\n\tChicken & Egg Films has selected 35 filmmakers working on 29 feature documentaries for their third annual $450,000 film research and development grant.<\/p>\n
\n\tFilmmaking teams will receive either a $10,000 research grant or a $20,000 development grant to use towards their doc projects. The Chicken & Egg Films research and development grant supports women and gender-expansive filmmakers who have made at least one feature-length doc. Recipients of the grant will have access to peer support, mentorship, and relationship-building within the documentary filmmaking community.<\/p>\n
\n\tThis year\u2019s 29 grant projects spotlight urgent issues including genocide and war, LGBTQ visibility and history, journalism and democracy, sustainability, and corporate power. <\/p>\n
\n\tFilmmakers in the 2025 cohort include Tamara Kotevska (\u201cHoneyland\u201d), Chase Joynt (\u201cFraming Agnes\u201d), Ema Ryan Yamazaki (\u201cThe Making of a Japanese\u201d) and Lina Soualem (\u201cBye Bye Tiberias\u201d). Through this program, Chicken & Egg will continue to support Chicken & Egg Award recipient Jeanie Finlay (\u201cYour Fat Friend) as well as six other filmmakers from the \u2018Nest.\u2019 The remaining 77% of this year\u2019s grantees are brand new to Chicken & Egg Films.<\/p>\n
\n\tThe 29 grant recipients represent 17 countries worldwide, including Australia, Brazil, Canada, Costa Rica, France, El Salvador, India, Libya, Japan, Macedonia, Myanmar, Romania, Spain, South Korea, the U.K., Ukraine, and the U.S.<\/p>\n
\n\tGrant recipients are divided into two segments. The research grant recipients are in the ideation period, which includes identifying secondary sources, following storylines, and building foundational relationships. The development grant recipients are in a deeper exploration period, which includes securing access to core subjects and collaborators, solidifying budgets, fundraising, story development, and other tasks.<\/p>\n
\n\tAs it has become increasingly challenging to find doc funding in today\u2019s landscape, it is not surprising that there was a 22% increase in applications over the second year of the grant, totaling 363 applications from 60 countries.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cAt a time when the political climate grows increasingly hostile to independent voices, supporting early-stage documentary work is more urgent than ever,\u201d said research and development grant senior program manager Elaisha Stokes. \u201cThis grant celebrates the bold diversity of filmmakers and stories that challenge, inspire, and reflect the complexity of our world. By investing in research and development, we\u2019re helping to safeguard a pipeline of vital, untold stories \u2014 especially those that might otherwise go unsupported.\u201d<\/p>\n