How to Get a Film Grant

There are a lot of sources out there. I mean, the documentary film world has really
blossomed, and there are a lot of net— there’s a huge support system. There are
magazines that list the different foundations. There are different magazines, and there are
different Web sites and, you know, the Sundance Institute. And there’s so many different
options now, I think, for funding. It’s still difficult, but there are definitely more
resources out there than I think there have ever really been for filmmaking. But I think
also aligning yourself with foundations or organizations and people who are interested in
the subject matter that you’re pursuing.

For the first one that I did, I wrote a proposal. God, I went to different organizations, and
they just opened up their— I remember I went to, for Children Underground, I went to
UNICEF. And they just opened up their filing cabinets for me, and I just sat there all day
and was going through. And so one proposal— I wrote that proposal. And then I raised
enough money, or, a little bit of money to take a research trip. And I think that’s the
strongest. You know, if you can raise that little bit of money to go there, even if you
haven’t started filming yet, you can bring back immediate story. So you can bring back—
you can see for yourself. So you’re not relying on secondhand material, which is
important for telling it. But I think understanding your story and being able to
communicate that to people and also to funders and to foundations is the most important.