Sundance Institute’s Documentary Fund has awarded $1 million in grant money to support 23 selected independent nonfiction projects this year. With funding provided by the Open Society Foundations, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Gucci, and the Kendeda Fund, the selected projects tell stories about Indigenous People and Native Americans, transgender youth, secrets of a family lineage, people with disabilities and more, exploring a large breadth of subject matters.

Six projects are currently in development. 14 are in production, and three are in post-production.

“The stories and themes explored by this incredibly talented group of artists beautifully embody Sundance’s spirit and the mission of our program today,” said Paola Mottura, director of DFF. “These projects carry tremendous potential for narrative change and remind us of the vital importance of bold, risk-taking independent film for a healthy democracy and a thriving civil society.”

Established in 2002 with founding support from Open Society Foundations, DFP is designed to support nonfiction filmmakers around the world to produce cinematic documentaries on contemporary themes. The institute has previously funded notable films including Oscar-nominated features.

With the drastic decline in distribution deals and budgets for indie docs and commissioned docuseries, the grant is vital to the nonfiction community.

Documentary Fund for next year will open in early 2024 through an online application. Special opportunity funds are made available to offer additional support for projects addressing pressing socio-cultural issues. More information can be found on the DFF website.

Here’s the list of selected films this year:

The Beauty of the Donkey (Switzerland, France, Kosovo)
Director: Dea Gjinovci
Producers: Dea Gjinovci, Emma Lepers, Ilir Hasanaj

The Days I Would Like to Forget (Ukraine, France, Austria)
Directors: Alina Gorlova, Yelizaveta Smith, Simon Mozgovyi, Maksym Nakonechyi
Producers: Eugene Rachkovsky, Ralph Wieser, Nabil Bellahsene

Girl-Tubers (Brazil)
Director: Tali Yankelevich
Producer: Leonardo Mecchi

Looking at Ourselves (U.S.)
Director and Producer: Lourdes Portillo

My Mothers’ Tale (U.K.)
Director: Mizgin Arslan
Producers: Shirine Best, Avesta Kadire

Somebody’s Gone (U.S.)
Directors: Cyrus Moussavi, Hubert Taylor
Producer: Brittany Nugent

In production:

The 3,000 Project (U.S.)
Director and Producer: Keith McQuirter

…that’s why He made momma (U.S.)
Directors: Lendl Tellington, Salome Sykes

Adam’s Apple (U.S.)
Director: Amy Jenkins
Producers: Brit Fryer, Amy Jenkins

Life After (U.S.)
Director: Reid Davenport
Producers: Colleen Cassingham, Jess Devaney

Listening to the World (Ukraine, Germany, Sweden)
Director: Yelizaveta Smith
Producers: Olga Beskhmelnytsina, Eugene Rachkovsky

Niñxs (Mexico)
Director: Kani Lapuerta Laorden
Producer: Suleica Adriana Pineda Rodríguez

Our Seeds (Turkey, Germany)
Director: Erhan Arık
Producers: Meryem Yavuz, Manuel Rees, Frank Carsten Walter

Powwow People (U.S.)
Director: Sky Hopinka (Ho-Chunk/Pechanga)
Producers: John Cardellino, Adam Piron (Kiowa/Mohawk)

Redlight to Limelight (India)
Director: Bipuljit Basu
Producer: Nilotpal Majumdar

Remaining Native (U.S.)
Director: Paige Bethmann (Haudenosaunee)
Producers: Paige Bethmann, Jessica Epstein, Judd Erhlich

Untitled Yemen Project (Yemen, Netherlands, U.S.)
Directors and Producers: Sara Ishaq, Sonia Kennebeck

When They Were Here (U.S.)
Directors: Ivan MacDonald (Blackfeet), Ivy MacDonald (Blackfeet)
Producers: Ivan MacDonald, Mridu Chandra, Jessica Jane Hart

Widow Champion (Kenya)
Director: Zippy Kimundu
Producers: Zippy Kimundu, Heather Courtney

Will They Ever Come Back? (Colombia)
Director: Ángela Carabalí
Producers: Sandra Tabares-Duque, Ángela Carabalí

Post Production:

Ride with Delivery Workers (U.S.)
Director: Jing Wang
Producers: Jing Wang, Dr. Do Jun Lee, Annie Berman, Nicholas Wong

Untitled (Myanmar)
Director and Producer: Min Min Hein

Untitled Uvalde Documentary (U.S.)
Director: Anayansi Prado
Producers: Anayansi Prado, Mary Recine

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