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If there’s one thing every documentary director knows all too well, it’s the “big board”. It’s fretted over, it’s tinkered with, it’s argued about. All that fuss over a cork board with story-beat cards!

But when the cards (and scenes) line up in just the right order, you get clarity, emotion and hopefully an unforgettable story.

Luckily, this year’s Film Independent Documentary Story Lab Fellows are up for the challenge. In its second year, the one-week intensive focuses on projects in post-production, where filmmakers can hone story structure and editing, and ends with a final pitch event with industry execs.

“This year’s Documentary Story Lab Fellows are not united by geography or genre, but a fearless and tenacious commitment to telling the truth,” said Daniel Cardone, Senior Manager of Nonfiction Programs & Fiscal Sponsorship at Film Independent. “Whether exploring identity, justice, legacy or the fragility of our environment,...

Exclusive: Film Independent has named the 37 filmmakers and 15 projects selected for the 22nd edition of its Fast Track Film Finance Market, which kicked off in-person November 12 and wraps up today.

Through the program, creatives working on both fictional projects and documentaries are connected with established financiers, production companies, agents, managers and other film industry professionals who can move their projects forward.

Industry participants this year included 3Pas Studios, Independent Artist Group, Bankside Films, Bleecker Street, Bright West, CAA, Chrystie Street Casting, Cinetic Media, Dead Duck Films, First Gen, Giant Leap Media, Giant Pictures, Heidi Levitt Casting, IDA, Impact Partners, Kas Kas Productions, Kindred Spirit, Ley Line Entertainment, Linden Entertainment, Los Angeles Media Fund, Mandalay Pictures, Media Res, Motto Pictures, National Geographic, Oscilloscope Laboratories, Park Pictures, Pastel, Perspective Fund, Pinky Promise, Plan B, Redefine Entertainment, Rhino Films, Rideback Rise, River Road Entertainment, Roadside Attractions, Sffilm, Searchlight Pictures, ShivHans Pictures, Sons of Rigor,...

Editor’S Note: the below blog piece originally ran in 2024. Our Filmmaker Tuesday session “Spotlight Your Story: Applying to Our Artist Development Programs” returns May 7. Special thanks to original writer Cydney Fisher.

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So you want to be a filmmaker or work in entertainment, but have no clue where to start? Well, thank God you’re reading this right now! Each year, Film Independent provides programs and Labs dedicated to helping filmmakers from marginalized communities get their stories made.

Does that sound like you? Great! Keep reading, ’cause here are some application tips and tricks to impress, as shared by Film Independent Artist Development team members including Francisco Velasquez, Dea Vasquez and Daniel Cardone.

In this conversation, Francisco, Dea and Daniel break down what types of Lab projects they’re looking for, what makes an application stand out, the dos and don’ts of applying, and the opportunities that our Artist Development programs provide.

It’s true! No, seriously: it’s true. And by “it” we of course mean the stories at the heart of Film Independent’s 2024 Doc Story Lab. A one-week intensive designed to provide support for filmmakers whose projects are in post-production, the Doc Story Lab is one of two Documentary Labs amid the larger Film Independent Artist Development umbrella of talent incubators, which for over 30 years have been the place to spot future media-visionary movers-and-shakers.

This year’s participants will engage in five days’ worth of workshops, guest speaker sessions, and one-on-one mentorship with leading professionals in the nonfiction film space. including Doc Story Lab Lead Creative Mentors Chris Shellen (Steve! (Martin) A Documentary in 2 Pieces) and Anayansi Prado (Paraiso for Sale) and Editing Mentors Christy Denes (Seduced: Inside the Nxivm Cult) and Sara Newens (Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields). Not to mention plenty of networking opportunities with advice on the...

For several years now, Film Independent’s Fiscal Sponsorship program has supported a wide variety of projects: shorts, features, both narrative and nonfiction. Not to mention the occasional new media project, special event or advocacy initiative. Each month’s Fiscal Spotlight column announces three new projects taking part in the program.

But maybe you’re curious how some of those prior subjects have turned out. Well hey, you’re in luck! Once again it’s time for another FiSpo Update highlighting the recent achievements of previous Fiscal Spotlight subjects.

Film Independent’s Fiscal Sponsorship program opens the door to nonprofit funding for independent filmmakers and media artists. The projects and makers participating in the program express a uniqueness of vision, celebrate diversity and advance the craft of filmmaking through the creation of these special works. To see the full range of projects that are part of our program, visit our Sponsored Projects page.

Subjects include a journalist in Siberia and a family of Puerto Rican women.

Film Independent has named the six projects and seven filmmakers selected for its annual Documentary Lab programme, designed to give creative feedback to filmmakers in post-production on feature length documentaries.

Director Alina Simone and producer Kirstine Barfod join the programme with their film Black Snow, about a homemaker turned journalist in Siberia who becomes the target of a government disinformation campaign.

Chris Coats will participate with Flamingo Camp, about the queer and trans community at the off-grid squatter town known as Slab City and the effect on...

Like a peckish panda let loose in a showroom for bamboo patio furniture, the modern audience’s craving for true-life stories is seemingly insatiable. And like said ursine gnawing greedily on a flavorful teakwood club chair, nonfiction has been steadily gobbling up narrative filmmaking, with almost every major news item of the last 40 years being dutifully reimagined as a prestige limited series. And sure, projects like HBO’s Love and Death or Hulu’s The Dropout can help fill the void abdicated by the mid-budget studio drama, but where does that leave actual documentary movies—or documentary filmmakers for that matter?

While there’s certainly not an overabundance of industry support out there for emerging nonfiction filmmakers, there is at the very least the Film Independent Documentary Lab. And today, we’re thrilled to welcome seven new Fellows and six new projects to the 2023 Doc Lab cohort. “Documentary filmmakers remain...

Exclusive: Film Independent on Wednesday named the filmmakers and projects selected for its 12th annual Documentary Lab, rolling out a list that includes Alina Simone & Kirstine Barfod (Black Snow), Chris Coats (Flamingo Camp), Sisa Bueno, Gabriela Díaz Arp (Matininó), Amanda Erickson (She Cried That Day) and Adina Luo (You Have the Floor).

The nonprofit behind the Independent Spirit Awards also announced Black Snow‘s Simone as the recipient of its latest Cayton-Goldrich Family Foundation Fellowship, an unrestricted $10,000 cash grant awarded to a Jewish filmmaker participating in one of its Artist Development Programs.

An intensive program providing creative feedback to filmmakers who are currently in post-production on feature-length docs, The Lab also advances their careers by introducing them to mentors, advisors and guest speakers who can advise on both the craft and business of documentary filmmaking. Chris Shellen (Mickey: The Story of a Mouse) and Ivete Lucas...

Come get your Q on starting this Friday! The Ninth Annual QFest St. Louis, presented by Cinema St. Louis, runs April 24-28 at the Hi-Pointe Backlot Theatre. The St. Louis-based Lgbtq film festival, QFest will present an eclectic slate of 28 films – 13 features (seven narratives and six documentaries) and 15 short subjects. The participating filmmakers represent a wide variety of voices in contemporary queer world cinema. The mission of the film festival is to use the art of contemporary gay cinema to spotlight the lives of Lgbtq people and to celebrate queer culture.

The 2016 QFest St. Louis begins on Sunday, April 24, and runs through Thursday, April 28. Tickets are on sale now for all shows. Cost is $12 each or $10 for students and Cinema St. Louis members with valid and current IDs. All screenings will be held at the Hi-Pointe Backlot Theatre, located at 1002 Hi Pointe Place, directly behind the Hi-Pointe Theatre. Advance sales...

It’s almost time to get your Q on, St. Louis!! The Ninth Annual QFest St. Louis, presented byCinema St. Louis, runs April 24-28th at The Hi-Pointe Backlot (1002 Hi Pointe Place)

The St. Louis-based Lgbtq film festival, QFest will present an eclectic slate of films from filmmakers that represent a wide variety of voices in contemporary queer world cinema. The mission of the film festival is to use the art of contemporary gay cinema to illustrate the diversity of the Lgbtq community and to explore the complexities of living an alternative lifestyle.

All screenings at the Hi-Pointe Backlot, 1002 Hi Pointe Place, St. Louis, Mo 63117. Individual tickets are $12 for general admission, $10 for students and Cinema St. Louis members with valid and current photo IDs.

Advance tickets may be purchased at the Hi-Pointe Backlot box office or website. For more info, visit the Cinema St. Louis site Here

http://www.cinemastlouis.