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Now Accepting Letters of Inquiry
| | Image Description: Over a swirling, scalloped blue-green pattern, text reads: Production and Post-production Letters of Inquiry, Apply by January 16. | | |
New England-based directors and producers seeking production and post-production funds for feature-length (40+ min) nonfiction film and video projects are encouraged to apply for LEF's next grant deadline on January 16, 2026.
The Moving Image Fund's Production and Post-production grants have a two-part application process. Filmmakers interested in applying for project support must first submit a brief Letter of Inquiry (LOI).
From these initial inquiries, a smaller pool of applicants will be notified on Friday, March 6 about whether they are invited to submit a full application.
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A maximum of eight (8) grants of $15,000 each will be awarded to projects in the Production phase, and a maximum of six (6) grants of $25,000 each will be awarded to projects in the Post-production phase during LEF’s major grants review. Please note that in order to be eligible for Post-production support, the project for which you are applying must have received previous LEF support.
- Production funds may be used for shooting picture and sound, early stage editing, equipment costs, materials, travel, and staffing (creative, technical, or otherwise)
- Post-production funds may be used for editing costs, rights, online, sound mix, color correction, transfers, distribution strategy, and staffing (creative, technical, or otherwise). To be eligible for Post-production funding, the project must have already been supported by LEF at a previous stage (Early Development, Pre-production, or Production)
More information about this opportunity is available on LEF's website.
The Moving Image Fund’s eligibility criteria are:
- Projects must be long format with projected running times of 40 minutes or more.
- Primary creative personnel (director and/or producer) must reside in New England (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont).
- Projects must not be commissioned or work-for-hire, and the director/producer creative team must have creative control of the project.
- Projects with directors or producers enrolled in high school, undergraduate or master’s degree programs at the time of application are ineligible for consideration.
- Multi-channel or installation work will not be considered.
Still not sure if you're eligible? Take a look at our FAQ page.
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All Letters of Inquiry are due on
Friday, January 16 at 11:59pm
| For more instructions, visit LEF's How to Apply page. | | | |
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Virtual Info Session
To learn more about the Moving Image Fund, join LEF staff for a 60-minute virtual info session hosted via Zoom at 3:00pm ET on Thursday, December 4.
| This session will include live captioning (CART). Please let us know by Monday, November 24 if you'd like to request ASL interpretation (SVI) for this meeting. | | | | |
Heads Up for Boston-area Nonfiction Filmmakers!
The Harvard Film Study Center-LEF Fellowship, an opportunity for one Boston-area filmmaker to receive a $15,000 grant and access to FSC’s pool of production and post-production equipment and community, will be accepting applications starting in early December.
You can stay up-to-date on this and more opportunities here through LEF’s newsletter or by following LEF on Instagram.
| | LEF would like to learn from independent filmmakers in New England about where there is the most value or the most need for connection and community-building opportunities in the region. We are invested in building on our current efforts with input from the filmmaking community and appreciate your answers to the questions in this brief survey. | | |
Moving Image Fund Grantee News
| | Image Description: In this still from UNLESS SOMETHING GOES TERRIBLY WRONG, a figure with light skin and a dark T-shirt walks between a series of pipes under the sun. | | |
LEF-supported project UNLESS SOMETHING GOES TERRIBLY WRONG (dirs. Kaitlyn Schwalje, Alex Wolf Lewis; prods. Rebecca Stern, Justin Levy) will have two community screenings at the Portland Museum of Art (PAM) on Sunday, November 23 at 2:30pm and Sunday, December 7 at 3:00pm. The film, which premiered at Camden International Film Festival in September and won the Fowlie Award for Audience Favorite, is about a dedicated, motley crew working day and night to keep Portland, Maine's wastewater treatment plant running, battling aging infrastructure, funding shortfalls, public apathy, PFAS “forever chemicals,” and an unending stream of putrid odors. Filmmakers Schwalje and Wolf Lewis will be present for a post-screening Q&A at both screenings, and will be joined by representatives and employees of the Portland Water District.
LEF-supported project A BODY TO LIVE IN (dir.Angelo Madsen; prods. Madsen, Lyle Ravi Kash) will screen as part of WQ:Docs on Saturday, November 15. The film is about the luminary and controversial artist Fakir Musafar and the body modification movement that mobilized a subculture. WQ:Docs runs from November 14–17 at the Brattle Theatre.
LEF-supported project NIGHT FIGHT (dir. Khary Saeed Jones; prods. Jones, Kendra T. Field) will have a second screening at the St. Louis International Film Festival (SLIFF) on November 15. Through nonfiction and fiction, the film—which won Best Feature at the Newburyport Documentary Film Festival in September and the Karen Schmeer Excellence in Documentary Film Editing Award at IFFBoston back in April—attempts to capture a feeling of being hunted and to document the ongoing, wrenching conversations Black people in America have with their individual selves, as well as the impossible task of sharing these experiences with the filmmaker's young son.
LEF-supported project SCHOOL DISTRICT (dirs. Leigh Morfoot, Jason Morfoot; prod. Leigh Morfoot) is being distributed on PBS as part of GBH's Local Lens. Filmed fly-on-the-wall throughout the 2020-2021 academic year, the project plunges into Connecticut's Stamford Public Schools observing what it takes to meet the diverse educational needs of 17,000+ students under the most extreme circumstances.
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Are you a LEF grantee or fellow with news to share about your film? | | | | |
Upcoming Film Opportunities
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Image Description: Jewish Film Institute Logo
Jewish Film Institute Meet & Greet in Boston
On November 17, join JFI in an informal meet and greet to learn about how we support filmmakers & filmmaking through our grants, residency, & film festival. Come meet Director of Filmmaker Services, Marcia Jarmel, for an informal gathering with fellow filmmakers working with Jewish themes to learn about our programs.
Reserve a spot
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Image Description: Purple-tinted image of two people in row boats with the GBH Local Lens Logo
Submit your Film to GBH's Local Lens
GBH seeks films by filmmakers from the New England region or stories pertinent to New England audiences, who want to share their work with their viewers. With a rolling open call process, GBH is currently accepting submissions for completed non-fiction feature length, short films, and series for Local Lens.
Learn more
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Kindling Fund (Deadline: November 16)
The Kindling Fund currently awards project grants ranging from $3,000 - $7,000 (with smaller Research and Development Grants) to Maine-based artists of all career levels, who organize projects that engage audiences and the visual arts in inventive and meaningful ways. With a focus on experimentation, successful applications value unconventional engagement, critical dialogue, collaboration, and create new models for presenting artists’ work.
Learn more
| | Image Description: Bobby Anspach Studios Foundation Logo | |
Bobby Anspach Studios Foundation Grant Program (Deadline: December 30)
The Bobby Anspach Studios Foundation is proud to announce its inaugural grant program. This initiative celebrates Bobby’s vision while looking forward — supporting artists whose practices expand empathy, nurture connection, and respond to the ecological and social challenges of our time. The program will make two $50,000 grants and three $8,000 grants.
Learn more
| | Image Description: Switzer Foundation Logo | |
Switzer Fellowship (Deadline: January 5)
The Switzer Fellowship is a one-year fellowship for graduate students from diverse academic and personal backgrounds in New England and California whose career goals focus on environmental improvement. The fellowship includes a $17,000 cash award, leadership training, and opportunities for professional development.
An information session is being held on November 18th at 1 pm Pacific / 4 pm Eastern Time.
Learn more
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Film Independent Documentary Story Lab (Deadline: January 6)
The Documentary Story Lab helps directors hone their story as they dive into the editing phase of their feature documentary. Over the period of one week, directors with projects in late production/early post-production attend multiple workshops and sessions. Fellows are paired with mentors and the lab culminates in a final pitch event.
Learn more
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Artist Development Grants (Deadline: January 25)
Artist Development Grants support Vermont artists at all stages of their careers. Grants can fund activities that enhance mastery of an artist’s craft or skills or that increase the viability of an artist’s business. Funding may also support aspects of the creation of new work when the activity allows the grantee to accept a rare and important opportunity.
Applications will open soon.
Learn more
| | Image Description: Sundance Collab Logo | |
Sundance Institute Ignite x Adobe Fellowshhip (Deadline: February 12)
The yearlong Sundance Institute Ignite x Adobe Fellowship is open to emerging documentary and fiction filmmakers from across the globe between ages 18 and 25. The fellowship begins with a weeklong in-person lab at MassMoca in North Adams, MA, orienting filmmakers to the fellowship and year ahead, in addition to a $5,000 grant.
Learn more
| | Image Description: Perspective Fund Logo | |
Perspective Fund (Deadline: Rolling)
The Perspective Fund supports filmmakers and strategists for whom entrenched forces and systems are most apparent in their lives and communities, who can most acutely construct films and campaigns to respond. Areas of funding include production, impact planning and campaigns, and participant compensation.
Learn more
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Assets for Artists Fall Professional Development Workshops
Free online and in-person professional development workshops through December are available to artists of all disciplines in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island, Vermont, and Maine.
Learn more
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Artist Residency Open Calls (Deadline: Rolling)
Artist Communities Alliance (ACA) provides two types of lists to help with the residency search process.
Learn more
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Thanks for reading,
The LEF New England team
Lyda, Gen, & Matthew
LEF Foundation
PO Box 382066
Cambridge, MA 02238
617.492.5333
lef-foundation.org
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A private family foundation dedicated to the support of contemporary arts, LEF was established in 1985 with offices in Massachusetts and California. The Moving Image Fund was launched in 2001 through the LEF office in Cambridge, MA to support independent film and video artists. Since its inception, the Moving Image Fund has awarded over 500 grants to New England-based independent filmmakers with over $5.5 million in funding. The goal of LEF New England is to fund the work of independent documentary film and video artists in the region and to broaden recognition and support for their work locally and nationally. It also supports programs that highlight the rich history and ongoing legacy of innovation within New England's independent film community. The overarching goal of LEF New England's philanthropic investment is to help build a sustainable and strong community of support for artists and their work.
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