Working Films is a left-of-center grantmaking organization that funds the production and promotion of films that promote left-wing political and cultural perspectives. Its aim is to “shift culture” through the creation of films that push left-of-center narratives around issues such as race, environmentalism, immigration, and abortion. ¹

Partners

Founded in 2000, Working Films boasts having funded and promoted over 900 films. It receives funding from several left-of-center grantmakers including the Ford Foundation, Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Kendeda Fund, and the Southern Partners Fund. ²

In 2014, Working Films began partnering with the Camden International Film Festival to host the Sustainable Maine program. This project aims to connect filmmakers, influencers, and nonprofits sharing a similar social change mission; as of 2023, it focused on environmental issues. ³ In 2017, Working Films partnered with Planned Parenthood Federation of America to tour Across the Line, a virtual reality simulation that purports to give an experience of “anti-abortion extremists” intimidating women seeking abortions. Their partnership focused on a tour of the southern United States. ⁴

Projects

Docs in Action

Through its Docs in Action program, Working Films offers funding and provides distribution for short documentary films that focus on selected themes. Some project areas include the immigration-themed Stories Without Borders, the anti-prison Beyond Walls, and the climate change-themed “Revisioning Recovery.” Winners in 2021 included Pen Pals, which highlighted stories of LGBT prisoners, and Belly of the Beast, a documentary about women illegally sterilized while in prison. Films are chosen for funding by member panelists; the 2023 theme was “Worker’s Rights” and the selection panel will include representatives from the United Farm Workers, Amazon Labor Union (ALU), North Carolina State AFL-CIO, and the Union of Southern Service Workers. ^{5 6}

Works-in-Progress Lab

In partnership with the Cucalorus Film Festival, Working Films is the coordinator of the Cucalorus Works-in-Progress Lab. This initiative funds the work of African-American filmmakers and offers creative strategy and publicity feedback, as well as offering public screenings, workshops, and a residency at the Cucalorus campus. The 2021 winners of the Cucalorus grant included Mother Wit, a film about “three Black trans women grieving the death of their matriarch as they fight to achieve their academic ambitions and fulfill promises they made to her.” ⁷

Impact Kickstart

In a similar vein, Working Films also hosts Impact Kickstart, a funding and marketing strategy prize awarded to filmmakers, with advantage to “underrepresented documentary directors including directors who identify as Black, Indigenous, and/or people of color (BIPOC), undocumented, LGBQ+, nonbinary, transgender, disabled, and female directors with a majority female and/or underrepresented film team.” The prize includes $60,000 in funding, networking opportunities with industry partners, and publicity campaign strategy assistance. ^{9 10}

It also collaborated on Zach Galifianakis’ “America Divided” television series with the episode “Democracy for Sale,” which highlights the purported role of monetary influence in shifting the politics of that state. In 2017, it collaborated with Divided Films to show screenings of this episode in hopes of bringing about “campaign finance reform, environmental protection, and an end to racist gerrymandering.” ¹¹  

People

Felix Endara is board chair of Working Films and senior program associate for the Foundation for a Just Society. In addition to having produced numerous films such as Kate Bornstein is a Queer and Pleasant Danger, he is also the former program coordinator at the arts think tank Robert Rauschenberg Foundation and  project coordinator of the LGBT grantmaking group Stonewall Community Foundation. ¹²

1. “About.” Working Films. Accessed August 21, 2023. https://www.workingfilms.org/about/
2. “About.” Working Films. Accessed August 21, 2023. https://www.workingfilms.org/about/
3. “CIFF Engagement Program.” Working Films. Accessed August 21, 2023. https://www.workingfilms.org/projects/ciff-engagement-program/
4. “Across the Line.” Working Films. Accessed August 21, 2023. https://www.workingfilms.org/projects/across-the-line/
5. “Announcing the 2021 Docs in Action Film Fund Recipients.” Working Films. Accessed August 21, 2023. https://www.workingfilms.org/announcing-the-2021-docs-in-action-film-fund-recipients/
6. “Docs in Action.” Working Films. Accessed August 21, 2023.  https://www.workingfilms.org/projects/docs-in-action/
7. “2023 Works-in-Progress Lab Recipients.” Working Films. Accessed August 21, 2023. https://www.workingfilms.org/2023-works-in-progress-lab-recipients/
9. “Impact Kickstart 2023.” Working Films. Accessed August 21, 2023. https://www.workingfilms.org/announcing-impact-kickstart-2023/[/note[

   North Carolina

   Working Films has directed increased attention to its home state of North Carolina, citing a political shift and the “dismantling” of the “social safety net, women’s rights, and environmental protections.”  Several of its initiatives are meant to bring attention to issues in this state, including the “Moral Movies” series, a project launched in partnership with the North Carolina NAACP. A similar project, “Civics of Justice,” was launched in 2015, and consisted of a month of multi-issue screenings, including the environmentalist film Fracking Stories. ⁸ “Moral Movies.” Working Films. Accessed August 21, 2023. https://www.workingfilms.org/projects/moral-movies/

10. “Civics of Justice.” Working Films. Accessed August 21, 2023. https://www.workingfilms.org/projects/civics-of-justice/
11. “America Divided.” Working Films. Accessed August 21, 2023. https://www.workingfilms.org/projects/america-divided/
12. “Felix Endara.” Linkedin. Accessed August 21, 2023. https://www.linkedin.com/in/felixendara/details/experience/