http://www.annenbergfoundation.org ) also provides grants for some projects.

 

 

It's doubtful that just one grant will fund your entire project so you'll need several to complete it. Know that most have very specific and non-negotiable requirements ranging from topic to when you must use the money by (an expiration date) and even what you are permitted to use their (the specific organization) money for (ie, only for the filmstock or only for travel expenses, etc)

 

This can be a very time consuming process so having one person on your producing team who ONLY deals with money issues (as in, they aren't involved in creative or logistic planning) can be very advantageous.

 

Good luck!