As of January 2023 Field of Vision will become an independent nonprofit.

Field of Vision began seven years ago, and I am extremely proud that we will now move forward on our own as a steadfast and sustainable organisation.

Our new future will secure Field of Vision’s long-term sustainability.

Our driving force is, and will remain, our commitment to artists and artistry. Our belief remains that documentary is an art form, and one in which some of the most creative, expansive, and ambitious work is created. We will maintain our focus on developing and supporting artists who are both beginning and evolving their artistic practice. We will continue to protect and grow the vital space that artists require to create boundary pushing work across film, journalism, and art, the three core mediums we support. And we remain dedicated to artistic form, journalistic credibility, political consciousness, cinematic innovation, equitable representation, and filmmaker advocacy.

We have always referred to Field of Vision as “filmmaker driven”. A larger number of our team are skilled filmmakers, editors, directors and producers themselves, and we have always invited input into the into the organisation from the filmmakers we work with. Many of our best ideas have arrived through the consultation and input from our filmmakers. That will remain the same, we want Field of Vision to be a place for filmmakers by filmmakers.

We have some funding in place that ensures our team, and our ability to fund work as we always have done, remains in place. But we will also be seeking out new partners, organisations and individuals to support us, which will be a new venture for us. So, we hope you will support us in our ability to create further stability and advancement for the filmmaking community that we serve.

We know that access to grants is the most important source of funding for filmmakers, and our commitment to providing that support continues. Likewise, our commitment to funding and distributing short films. Over the last few years, in our path towards our independence, we created different avenues to bring in financial support for Field of Vision. One area has been investing in films. It was essential to us that while operating in this space that we upheld our values and were able to create equitable ways of working with filmmakers. We are pleased to have been able to maintain that balance, saw great success in this area, and we intend to continue to fund this way with a new investment fund.

IF/Then joined Field of Vision in 2020, and it's been an honor and a joy to see their work flourish and grow under the incredible leadership of Caitlin Mae Burke and Merrill Sterritt. Their essential work providing funding and mentorship continues to expand and we have big plans for IF/Then for the future. Their dedicated support for shorts filmmakers will only continue to grow.

There are still challenges in protecting the kind of work we champion. We’ve seen the rise in the prioritization of the commercial space, lack of support for highly artistic and politically bold work and hesitance around working with emerging filmmakers. This is the work that excites us most. The last few years have affected the nonprofit organisations in our field immensely, and as we begin to see the recovery from that we remain dedicated than ever to be operating within the nonprofit side of the documentary field. It is essential to be able to maintain this space for filmmakers, and we are proud to work hard to ensure we contribute to the nonprofit space to help protect and cultivate the support needed.

I want to thank everyone who supported us over the last year as we build this new future for Field of Vision. And I especially want to thank the Field of Vision team - Kristen, Shakira, Sarah, Josh, Kristin, Merrill, Caitlin and Christine. I am endlessly grateful to you, and count myself phenomenally lucky to be able to work with you every day.

With love and support,

Charlotte Cook

Co-Founder & Executive Director, Field of Vision