The Redford Center

06/10/2026

What happens when Black men are given space to breathe?

Set among the California redwoods, the short film ‘Boyz N The Wood: Resilience in the Redwoods’ follows a group of Black men (Boyz N The Wood) reflection and community through time spent outdoors.

It’s a story about brotherhood and belonging that reinforces a simple and important idea: “nature is for us.”

This is the first film in Our Nature Connection program, a short film series spotlighting REI Cooperative Action Fund grantees whose work reinforces the belief that we are nature, inseparable and interdependent.

🎬: The 3-part series kicks off next Wednesday, June 18th on our official YouTube channel.

🔗: Subscribe to our channel to see the full film: https://ow.ly/mMNp50Za5Gb

05/19/2026

Calling all climate fiction writers (and anyone else interested in environmental storytelling)!

We’re excited to invite you to join us on May 27 for Tales from Our World: Inspiring Climate Narratives, a free virtual workshop we’re co-hosting with NRDC’s Rewrite the Future and The Black List designed to inspire writers and storytellers engaging with climate and environmental themes.

Not a fiction writer? That’s ok! We’d love to see anyone interested in environmental storytelling, fictional narrative development, or community-centered climate stories in attendance. If that sounds like someone you know, pass this opportunity along.

Together, we’ll explore how real-world nonfiction and community-driven solutions can inspire rich fictional narratives, hear directly from the filmmakers of the Emmy-nominated documentary Bring Them Home / Aiskótáhkapiyaaya, and more.

Can’t make the live event? Fear not. Everyone who signs up will receive the full recording and additional workshop resources afterward.

Reserve your spot here: https://ow.ly/TP4t50Z1gzF

05/18/2026

Huge congratulations to the team behind Redford Center Grantee Black Snow on its Emmy nomination for Best Documentary!! This is well-deserved recognition for such a powerful and deeply impactful film.

We also want to celebrate the incredible impact work conducted by filmmakers after the film’s completion. By creating shorter cuts of the film for scientific audiences, collaborating directly with researchers and environmental advocates, and helping connect communities working on coal pollution issues around the world, the Black Snow team has expanded the film’s reach far beyond traditional screenings.

Through their continued efforts, the filmmakers and their collaborators are now contributing to real-world conversations and solutions around coal pollution and public health, including work addressing the effects of coal toxins in the United States. Along the way, they have also helped support Natalia on her journey toward asylum while ensuring her story continues to inspire action worldwide.

Watch the full case study on YouTube to learn how Black Snow helped connect a remote story of coal pollution to communities, scientists, and advocates working toward change around the world: https://ow.ly/T75y50Z0oC6

05/14/2026

If you couldn’t quite find the time to finish your application for a Redford Center grant, we’ve got some great news: we’re extending our application deadline to 11:59pm PST, May 17!

Our cohort-based grant program follows a 12-month fellowship model that combines funding with community, mentorship, and long-term support to give your film the resources it needs. We’re giving out $40,000 to each selected project.

Selected grantee filmmakers will receive:

• $40,000 in funding
• A cohort of peers working across the field
• Direct access to advisors, industry experts, and mentorship
• Travel support to attend our Fellowship Summit
• A pathway to additional funding in 2027

Learn more and apply at https://www.redfordcenter.org/work/redford-center-grants/

05/13/2026

Here they are! The 2026 Nature Connection Pitch Finalists!

These filmmakers will take the stage at DC/DOX on June 13 to pitch their short documentary films that explore powerful, solutions-driven ways people and communities are reconnecting with nature.

Meet the finalists:

• Sing Peak | Kristy Hyunsoo Choi (Director)

• Te Mana o Teao (The Strength of the World) | Mahai Soler (Co-Director), Martín Kingman (Co-Director), María José Calderón(Producer)

• Companion of the Setting Sun | Isabela Zawistowska (Director), Chamberlain Staub (Producer)

• El Oso y Volcán | Micah Dudash (Co-Director), Javier Pineda (Protagonist)

• Croom Corridor | Jamaica Kalika (Director, Producer)

In addition to in-person training and workshops, travel, accommodations, and festival passes, and the opportunity to present to a panel of industry leaders, four teams will receive a $5,000 grant, and our grand prize winners will receive a $30,000 grant to continue working on their film!!

We can’t wait to see their pitches at DC/DOX this June in the nation’s capital! Read more about the films at redfordcenter.org/work/nature-connection.

Restoring humanity’s connection to nature one story at a time

04/30/2026

Only two weeks left to apply for a grant from The Redford Center! If this has been something you’ve been wanting to do, now’s the time to wrap up that application.

Selected filmmakers will receive a $40,000 grant towards their project in the first year of the grants cycle, an invitation to apply for a second year of funding, a cohort of peers, attendance at the 2027 filmmaker summit, and more. We’re excited to see what you’ve been pouring your heart and soul into!

Learn more and apply today at redfordcenter.org/grants

04/28/2026

Watch our full case study to see how Bring Them Home / Aiskótáhkapiyaaya became a force for change: https://youtu.be/inmFiLqHNr8

Huge congratulations to the team behind Redford Center Grantee Bring Them Home / Aiskótáhkapiyaaya on two Emmy nominations for Outstanding Writing and Outstanding Music Composition in the Documentary category!! A special honor for a beautiful film.

In addition, we want to celebrate the extensive impact work that the film team at Thunderheart Films and their partners within the Blackfeet Nation conducted after the film was finished: screening the film far and wide outside of festivals so that real communities and policymakers can see it, creating educational curriculum to teach students who may want to take care of buffalo on their own land one day, building relationships within the Blackfeet Nation that didn’t previously exist, and so much more.

By creating this film and making a concerted effort to share resources with the Blackfeet nation, the folks behind Bring Them Home / Aiskótáhkapiyaaya have continued to create impact where it matters most: with the people and communities at the heart of the story.

04/22/2026

Behind every film that changes how we see our planet, there's a filmmaker who gave everything to make it. This , we're celebrating these heroes by giving something back: the resources and support they deserve through our grants program.

Now in our tenth year of Redford Center Grants, we’re increasing our funding per selected film to $40,000 to help our grantee filmmakers get the funding they need to keep working on their projects. Moreso, our grants program has evolved into more of a fellowship model designed to support filmmakers beyond funding, offering industry connections, visibility, supported advisory, and so much more.

Over the past decade, we’ve supported 60 projects and awarded more than $2 million in funding. Sound like something you’d like to be a part of?

Learn more and apply at redforedcenter.org/grants (link in bio).

04/14/2026

Interested in a grant from The Redford Center, but not sure if your project is the right fit? Here are the types of projects we’re looking for:

Redford Center Grants support documentary filmmakers working on environmental stories that are grounded in real-world impact—whether that’s highlighting solutions, shifting narratives, or supporting communities on the frontlines of environmental change.

Qualifying projects include new and ongoing nonfiction feature length films or docuseries.

We welcome applications for projects at any stage of production. To be eligible, projects must have some sample footage and must not yet be picture locked. Applying team members must include the director and at least one U.S.-based filmmaker.

This year’s cohort will receive $40,000 in funding, along with ongoing support through our fellowship model, including virtual learning sessions, in-person Summit, fiscal sponsorship acceptance things like mentorship, industry connections, and a community of peers working on their own film projects.

To learn more, click the link below.

Supporting environmental filmmakers and frontline stories that drive solutions for people and the planet