Impact Partners

Impact Partners

OVERVIEW:  Through grants to filmmakers and a fellowship program for emerging filmmakers, Impact Partners supports independent documentary filmmaking that addresses contemporary social issues.

IP TAKE:  Impact Partners funds 10-12 documentary projects per year in amounts up to $700,000. Its criteria are quite broad, so independent filmmakers with strong storylines and artistic visions will be well-served by applying.

PROFILE: Created in 2007, Impact Partners was founded by Dan Cogan and Geralyn Dreyfous. The organization seeks to fund “independent documentary storytelling that entertains audiences, engages with pressing social issues, and propels the art of cinema forward.” It supports individual filmmakers through grants and a fellowship program; it also supports other granting organizations as well.

Impact Partners funds 10-12 documentaries per year with grants ranging from $30,000 to $700,000, though most fall between $100,000 and $250,000. Films may be in any stage of production, but a video sample is required to apply. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis, and must include a treatment describing the project, a budget, a video sample, and a signed application form. Impact seeks "projects that tell strong, cinematic stories, explore the urgent issues and questions of our time, and have a clear point of view and artistic vision."

Impact Partners also offers the Impact Partners Emerging Producers Fellowship. The fellowship includes a yearlong program of workshops in New York with established documentary filmmakers and a $1000 stipend. Applicants must have previously worked on a documentary film in a key position such as producer, line producer, co-producer or associate producer, but not served as producer for more than five full-length features. Applicants must also be nominated by a key film crew member with whom they have worked in the past. Further information about how to apply is available here.

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