Sundance Institute Announces 2024 Documentary Fund Grantees

Sundance Film Festival

United States (USA)

The Sundance Institute has unveiled the 2024 recipients of its Documentary Fund, distributing a record-breaking total of $1,450,000 to support 28 projects globally. This year's expanded fund, bolstered by new support from the John Templeton Foundation, underscores the Institute's dedication to advancing inventive and impactful nonfiction storytelling.

The Documentary Fund, made possible by the Open Society Foundations, John Templeton Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, and Sony Music Entertainment, has significantly increased its granting pool by $500,000 this year. This expansion allows for greater support of groundbreaking and socially relevant documentary projects.

Grantees for 2024 include:

Development:

• Basketball Heaven (USA) – Director/Producer: Resita Cox. A poetic portrait of the historic Black community in Kinston, North Carolina.
• Knocking on Heaven’s Door (Canada, USA, New Zealand, UK, Argentina) – Directors: Jonathan Qu, Kevin Feiyang Li. Producers: Jonathan Qu, Kevin Feiyang Li, Nicholas de Pencier. A Christian astrophysicist races to build a balloon telescope to explore dark matter.
• Stallions (Morocco) – Director: Rita Baghdadi. Producers: Rita Baghdadi, Sahar Yousefi. The dreams of stallion riders on Morocco’s coast.
• Strange Sea (Azerbaijan) – Director: Lala Aliyeva. Producer: Aysel Akhundova. An impressionistic portrait of Azerbaijan through the lens of the Caspian Sea.
• The Blue Sweater with a Yellow Hole (Ukraine, France, Czech Republic) – Director: Tetiana Khodakivska. Producers: Elena Saulich, Tetiana Khodakivska, Maxim Asadchiy. Ukrainian children’s experiences in Russian ‘re-education’ camps depicted through animation.

Production:

• #WhileBlack (USA, Canada) – Directors: Sidney Fussell, Jennifer Holness. Producers: Ann Shin, Geeta Gandbhir. The cost of going viral while Black on social media platforms.
• Afromystic (USA, Nigeria, Brazil) – Director: Seyi Adebanjo. Producers: Seyi Adebanjo, Nala Simone Toussaint, Bryan E. Glover, Felix Endara, Zackary Drucker. LGBTQ+ Yorùbá practitioners in Nigeria, Brazil, and the US seek post-colonial liberation.
• Untitled Africa Project – Director/Producer: withheld.
• Coach Emily (USA) – Director: Pallavi Somusetty. Producers: Debra Wilson Cary, Jen Gilomen, Pallavi Somusetty. A rock climbing coach trains BIPOC kids while confronting systemic racism.
• Conscious (UK) – Director: Suki Chan. Producers: Aimara Reques, Teresa Grimes. An exploration of consciousness through neuroscience and dementia.
• Dreams of a Dark Sky (India) – Director: Anmol Tikoo. Producers: Mikaela Beardsley, Raghu Karnad. Engineers and astronomers in Ladakh work to preserve the dark sky.
• The First Plantation (Barbados, USA) – Director: Jason Fitzroy Jeffers. Producer: Darcy McKinnon. A documentary on reparations and the history of Drax Hall plantation in Barbados.
• Good Fire (USA, Greece) – Directors: Roni Jo Draper, Marissa Lila. Producers: Jenn Lee Smith, Nicole Docta. The return of traditional fire practices among the Yurok people.
• House of Earth (North Macedonia, USA) – Director: Ljubomir Stefanov. Producer: Maya E. Rudolph. Pinky’s return to her Roma community and reimagining her future.
• Jaripeo (Mexico, USA) – Directors: Efraín Mojica, Rebecca Zweig. Producers: Efraín Mojica, Rebecca Zweig, Sarah Strunin. A look at queer encounters within Michoacán’s rural rodeos.

Supported by the Sundance Institute | Sony Music Vision Initiative:

• Life in the Shadows (Afghanistan, Belgium, Germany) – Director: K.D. Producer: Ilyas Yourish. The lives of students and families affected by a school massacre.
• Mother Wit (USA) – Directors/Producers: Rajvi Desai, Te Shima Brennen. The grief of Black trans women for their mentor and matriarch.
• Timepass (India, USA) – Director: Roopa Gogineni. Producer: Trevor Snapp. A filmmaker’s return to her ancestral village to confront the legacy of her grandfather.
• Untitled Philippines Project (Philippines, USA) – Director: PJ Raval. Producers: Kara Magsanoc-Alikpala, Annie Small. New feature documentary by PJ Raval.
• Walker (USA) – Director: Amy Bench. Producers: Amy Bench, Mei Kennedy, Monique Walton. A portrait of a deaf advocate and father from Baton Rouge.

Post-Production:

• Art After-Life (USA, Argentina) – Director: David Romberg. Producers: David Romberg, Rachel Dengiz, Adrian Elzy. Using AI to converse with deceased artist Osvaldo Romberg.
• Backside (USA) – Director: Raúl Paz Pastrana. Producers: Gabriella García Pardo, Patricia Alvarez Astacio. The lives of migrant workers behind the Kentucky Derby.
• Blacked Out Dreams (USA) – Director: Adeleke Omitowoju. Producer: Steven Pargett. The impact of school closures and water crises on students.
• Cais (Brazil) – Director: Safira Moreira. Producer: Flávia Santana. A filmmaker’s search for her late mother through the landscapes of Brazil.
• Hawa (France, Netherlands, Afghanistan, Qatar) – Directors: Najiba Noori, Ali Rasul Noori. Producers: Christian Popp, Hasse van Nunen. Hawa’s struggle for independence amid Taliban control.
• Leap of Faith (USA) – Director: Nicholas Ma. Producers: Nicholas Ma, Morgan Neville. Christian leaders confront societal divisions and questions of belonging.
• Vestibule (USA) – Director: Riley Hooper. Producers: Caitlin Mae Burke, Bryn Silverman. A journey with Vestibulodynia and its impact on sexual health and pleasure.

Impact:

• Songs from the Hole (USA) – Director: Contessa Gayles. Producers: Contessa Gayles, Richie Reseda, David Felix Sutcliffe. An incarcerated musician’s visual album seeking healing and peace.

The Sundance Institute’s Documentary Fund prioritizes support for artists from historically marginalized communities and aims to amplify global voices through impactful storytelling. More than half of the grant recipients are from outside the U.S., with a significant portion directed by first-time feature directors.

For more details about the Sundance Institute and its programs, visit sundance.org.