Funding search
Find who already funds work like yours.
Private foundations don’t post open calls, so nobody can search them. We read IRS filings instead — 9.6 million grants from 174,053 foundations and grantmaking charities, searchable by what the money was actually for.
12 funders with a record of paying for “filmmakers”
Where the money went
Largest: $150,000 to ALLIED MEDIA PROJECTS INC — core support for the undocumented filmmakers collective for efforts to advocate and provide professional development and career sustainability for undocumented documentary filmmake…
Redford CenterSan Francisco, CACharity · may take applications
48 matching grants · $12.7M · through 2024Largest: $3.8M to BIG PICTURE RANCH LLC — documentary filmmaking
John D and Catherine T MacArthur Foundation (Consolidated)Chicago, IL
29 matching grants · $4.3M · through 2024Largest: $125,000 to Latino Public Broadcasting — in support of the latino emerging filmmakers fellowship.
Center for Asian American MediaSan Francisco, CACharity · may take applications
23 matching grants · $976,500 · through 2023Largest: $175,000 to WGBH — filmmaker award
Largest: $22,500 to Black Public Media — support for filmmakers and creative technologists in the bpm emerging media artist fellowship program.
Largest: $412,500 to BLACKSTAR PROJECTS INC — support two rounds of philadelphia filmmaker lab, which provides fellowship opportunities for bipoc filmmakers
Largest: $257,667 to TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL — to support two years of a science and technology film program at the toronto international film festival, including feature film prizes, screenwriting fellowships, project pitches …
Largest: $600,000 to BLACKSTAR — for the local filmmaker lab, which is a year-long fellowship that supports and uplifts black, brown and indigenous emerging and mid-career artists and filmmakers in the greater phi…
Largest: $112,500 to AUSTIN FILM FESTIVAL — support efforts to champion the work of writers and filmmakers
Subject MatterNew York, NYCharity · may take applications
11 matching grants · $235,000 · through 2024Largest: $25,000 to STICK FIGURE DIGITAL LLC — filmmaking support
Largest: $155,000 to MIAMI DADE COLLEGE FOUNDATION INC — to create three competitive film prizes at the miami film festival and an artist mentorship program for miami filmmakers featuring renown film directors, cinematographers, and film…
Largest: $57,000 to UCLA FOUNDATION — what documentary filmmakers should know about the law - 3 years
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Source: IRS Form 990-PF Part XV and Form 990 Schedule I, tax years 2019–2025. These are grants already paid, a record of what an organization funds rather than an open call. Private foundations rarely accept unsolicited applications and the route in is usually a program officer; grantmaking charities and associations more often run real application cycles, so check their website. How this data is built, and its limits →