During 2020, we witnessed a series of overlapping crises from the Covid-19 pandemic to the racial uprisings after George Floyd and Breonna Taylor’s murders at the hands of the police. Recognizing the need to support creatives and storytellers in this moment, BGDM launched the Black Directors Fellowship and the Sustainable Artist Fellowship. Both aimed to support filmmakers at a turning point in their creative or professional development, whose craft, storytelling ability, and unique point of view met their ambition, perseverance, and clarity of purpose. In our inaugural year, we awarded 5 BGDM Members with a total of $50,000 in funding and six months of mentorship and connections. Our second year, we returned with an emphasis on the community building aspect of this program to ensure our Fellows thrived with a sense of belonging, purpose, safety, and strength.

Unfortunately, we face similarly devastating and challenging times now. We know many are struggling within the shifting documentary landscape as we face increasing, relentless attacks on diversity, justice and freedom of speech. Now, we are once again reminded of the power and importance of creatives and storytellers that use their platforms to advocate for marginalized communities, speak truth to power, and uplift a bold vision for our collective liberation.

Although scaled back, we’re excited to announce the 2025 edition includes an unrestricted $5,000 grant, up to $2,500 professional development stipend, and community program offerings. Our goal is to support three early/mid-career documentary filmmakers who prioritize impact and sociocultural change through their work and activism. Applications are open to BGDM members only; if you are not yet part of BGDM but would like to join, please fill out this form.

We want to thank the Michael Latt Legacy Fund for supporting the fellowship.

Summer/Fall 2025 Edition

Application deadline: April 30. (*Please note that due to the anticipated volume of applications, we will not be providing any extensions.)
Application fee: sliding scale of $15-30. The amount you pay will not affect the decision-making process.
Fellowship duration: June 2025 - November 2025

Fellowship Components:

• Unrestricted $5,000 grant
• Up to $2,500 stipend for creative or professional development. This will be determined on a case-by-case basis and can look like attending a festival or industry networking event, participating in a training or creative enrichment opportunity.
• Two project-specific impact consulting sessions with a dedicated advisor
• Opportunity to participate in BGDM programs such as the MafiaMind, Pause & Play, and In the Mix programs
• Teach-in on a topic of your choice
• Community building via peer-to-peer mentorship
• Hands on personal, creative, and professional development support by BGDM’s program staff

Eligibility

We are seeking to support artists that are:

• The director or producer of the project they are applying with
• Early to mid-career: BGDM defines this as artists who have between 3-6 years of experience as a director or producer, and have publicly screened or distributed at least 1 feature or 2 shorts.
• Demonstrate a creative practice in documentary filmmaking, whether in features, shorts, series, hybrid, animation, or experimental.
• Demonstrate a history of and commitment to using filmmaking for impact, advocacy and/or activism
• Applying with a project that has clear ties to social justice themes and issues
• In need of financial support for their personal and professional practice

A note on commitment

These are in-depth, ambitious Fellowship programs, so we ask applicants to come prepared to make a commitment to themselves, to each other, and to the process we’ve developed in order to ensure an impactful Fellowship year. Selected Fellows are expected to be in regular communication with BGDM staff, contribute to the curation and implementation of their teach-in, attend regular fellowship meetings and the events listed above, and to follow through on their commitment to the BGDM community. We thank applicants in advance for their understanding and enthusiasm for this unique opportunity.

At the close of the Fellowship, we’ll ask fellows to share a feedback survey and video testimonial to be used for program evaluation and qualitative measures of success.