Friends, 

 

This month, we are re-posting a brilliant call to arms by Loira Limbal at Firelight Media. You know the old refrain - why can’t I find your documentary? Well it’s not because your film isn’t great. It's not that there is no audience for it. It's just been buried. And friends, we need to change that. Take it away Loira: 

 

Here’s why you can’t stream that powerful documentary you heard about:

• Its content (likely historical, social-issue-related, and/or politically charged) does not appeal to a commercial streamer, so its distribution rights remain indefinitely available — and the film unavailable.
• It was once available to stream, but the music rights, archival footage rights, and/or distribution rights have expired, and the filmmaker cannot afford to renew them independently.
• It was created for public media distribution, and now the whole public media system in the U.S. is facing extinction.

In these examples, the film’s availability is typically limited by the short-term interests of its original distributor. After the distributor’s marketing and awards campaign has ended (if the filmmaker is so lucky to receive either), after the film is buried in the streamer’s catalogue, after our collective attention is directed elsewhere, there’s little incentive for the distributor to renew rights. So the film remains the property of the streamer but is inaccessible to the public, or the rights revert to the filmmaker, who must navigate independent distribution with little to no resources to do so.

 

So much vital storytelling and cultural work has been lost due to short-term investments and mile-high paywalls. In the rush to be included in the so-called industry, I fear we — that is, independent documentary filmmakers, and particularly those who are Black, Brown, and Indigenous — didn’t really stop to ask: included in what, exactly? I say this not only as a filmmaker, but as a field builder. 

In the attempt to adapt the documentary production and distribution process into the frenetic, digital-first model of today’s commercial streamers, so much ground has been lost. We collectively accepted that these short-term investments are just the way things are now, and in doing so, we helped normalize them.

 

But what if we stopped accepting this as the norm? What if we refused to treat scarcity, gatekeeping, and invisibility as inevitable? What if we reclaimed documentary — not as content but as culture, resistance, and ancestor work?

 

We have the power to reimagine this field, to center care over clicks, legacy over trends, and community over capital. It begins with refusing to accept a system that was never built for us and building something better in its place.

 

What if we scale the wall, grab some history from up top, and toss it back down to our people? What if we demand that vital cultural works — works created by us, for us, in our own image — remain free and accessible? Call it grassroots, call it bootleg, call it appropriation — call it distribution by any means necessary.

 

Yes! Thank you Loira. You can learn more about Firelight Media and their team right here. We’d recommend you sign up to the Colour Congress community here where this article was published in full and some of the most astute conversations about the future of our field are taking place. 

 

Yours with love and rockets,

 

Team Doc Society 

 

Communities everywhere are invited to host a screening and select the films that resonate most with their local needs and interests. Screenings will run for a limited time, from September 30 to November 20, 2025.

Learn more and book your screening here!

 

We are proud to support Indigenous-led storytelling that sparks dialogue and drives meaningful change.

The Indigenous Impact Alliance is a powerful example of a community-centered initiative supported by the Doc Society Climate Story Unit. Five groundbreaking Indigenous-led documentaries are coming together for an unprecedented collaborative impact screening tour that prioritizes community leadership and engagement.

 

The Indigenous Impact Alliance brings together the award-winning films Yintah, Singing Back the Buffalo, Sugarcane, Remaining Native, and Bring Them Home for community-led screenings across Turtle Island and beyond.

 

This is more than a tour. It is a call to gather, reflect, and take action. Each film offers a unique perspective on Indigenous resilience, cultural preservation, and sovereignty, while together, they amplify collective voices for change.

 

Meet the films changing the conversation about Indigenous experiences:

• Yintah - A decade-long chronicle of the Wet’suwet’en Nation’s fight for sovereignty over ancestral lands.
• Singing Back the Buffalo - Indigenous visionaries rematriating buffalo to heal both land and people.
• Sugarcane - An investigation into abuse and missing children at an Indian residential school sparks a reckoning on the nearby Sugarcane Reserve.
• Remaining Native - A coming-of-age story that connects past boarding school trauma with present-day healing through the medicine of running.
• Bring Them Home - A small group of Blackfoot people return wild buffalo to ancestral lands, restoring culture, land, and community healing.

Nuestra Tierra (Landmarks), the first documentary by celebrated filmmaker Lucrecia Martel (La Ciénaga, Zama), premiered at Venice and went on to Toronto International Film Festival, and most recently the Camden International Film Festival. The film will continue it’s tour at the New York Film Festival on October 7 & 8 before screening at London Film Festival in the fall. The film was supported through the new Doc Society Lannan fund. 

 

 When 68-year-old Indigenous activist Javier Chocobar was killed while resisting forced eviction from his community’s land, the crime exposed centuries of systematic dispossession in Argentina. Lucrecia Martel combines courtroom footage with extraordinary recreations where community members restage the killing in meticulous detail, disrupting conventional notions of testimony and truth. With chilling precision, Martel reveals how anti-Indigenous rhetoric draws its power from colonial structures that persist today, creating both a murder trial document and an indictment of ongoing erasure.

Produced by Benjamín Domenech, Santiago Gallelli, Matías Roveda, Joslyn Barnes, Javier Leoz, and Julio Chavezmontes the film is “filled with flashes of visual splendor, as the camera rises to a bird’s eye view to reveal the scope of the land in question, reminding us that what’s at stake is not only an entire people’s culture, but nature itself.” (The Hollywood Reporter)

We’re proud to have supported four projects having premieres at this year’s BFI London Film Festival: 

• BFI Doc Society Made of Truth Fund supported ‘Beyond the Rush’ will screen as part of the ‘Roots and Branches’ shorts programme on October 8th and 10th. The film creatively portrays a once thriving Caribbean community in Luton, England. 
• The World Premiere of ‘Super Nature’ directed by Ed Sayers, supported by the BFI Doc Society Features Fund, will illuminate screens on October 12th and 14th offering a spellbinding visual and auditory experience of nature and the wildlife around us.
• Lucrecia Martel’s Nuestra Tierra (Landmarks) graces UK screens for the first time on October 16th as part of the festival’s Official Competition, bringing Martel’s singular voice to non-fiction, exploring Argentina’s long history with colonialism and land dispossession. 
• Seeds will have its UK Premiere on October 11th in the Documentary Competition, a cinematically stunning watch on the big screen with a gentle power bringing us into the lives of Black farmers in the American South.

Join us on October 15 for this talk showcasing funding opportunities for Championing Immersive Storytelling. The heads of three BFI funds will discuss the scope of their funds and the options available to producers and artists working with immersive media.

BFI Doc Society Features Fund supported The Shadow Scholars is now available on Channel 4’s on demand service. Directed by Eloise King & produced by Lammas Park & White Teeth Films.  

 

Professor Patrcia Kingori explores Kenya’s essay mills supplying work for students globally. Thousands of educated but underemployed Kenyans earn from this billion-dollar industry undermining education’s integrity. 

Doppelgängers³ lands this fall with screenings across Europe, blending film, theory, and performance to explore identity, queerness, and outer space. Catch it in London (ICA – Sept 21, Barbican – Oct 29), Bremen (Oct 25), Edinburgh (Oct 29), and its Italian premiere in Bologna. More dates coming soon, stay tuned. \uD83D\uDE80

 

Doppelgängers³ follows artist and educator Dr. Nelly Ben Hayoun-Stépanian on a wild, genre-bending mission to build a new civilization on the moon. Joined by her doppelgängers, she challenges systems of power, borders, and identity through a bold mix of science, politics, and imagination. 

A Want In Her by Myrid Carten hits cinemas across the UK and Ireland on October 10th, with tickets on sale now. Don’t miss special preview screenings featuring in-person Q&As with the director on October 2 at Picturehouse Central, October 3 at Bertha DocHouse, and October 4 at Kiln Theatre. Screenings are also confirmed at The Light Cinemas, Edinburgh Filmhouse, Glasgow Film Theatre, and Tyneside Cinema. More dates to be announced soon.

 

When her mother disappears in Ireland, artist Myrid Carten returns from London to search for her. The journey pulls her into a web of family feuds, a disputed house, and a past that threatens to consume them all - including herself. A Want In Her is an intimate, first-person exploration of the cost of love and the struggle to break free.

‘Built By Sound’ a mixed-reality experience supported by BFI Doc Society Fund explores how British South Asian communities in the 1970s and ’80s found joy in defiance, in community and in music. Scripted by Nikesh Shukla, Built by Sound is a tribute to the power of collective memory as a force against racism and erasure. The immersive work will be on show 21 Nov - 14 Dec 2025 at Bradford 2025 UK City of Culture. Come for the bass. Stay for the truth - tickets here.

Nesa Azimi’s Driver and Alina Simone’s Black Snow had their broadcast premieres on POV on PBS earlier this month. You’re in luck! Because you can catch them streaming. Be sure to watch Driver and Black Snow on PBS and have a peek “Behind the Lens” to hear from Nesa and Alina.

 

Driver, directed and produced by Nesa Azimi, produced by Ines Hofmann Kanna and Nicolas Borel. After losing everything, Desiree Wood takes a second lease on life as a long-haul trucker. While she struggles to balance life on the road with her ambitions as the head of a driver-led movement run from the cab of her truck, Desiree and her sisterhood of truckers rally against the crushing forces of an industry that is indifferent to their survival.

 

Black Snow, directed and produced by Alina Simone, produced by Kirstine Barfod. In a remote Siberian coal town, homemaker-turned-journalist Natalia Zubkova investigates an abandoned mine fire releasing toxic gas into residential homes. When her reporting goes viral, government officials launch an aggressive cover-up campaign, putting her directly in their crosshairs.

 

The BFI Doc Society team are hosting Morning Brews, our regular online coffee mornings for UK documentary talent, where we will answer any of your questions about our funds, whether general or project-specific. These hour-long gatherings will also allow you to get feedback from your peers, and learn about other filmmakers’ projects and challenges. 

 

These sessions will happen every other week and will replace the weekly 1-2-1 advice slots, which are coming to an end in August. The Morning Brews will accommodate max 10 people per session. Sign up and keep an eye out on the next ones at bfi.docsociety.org/talent

Bolton Film Festival, 2 October
We’re pleased to once again collaborate with Film Hub North on talent outreach activity in Bolton. Join us on Thursday 2 October for a BFI Network showcase, including our Made of Truth funded shorts Adura Baba Mi and Howls to the Harbour, as well as an info roundtable where we’ll be joined by the latter film’s director Christian Cargill. 

 

BFI London Film Festival, 14 - 15 October
Are you a BFI LFF Industry passholder? Then join us on Tuesday 14 October, 17:00 - 18:30 in Picturehouse Central, where we’ll be hosting an industry happy hour alongside documentary partners Sheffield DocFest, Scottish Documentary Institute, Documentary Film Council and Grierson Trust. Come raise a glass and celebrate non-fiction filmmaking with us! Booking advised. 

 

Also at London Film Festival: the BFI Doc Society team will be available for open access 1-2-1 advice sessions on Wednesday 15 October from 09:30 - 13:30 in the Picturehouse Central Mezzanine Bar. Info will be available nearer the time, and advance booking will be required.

 

Folkestone Documentary Festival - 24 October
BFI Doc Society, alongside Screen South, is once again collaborating with Folkestone Documentary Festival on their Industry Day on Friday 24 October, 10:00 - 18:00. If you want to find out more about the documentary film industry and meet with other film creatives and potential collaborators, then this jam-packed day of panels, filmmaker conversations and networking is for you. Tickets for the full day are only £5, and limited 1-2-1 slots will be available to book for ticket holders. 

All info: bfi.docsociety.org/talent 

Join BBC Climate Creatives online.. 

The BBC’s flagship Climate Creatives is back for 2025 and we invite you to join in virtually on Tuesday 7th October. Brought to you by BBC Academy Live, the event is to spark and inspire more and better climate storytelling from the creative sector. The key theme for 2025 is LIVING THROUGH CHANGE.  As we see the world shift before our eyes in so many profound ways - from AI to climate change – we’ll be exploring what this means for the stories we tell and how we tell them. 

 

CPH:FORUM Applications Now Open! 

Our friends at CPH:DOX are seeking projects for their renowned Forum.

At CPH:FORUM, top producers and highly acknowledged directors from all over the world take the stage to pitch 32 carefully selected projects of documentary features and series in the intersection of non-fiction, fiction, visual art, journalism and science. Besides project presentations, CPH:FORUM offers pitch preparation and highly tailored one-to-one meetings between the presenting teams, potential co-production partners and interested financiers and distributors.” Learn more and apply here before the deadline on November 5.

 

DocsBarcelona 2026 call for submissions

Our friends at DocsBarcelona just opened submissions for its 29th edition, running May 7-17, 2026—ten days celebrating the power of non-fiction storytelling in one of Europe's most vibrant cultural capitals.

The festival seeks feature-length documentaries produced from January 2025 onwards. Early bird submissions run September 15 - October 31, followed by the regular deadline November 1-15. DocsBarcelona Pro opens December 9 for projects in development.

 

This is your chance to join a festival renowned for championing bold documentary voices and fostering meaningful connections between filmmakers and audiences. More info here: DocsBarcelona Submissions.

 

Apply for Impact Campaign Funding

Working Films’ Impact Kickstart is now open for applications. Designed to support underrepresented filmmakers with feature-length projects that can spark action on pressing social issues, the program provides impact campaign funding between $10,000–$20,000, as well as mentorship and strategic guidance. Now in its eighth year, Impact Kickstart offers filmmakers the tools, partnerships, and cohort-based support needed to build powerful engagement campaigns and amplify their films’ reach. Learn more and apply here.

 

Gotham Week Expo

Join The Gotham for the 2025 Gotham Week Expo, taking place Monday, September 29 - Thursday, October 2nd at Soho Works 10 Jay in Brooklyn, NY! Gotham Week Expo unites partners from The Gotham’s Expanding Communities initiative to provide community and discussions on important topics for film and media creators, as well as resources for nonprofit media organizations.

Expo Sessions include Future-Proofing Careers, Future-Proofing Organizations, Case Studies with Film Offices, and a Keynote with Director Bill Condon! Additionally, Expo will include a showcase of nonprofit partners, colleges, and universities.

RSVP for free here. 

We are proud to announce the release of our new impact case study, Drilled, supported by the Doc Society Climate Story Fund.  In an era of climate chaos, disinformation, and democratic backsliding, climate accountability journalism is more essential than ever. Enter Drilled: founded by Amy Westervelt in 2017, what began as a podcast has grown into a global multimedia project exposing the systems driving the climate crisis. Drilled has:

• Reached 1.4M+ listeners, 40K readers, and 75K+ followers
• Published 12 investigations (10 of them cross-border)
• Partnered with 10+ global outlets including Grist, Rolling Stone, and ProPublica
• Built a network of 18 reporters across 18 countries

From podcasts, TV/video, and an upcoming book (next year!), to training thousands of journalists, connecting experts, and adding hundreds of documents to the public record, their work is shaping lawsuits, legislation, academia, public understanding and more accountability reporting across the globe. With decades of experience, they stay with the story, shaping narratives and serving as a validator...and as you'll learn here, they really are just getting started. Watch the full video here

The Mumbai Koli Project spotlights the city’s original fisherfolk, the Koli community - and their evolving relationship with the sea, while encouraging Mumbaikars to make more sustainable, seasonal, and inclusive seafood choices.

 

Director Sarvnik Kaur and her team have turned their story of two fishermen friends, one rooted in tradition, the other leaning into tech - into a living, breathing initiative responding to Mumbai’s rapidly shifting seascape.  Supported by Doc Society’s Climate Story Fund and in collaboration with The Locavore, the impact team is bringing the film’s message to life through:

• Curated dinners featuring lesser-known local fish
• Community screenings
• Open calls for artists and chefs to tell Koli stories

The project builds bridges between urban consumers and the coastal communities who’ve sustained Mumbai for generations.“To me, success is when Against the Tide becomes more than a film - used as a tool to support coastal rights, provoke public discourse, and challenge policy built on extraction,” says Sarvnik.

 

Watch our IG Live with Sarvnik, Ganesh, and chef Thomas Zacharias here!

Last Saturday's screening of Delikado brought together audiences from the Philippines and beyond for a powerful discussion about land defenders under threat in Palawan. Director Karl Malakunas joined environmental defenders and documentary’s protagonist Tata Balladares and Bobby Chan from PNNI to discuss the urgent intersection of climate change, biodiversity loss, and human rights. Part of the Active Vista Human Rights Festival and Doc Society's Global Climate Playlist partnership with Kinema, the event showed how climate stories spark real dialogue when communities gather to watch and discuss. 

Up next: RAÍZ screens October 12th, with registration already open on Kinema. The playlist features 10 climate-focused films available through January 2026, plus monthly community screenings and the option to host your own events.

HUGE congrats all round to the incredible teams behind the Grierson Award-nominated documentaries!! Grand Theft Hamlet (Best Popular Culture Documentary), Undercover: Exposing the Far Right (Best Single Documentary – Domestic), Sugarcane (Best Single Documentary - International) and Nocturnes (Best Science and Natural History Documentary). 

 

We’re delighted to see these powerful films receive well-deserved recognition for their creativity, depth, and impact. Grand Theft Hamlet and Undercover were supported by the BFI Doc Society Features Fund, while Sugarcane and Nocturnes were backed by the Climate Story Fund. These nominations highlight the importance of bold, socially engaged storytelling and the incredible talent behind it.

The Grierson Awards ceremony takes place on Tuesday 18 November at the Roundhouse in London. Tickets are now on sale and can be booked here.

 

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