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Members Only
Workshop

Core Strength: Developing Your Documentary Through Application Writing

-
PT

  • Maria Santos, Moderator
  • Katy Hurley, Moderator
Blue flyer with white text. Core Strength: Virtual IDA Members Workshop

Core Strength: Virtual IDA Members Workshop

Articulating the purpose and promise of your documentary is a foundational step in advancing your project. Writing the Nonfiction Core Application is a process that doesn’t just apply to grants—it is a powerful development tool that helps you clarify your film’s intention, structure, and impact, and teaches you how to communicate those ideas clearly to others. The language you develop through this process becomes the backbone of how you share your film with funders, creative partners, collaborators, and audiences across the life of the project.

Facilitated by Maria Santos (IDA’s Artist Services Manager) and Katy Hurley (IDA Artist Services Coordinator), the program will start with the large-group workshopping of a selected IDA Member project, with recommendations for giving helpful feedback. Then, attendees will be broken into small breakout rooms so everyone can give and receive feedback from their peers.

Please submit an interest form with a sample of your writing if you are interested in peer workshopping your Story Summary. Access INTEREST FORM HERE.

Review the Core App Video Series before attending. Watch here.

In this series, you will learn: 

  • What each question of the Core App is asking you
  • The right type of language to describe your project
  • Questions to ask yourself and your team before completing the Core App
  • The production details you need to have in place for applying
  • How to answer questions at different stages of production
  • What funders are looking for in a work sample
  • The amount of budget detail you need 

Core App Video Series Release
February 19, 2026 | documentary.org

In-Person Workshop - Open to the Public
February 26, 2026 | 7 PM - 9 PM PT | IDA Offices in Los Angeles (No virtual component)

Virtual IDA Members Only Event
April 22, 2026 | 7 AM - 9 AM PT | Virtual on Zoom

Eligibility

The Virtual Workshop session in April is only available to IDA Members. Only members at the DocMaker level or above will be considered for workshopping as part of the large group, but all levels are invited to attend and peer workshop their applications.

Access

The video series will have ASL interpretation, and the virtual event will have automatic Zoom captions. 

Code of Conduct

All participants agree to read and approve the IDA Events Code of Conduct here.

Event Participants

    A woman with long, shiny black hair smiles at the camera, her arms crossed. The image is black and white and she wears a patterned cardigan.

    Maria Santos

    Maria Santos joined the International Documentary Association as the Funds Program Officer in September 2022. She oversees all of the funding grants and provides year-round creative and strategic support to all IDA grantees. Previously, she was the Manager of Labs and Artist Support at the Sundance Documentary Film Program, since September 2020. During her time there, she was the lead on working with International Artists, primarily in Central and South America. Originally from Peru, Maria is an independent film producer who has worked in distribution as well as artist development at organizations including ARRAY and Cinereach.  In 2018, she was selected as a Film Society Industry Academy member and became a Third World Newsreel Production fellow. 

    headshot Katy Hurley

    Katy Hurley

    Katy Hurley is currently the Funds Coordinator at IDA. Prior to working at IDA, she worked at Jane Doe Films, an award-winning production company that specializes in investigative documentaries such as The Hunting Ground and The Invisible War. In 2019, she graduated from California State University Long Beach and was a student in the nonfiction filmmaking program. She was an HFPA grant recipient for her short student film and was selected for Best Documentary at the CSU Media Arts Festival. Katy has been a reviewer for multiple funds at IDA and other organizations. She is currently based in Denver, Colorado.