FilmHouse Residencies

SFFILM’s FilmHouse residency program provides Bay Area-based documentary and narrative filmmakers with artistic guidance, office space, a vibrant creative community, and mentorship from established film industry professionals.

Where Bay Area Filmmakers Connect

FilmHouse provides an environment where local filmmakers can gather with their colleagues, collaborate on projects together, share resources, get peer-to-peer feedback, find new networks, and more.

A Dedicated Support Structure

FilmHouse residents get year-round access to a strong network of support from professional mentors, SFFILM Makers staff, visiting industry professionals, and established artists from the Bay Area and beyond.

Year-Round Filmmaker Programming

The SFFILM Makers team is constantly working to build out a robust schedule of filmmaker events at FilmHouse, including industry talks, table reads, work-in-progress screenings, pitch sessions, and more.

Join Our Community

FilmHouse—the only year-round filmmaker residency program of its kind in the United States—supports narrative and documentary feature films by making office space available to independent filmmakers actively engaged in various stages of production. Located at a beautifully renovated building at 644 Broadway on the border of San Francisco’s Chinatown and Italian North Beach districts, FilmHouse is made possible by the generous support of the Kenneth Rainin Foundation and San Francisco Film Commission. FilmHouse provides critical support to local and visiting filmmakers by fostering a thriving creative community that encourages collaboration, resource sharing, peer-to-peer feedback and networking opportunities. A major component of SFFILM’s Artist Development program, FilmHouse functions as a vibrant workshop and creative hub for filmmakers of all kinds.

FilmHouse currently holds 40 filmmakers engaged in 12-month residencies, all working in early project stages of screenwriting and pre-production. In addition to 12-month residencies, throughout the year there are roughly 10–20 visiting filmmakers from other Artist Development programs that utilize the FilmHouse work space. Not sure if full-time residency is right for you, but want to check out FilmHouse events? Sign up for the Filmmaker membership add-on to get on the invite list:

Filmmaker Add-On Current Residents

SFFILM Makers Mentor Advisory Board

All residents have access to consultation from the SFFILM Makers Mentor Advisory Board, as well as to a robust guest speaker series featuring lectures and presentations by leading industry professionals, resident-led workshops and work-in-progress screenings, invitations to SFFILM networking events, and numerous other community-building programs.

Current Mentors:

Don Bernier – Editor (documentary)
Duong-Chi Do – Impact Strategist
Jennie Frisbie – Manager/Producer
Steve Holmgren – Entertainment Attorney
A-lan Holt – Director, Institute for Diversity in the Arts at Stanford University
Abbi Jutkowitz – Editor (narrative)
Jim LeBrecht – Sound Designer/Director
Dana Merwin – IDA Program Officer
Kim Parker – Producer
Nicole Perlman – Screenwriter
Dawn Porter – Director

FAQs

Do I need to live in the Bay Area?

Yes, all residents must reside full-time in the Bay Area.
How many days a week should I plan to work from FilmHouse?

FilmHouse is open to residents at all times, but residents are required to work from FilmHouse at least two half-days each week when not shooting on their film.
Am I eligible if I have a full-time job?

Applicants who work Monday through Friday from 9 am to 5 pm are not ideal candidates for this residency as 90% of the program takes place during these times. If you are still interested in coming to any programming we have in the evening, we recommend becoming an SFFILM member with a Filmmaker Add-On.
When are applicants notified?

Applicants will be notified of their status by mid-November.
Do you only support Feature-length Documentaries and Narratives?

The residency program supports filmmakers working on documentary, fiction, and hybrid feature-length films as well as shorts and episodics.