Durham, N.C. – November 19, 2025 – Southern Documentary Fund (SDF) has selected seven projects to receive a total of $15,000 each in production grants. Recipients include a diverse group of filmmakers from across the American South, with awards going to first-time, emerging, and established makers with projects in-production. The 2025 SDF Production Grant cycle is made possible thanks to generous support from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, JustFilms | Ford Foundation, and Wyncote Foundation.
“The South is home to so many talented filmmakers telling powerful and nuanced stories,” said Southern Documentary Fund Executive Director Clint Jukkala. “Funding is critical to helping these artists realize their projects, and it’s an honor to recognize these seven films, selected from an abundance of outstanding submissions.”
SDF received nearly 200 applications from all 12 states in its region, including projects from both new and established filmmakers. This year’s grantees tell a wide range of stories with themes encompassing art, politics, human rights, sports, music, climate change, and issues from deep within the American South. In addition to financial support, filmmakers will receive ongoing assistance through SDF’s Mentorship program.
“We’re thrilled to support these remarkable documentaries that capture the spirit and stories of the American South,” said Southern Documentary Fund Artistic Director Christopher Everett. “We look forward to accompanying these filmmakers on their journey as they bring their visions to life.”
Please see both our past grant recipients and other SDF sponsored projects here.
The complete list of grant winners and the focus of their documentaries are listed below.
KINFOLK | Nicole Craine (AL)
Fifteen years in the making, KINFOLK pulls back the curtain on Southern White femininity, revealing its beauty, contradictions and despair. In an attempt to break the cycles of violence, addiction and racism, photojournalist Nicole Craine documents her family’s dark past and challenging present.
STICKBALL: THE LITTLE BROTHER OF WAR | Mark Williams (OK / MS)
An underdog women’s team must come together to defeat the incumbent champions in the World Series of the oldest and bloodiest sport in America: Native American stickball. Traveling to the heart of Mississippi, the team combats cultural differences and Goliath-sized competitors in their journey to win the grand prize Drum.
THE INSTRUMENT | Zac Manuel (LA)
An aging jazz singer, grappling with the deterioration of his voice and seeking to reconcile the mysterious and troubled roots of his family, embarks on a journey with his filmmaker son to use artificial intelligence to resurrect the voice of his late father, a mesmerizing vocalist he regrets never recording.
COUNTED | Joseph East & Erica Tanamachi (GA)
COUNTED follows three activists from the American South transforming personal trauma of being pregnant in prison into collective power. We follow Pamela Winn on her journey to end prison birth. Alongside her, Tiawana Brown and Kristie Puckett — on distinct yet interconnected paths — fight to dismantle a broken system.
SISTER SENATORS | Emily Harrold (SC)
In Ruby Red South Carolina, the only five women in an overwhelmingly male and conservative State Senate defy party lines and fight for women’s rights. Their bipartisan collaboration becomes a rallying point for women across the Southeast, and a political weapon that is turned against them by their enemies.
ROMARE BEARDEN: A LIFE IN COLLAGE | Deborah Riley Draper (GA)
Decades before “representation” became a buzzword, Romare Bearden— artist, athlete, activist—waged a battle for visibility from Harlem to Negro League Baseball to the halls of the Met. ROMARE BEARDEN: A LIFE IN COLLAGE is the story of a Black man that painted a cultural rebellion that still inspires today.
REEF KEEPERS | Alyson Larson (FL), Natalie van Hoose (FL)
REEF KEEPERS follows scientists’ journey of care, connection, and defiance as they refuse to let Florida’s Coral Reef, and the communities that depend on it, slip away. Amid record-breaking heat waves, hurricanes, and loss, they aren’t just saving corals: They’re proving that stewardship and grit can turn the tide.
