Eligibility

Project Director must be 18 or older and not enrolled in an academic institution, must hold a principal creative role (director, co-director, producer, or co-producer) with prior film/television production experience, and must own copyright and hold artistic, budgetary, and editorial control of the project. The documentary must be in development or early production (not production, post-production, or completed) with an intended length of 28 minutes or longer; docuseries are not supported. Catapult does not grant to individuals -- award recipients must accept funds through a U.S.-based 501(c)(3) fiscal sponsor, which may be secured after selection.

Grant recipients must route funds through a U.S.-based 501(c)(3) fiscal sponsor; the official guidelines do not otherwise restrict applicant location.

Explanation

Objective Opportunity score 68 for catapult-film-fund-development-grant-2026, computed from official-source registry evidence and Opportunity scoring configuration.

The official guidelines describe application rounds but this review could not independently confirm the exact 2026 round open/close dates from the primary guidelines page -- verify the current round's dates before applying. Requires a 501(c)(3) fiscal sponsor; not a direct-to-individual grant despite being filmmaker-facing.

Review the official foundation source and application path before acting.

Evidence

• Title: Catapult Development Grant (Documentary Film)
• Issuing Organization: Catapult Film Fund
• Official Source: https://catapultfilmfund.org/how-to-apply/development/guidelines-and-eligibility/
• Opportunity Type: Foundation Community Program Grant
• Eligibility Summary: Project Director must be 18 or older and not enrolled in an academic institution, must hold a principal creative role (director, co-director, producer, or co-producer) with prior film/television production experience, and must own copyright and hold artistic, budgetary, and editorial control of the project. The documentary must be in development or early production (not production, post-production, or completed) with an intended length of 28 minutes or longer; docuseries are not supported. Catapult does not grant to individuals -- award recipients must accept funds through a U.S.-based 501(c)(3) fiscal sponsor, which may be secured after selection.
• Application Process: Applications are accepted in rounds via Submittable, one application per applicant per cycle; secure a fiscal sponsor before or after selection per the official guidelines.
• Geography: Grant recipients must route funds through a U.S.-based 501(c)(3) fiscal sponsor; the official guidelines do not otherwise restrict applicant location.
• Source Trust Tier: tier_1_official_primary
• Oip Reviewed Date: 2026-08-04
• Re Verification Due Date: 2026-09-01