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Catapult Film Fund

Catapult Film Fund provides development funding to help story-driven and cinematicdocumentary films get off the ground.

$525k
Granted FY2025still arriving
17
Grants FY2025still arriving
6
States reached
$75k
Largest
01What you fundRead
02The needRead
03Your edgeRead
04Your fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What you fund
01100% classified

What you funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year — across FY2019–2024.

Arts & Culture$3.7MEnvironment$106kEducation$45kInternational$35kCommunity Improvement$25kHealth$15k
02FY2025 · 17 grants

Where the money goes

Your grants by size, and where they go.

By grant size · FY2025

  • $10k–50k14 grants · $325k
  • $50k–250k3 grants · $193k
$25,000
Median grant
6
States reached
$638k
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
Film Independent$75,000
Women Make Movies$67,500
Utah Film Center$50,000
Camera News Inc$35,000
Walking Iris Media$35,000
The Filmmaker Fund$27,500
The Ctr for Indy Documentary$25,000
Realize Impact$25,000
Women Make Movies$25,000
International Documentary Ass$25,000
Redford Center$25,000
Cinema Tropical$25,000
The Ctr for Indy Documentary$25,000
Film Forum$15,000
From The Heart Productions$15,000
02The need
03

Do your dollars go where the need is?

Each grant placed by the hardship in its grantee’s ZIP, then read against the area’s typical level.

show:

Your human-services grants (FY23–25, $45k) land where the poverty rate runs at 11%, against an area that typically sits at 11%. 44% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Your grants spread fairly evenly across need levels.

area typical 11%Realize Impact: $25k → 10%Sima Studios: $20k → 14%0%20%40%50%more need →
grant to an above-average-need area below average· circle size = grant amount

Matched: human-services grants are those whose grantee’s IRS cause code is Human Services. Placed by people below the poverty linein the grantee’s ZIP, averaged from the tracts in that ZIP; grantee ZIP can differ from where services are delivered.

Which US states your grants reach

MT
IL
NY
MA
NJ
CT
CA
UT
CO
MO
VA
NC
LA

US grants placed by each grantee’s ZIP, which can differ from where services are actually delivered. Need from public data — U.S. Census/ACS, CDC PLACES, Eviction Lab, USDA — shown as context about the area, never attributed to your giving.

03Your edge
repeat funding

Who you back again

Which organizations you funded more than once, and which you funded a single time. Each grantee is matched to its own filings.

85%of every dollar goes to organizations you’ve funded before.
$3.8M · 25 repeat orgs$671k to everyone else

And the relationships you keep tend to grow: grantees you re-up on have seen median revenue of +86% since the first grant, against 0% for the ones you funded once.

25 repeat relationships — 10 still active in FY2025, 15 since wound down; 5 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

25
27

Total granted

$3.8M
$549k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+86%
0%

Still filing today

92%
85%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 76% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $123k went to new ones.

50%100%’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
RenewedFirst-time

Where new relationships form · theme of each grantee’s first grant

’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
Arts & CultureEducationInternationalPhilanthropyHuman ServicesEnvironmentOther

First-time = a grantee’s first year in your filing window; renewed = funded in an earlier year too. As a portfolio matures the renewed share naturally climbs — once funded, an org stays “renewable” — so the signal is the years that buck it (a new-grantee intake wave). The earliest year is left-censored: relationships that predate the data read as “new.” Theme is the grantee’s IRS cause.

Backed again, and grew

  • INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY FOUNDATION INC
    7× · 2019–2025 · $810k · revenue +4%
  • WM
    WOMEN MAKE MOVIES INC
    7× · 2019–2025 · $675k · revenue +82%
  • THE CENTER FOR INDEPENDENT DOCUMENTARY INC
    6× · 2020–2025 · $360k · revenue +125%

Funded once

  • SF
    San Francisco Film Society
    one grant, 2019 · $50k · revenue -9%
  • PP
    PRINCIPE PRODUCTIONS INC
    one grant, 2019 · $35k · revenue -88%
  • KE
    KARTEMQUIN EDUCATIONAL FILMS
    one grant, 2020 · $34k · revenue -63%

Repeat = funded in two or more distinct years; growth and survival are read from each grantee’s own subsequent IRS filings.

04Your field

The map has a center of gravity: the average direction from the rest of the sector toward the organizations the foundation funds — the shape of its giving. Scoring every nonprofit along that direction surfaces the ones that look most like the portfolio. These are the closest matchesthat aren’t grantees — a resemblance in what they say they do, not a recommendation.

1
Independent Film Alliance F/K/a Stage 18
—
2
American Documentary Inc

A national non-profit media arts organization, american documentary strives to make essential documentaries accessible as a catalyst for public discourse. we collaborate with passionate filmmakers to amplify their voices, nuture the…

Arts & Culture
3
Dc Dox

Dc dox is a major international film festival in the nation's capital dedicated to promoting documentary film as a leading art form, championing new voices and innovations in non-fiction storytelling, and using film as a catalyst to engage…

—
4
San Francisco Independent Film Festival

SF IndieFest presents important independent narrative, documentary, and short films from around the world.

Arts & Culture
5
Breaking Through the Lens

Advocate for gender equality in the film industry.

Arts & Culture
6
Centre Film Festival
Arts & Culture
7
Art of Brooklyn Festival

The Art of Brooklyn Film Festival is an annual event that brings Brooklyns celebrated film and media makers together with their peers across the country and around the world. AoBFF is a filmmaker-focused event, platform and showcase for…

Arts & Culture
8
WorkingFilms Inc

Recognizing the power of film to inspire, Working Films positions documentaries to increase civic engagement and shift culture at the local, state, and national level.

Arts & Culture
9
Cinespeak
Arts & Culture
10
Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles

Devoted to a greater appreciation of indian cinema and culture by showcasing films, supporting emerging filmmakers, and promoting the diverse perspectives of the indian diaspora.

Arts & Culture
11
Dc Independent Film Festival

The DC Independent Film Festival (DCIFF) showcases and supports local and international filmmakers and their work across the genres of fiction, animation, experimental and documentary through screening, discussion, professional…

Arts & Culture
12
Baltimore Filmmakers Collective Inc
Arts & Culture

For reference, the grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is The Center for Independent Documentary Inc and the most unlike its peers is Virginia Commonwealth Universi. Resemblance is measured on each organization’s own IRS 990 mission text; it reflects how work is described, not its quality or impact.

Your grantees are a median of 23 years old; the field is 16. You back the established end — and your money leans older still.

THE FIELDby orgYOUR GRANTEESby number22%4%<5yr14%4%5–10yr19%28%10–20yr16%34%20–35yr13%26%35–55yr16%4%55yr+
THE FIELDby orgYOUR MONEYby value22%1%<5yr14%1%5–10yr19%21%10–20yr16%28%20–35yr13%48%35–55yr16%1%55yr+

The field is 22% startups (under 5 years old) — 4% of your grantees by number, and just 1% of your money.

Closures · last 5 years

The orgs you fund almost never close — 0.0% lost their exemption, against 13% of the field you don’t fund.

orgs you fund
0.0%0/56
the rest of the field
13%
240,396/1,819,509

Age = years since IRS exemption (a founding proxy). “Closed” = auto-revocation for 3 years of non-filing — a floor on closure, not proof, and bigger established orgs lapse least. Association, not causation.

04the grantee network

53 grantees tracked through their own filings, 2017–2025.

Each one resolved to its own IRS returns and tracked year by year — your grant beside their revenue from every source. Association, dated; never a causal claim.

Counted here: distinct organizations you funded across 2017–2025, not grant rows in a single year — so this will not match the grant count on the cover. 53 of the 57 grantees resolved in that span have returns of their own we could reconcile; the rest are funded organizations whose filings we could not track year by year.

4
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
19
Early backer (in before they grew)
51/53
Grantees still filing
31/53
Grew since you first funded

Where your money sits — by cause, then by grantee

INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY FOUNDATION INC — $810,450 · Arts & CultureINTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY FOUNDATION INCWOMEN MAKE MOVIES INC — $675,000 · Arts & CultureWOMEN MAKE MOVIES INCTHE CENTER FOR INDEPENDENT DOCUMENTARY INC — $360,000 · Arts & CultureTHE CENTER FOR INDEPENDENT DOCUMENTARY INCTHE FILM COLLABORATIVE INC — $225,000 · Arts & CultureTHE FILM COLLABORATIVE INCWALKING IRIS MEDIA — $220,000 · Arts & CultureWALKING IRIS MEDIAUNIONDOCS INC — $172,300 · Arts & CultureFILM INDEPENDENT — $165,000 · Arts & CultureUTAH FILM CENTER — $145,000 · Arts & Culture+25 more — $760,952 · Arts & Culture+25 moreIndependent Filmmaker Project Midwest — $120,000 · OtherIndependent …INCITE PRODUCTIONS INC — $60,000 · OtherINCITE PRODU…San Francisco Film Society — $50,000 · OtherSan Francisc…NEW ORLEANS VIDEO ACCESS CENTER INC — $48,000 · OtherNEW ORLEANS …KARTEMQUIN EDUCATIONAL FILMS — $33,700 · OtherKARTEMQUIN E…Dream of Grape Gardens — $25,000 · OtherHOMELANDS RESEARCH GROUP — $25,000 · OtherSTORYLINE INC — $20,000 · OtherRealize Impact — $25,000 · OtherSIMA STUDIOS — $20,000 · OtherVISUAL COMMUNICATIONS MEDIA — $20,000 · Other+3 more — $35,000 · Other+3 moreREDFORD CENTER INC — $130,900 · EnvironmentMEDIA COLLECTIVE INC — $80,000 · HealthTHE COLORADO COLLEGE — $25,000 · EducationAntenna — $25,000 · EducationAUBURN THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY — $20,000 · EducationInvestigative Studios Inc — $10,000 · EducationDOC SOCIETY INC — $45,000 · PhilanthropyTHE FILMMAKER FUND — $27,500 · PhilanthropyLINK GLOBAL — $35,000 · InternationalPRINCIPE PRODUCTIONS INC — $35,000 · International
Arts & Culture$3,533,702Other$481,700Environment$130,900Health$80,000Education$80,000Philanthropy$72,500International$70,000

Each org by its size and your share of it — top-left is where you’re load-bearing

25%50%75%100%$100k$1.0M$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ your share of their budgetINTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY FOUNDATION INC — $810,450 over 7y, 1.5% of budgetWOMEN MAKE MOVIES INC — $675,000 over 7y, 1.5% of budgetTHE CENTER FOR INDEPENDENT DOCUMENTARY INC — $360,000 over 6y, 1.3% of budgetTHE FILM COLLABORATIVE INC — $225,000 over 4y, 1.2% of budgetWALKING IRIS MEDIA — $220,000 over 6y, 7.0% of budgetUNIONDOCS INC — $172,300 over 6y, 2.4% of budgetFILM INDEPENDENT — $165,000 over 3y, 0.4% of budgetUTAH FILM CENTER — $145,000 over 5y, 0.2% of budgetREDFORD CENTER INC — $130,900 over 5y, 0.4% of budgetIndependent Filmmaker Project Midwest — $120,000 over 2y, 92% of budgetDOCUMENTARY EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INC — $115,000 over 4y, 2.2% of budgetMEDIA COLLECTIVE INC — $80,000 over 4y, 40% of budgetFrom The Heart Productions — $60,000 over 3y, 0.4% of budgetAFTERIMAGE PUBLIC MEDIA — $52,340 over 3y, 14% of budgetSan Francisco Film Society — $50,000 over 1y, 0.7% of budgetNEW ORLEANS VIDEO ACCESS CENTER INC — $48,000 over 2y, 2.4% of budgetSWELL FOUNDATION — $45,000 over 3y, 5.5% of budgetDOC SOCIETY INC — $45,000 over 2y, 1.1% of budgetFILM FORUM INC — $40,000 over 2y, 0.3% of budgetMETEOR FILMS INC — $40,000 over 2y, 8.8% of budgetLINK GLOBAL — $35,000 over 2y, 0.5% of budgetLEVEL GROUND — $35,000 over 2y, 9.3% of budgetPRINCIPE PRODUCTIONS INC — $35,000 over 1y, 11% of budgetMAYSLES INSTITUTE INC — $35,000 over 2y, 2.9% of budgetCAMERA NEWS INC — $35,000 over 1y, 2.8% of budgetKARTEMQUIN EDUCATIONAL FILMS — $33,700 over 1y, 0.8% of budgetRAGTAG FILM SOCIETY — $33,612 over 2y, 0.9% of budgetSOUTHERN DOCUMENTARY FUND — $30,000 over 2y, 4.1% of budgetThe Bay Area Video Coalition Incorporated — $25,000 over 1y, 0.6% of budgetTHE COLORADO COLLEGE — $25,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetHOMELANDS RESEARCH GROUP — $25,000 over 1y, 8.0% of budgetCINEMA TROPICAL INC — $25,000 over 1y, 9.9% of budgetINDEPENDENT FEATURE PROJECT INC — $25,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetVIDEO VERACITY INC — $25,000 over 1y, 2.5% of budgetAUBURN THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY — $20,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetSIMA STUDIOS — $20,000 over 1y, 1.9% of budgetBROWN GIRLS DOC MAFIA INC — $20,000 over 1y, 1.3% of budgetVISUAL COMMUNICATIONS MEDIA — $20,000 over 1y, 1.0% of budgetSATELLITE COLLECTIVE INC — $15,000 over 1y, 3.8% of budgetLoteria Film & Arts Inc — $15,000 over 1y, 7.6% of budgetThe Free History Project Inc — $15,000 over 1y, 5.4% of budgetVirginia Commonwealth Universi — $15,000 over 1y, 7.1% of budgetCREATIVE VISIONS FOUNDATION — $15,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetTALLGRASS EDUCATIONAL FILMS CO JOSEPH WINSTON — $15,000 over 1y, 19% of budgetMISSION FILMS — $10,000 over 1y, 18% of budgetPACIFIC ARTS MOVEMENT — $10,000 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetInvestigative Studios Inc — $10,000 over 1y, 5.8% of budgetHUMAN ARTS ASSOCIATION LTD — $10,000 over 1y, 60% of budget
Go grantee by grantee — a decade per org, and how each moved after you funded them

A decade per grantee — revenue shaded, your grants as bars, all rows on one timeline.

The grantmakers whose grantees overlap with yours far more than size alone predicts. Each orbits closer the stronger the alignment; the arcs between them show where they also fund each other. Here it reads as a tightly interlocked camp — most of these funders back each other's grantees too.

Chicken & Egg Films I…Perspective Media Ini…The Ford FoundationThe San Francisco Fou…Silicon Valley Commun…Harnisch Family Found…Sundance InstituteCalifornia HumanitiesThe Denovo InitiativeCinereach LtdInmaat FoundationThe Rogovy Foundation
Chicken & Egg Films IncNY32.6× affinity13 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Chicken & Egg Films Inc · Perspective Media Initiatives Inc · The Ford Foundation · The San Francisco Foundation · Silicon Valley Community Foundation · Harnisch Family Foundation · Sundance Institute · California Humanities · The Denovo Initiative · Cinereach Ltd · Inmaat Foundation · The Rogovy Foundation

Affinity is a Gamma-Poisson posterior co-funding rate, re-centered on the typical rate, so thin evidence shrinks toward no signal. A research starting point: overlap is association, not proof of shared intent.

Government reliance of your grantees

Every dot is one organization Catapult Film Fund funds. Left–right is the share of its income from government; up–down is the share from you. Bigger dots raise more. Filter to federal or a single department — and drag the year to watch it move.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%6%25%56%100%your share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →median 6%
  • The Center for Independent Documentary Inc — 6% of income from government
  • Documentary Educational Resources Inc — 1% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
0get no government money at all
6report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
0rely on government for over half their income
typical government reliance, FY20–25

Government income is each org’s traced federal awards (USASpending — grants and contracts) plus state payments (open checkbooks) as a share of its total revenue (IRS Form 990); the self-reported government-grant line (990 line 1e) is carried for cross-check: a grantee that reports government grants we could not trace to a source is left off the chart rather than shown as receiving none. An association, not a claim that your grant caused the public funding. Coverage is precision-first — a floor, not a census; state records exist for 9 states, so a grantee outside them shows no state figure (dimmed) rather than a false zero. Federal award amounts are obligations, which can span years, so a single-year share is indicative. 990 filings lag 12–24 months.

05Through Plinth

Warm introductions · Powered by PlinthPlus

How do I get to Catapult Film Fund?

Find your warmest path to Catapult Film Fund through trustees and officers whose names appear on both boards. Search for your organization and Plinth traces the shortest route it can evidence.

Each link is a name appearing on two organizations’ public IRS 990 filings, matched on that name and, where the filings support it, on location. A same-state match has geographic support, which is a second matching feature rather than confirmation that the two are one person; a cross-state one is the likeliest to be two people who share a name. Every hop shows its tier, low-confidence and distant paths are held back rather than guessed, and it is worth confirming the person before you use the introduction.

On method. Every financial figure here is read directly from IRS e-file XML — your own 990/990-PF and the multi-year returns of the 57 grantees we resolved across every year we hold, several hundred filings in all (a different count from the grant rows on the cover, which are one fiscal year)— each linked to its source. Grantee achievements and outcomes are each organization’s own program-service reporting (Form 990, Part III); we read these as association with sustained funding — the foundation is one of several forces — suppress low-confidence name matches rather than guess, and say so where a figure rests on a single grant or filing. Not everything on this page is a filed figure, and the difference matters. Filed is what you reported on your return. Official is another government record about an organization, such as a federal award or a charity register, joined by name where no shared identifier exists. Resolved is an identity we worked out where the filing named a recipient without an EIN, kept only above a measured confidence threshold. Computed is arithmetic over those, like themes, portfolio clusters and co-funder strength. Context is a statistic about a place rather than about an organization, which is what the need overlay is: it describes the area a grantee’s address sits in, not where its work lands. Inferred is drawn by a model from text, like the partnerships read out of public news and organization websites. Each is labeled where it appears. How we build these →

Generated from your IRS Form 990 e-file return for fiscal year 2025, released 2025. Filings run roughly 12–24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

Source object · view filing

More from the funding graph

The unnamed billions
grants reported with no recipient in the public record
The regranting layer
51% of grant dollars land in the regranting layer
The DAF merry-go-round
$9.7B circulates between donor-advised funds
The endowment market
who holds foundation money, and what just moved
The camps
funders cluster by geography, not ideology
By state
where grant money is based, and what stays home