Overview
Gimme Some Truth is a documentary film festival produced by the Winnipeg Film Group and staged annually at the Dave Barber Cinematheque in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The 17th edition runs November 5 to 8, 2026. The festival programs Canadian documentary features and shorts, with a focus on independent, socially engaged, and formally adventurous nonfiction cinema. Gimme Some Truth is a qualifying festival for the Canadian Screen Awards.
The festival is unique among Canadian documentary festivals for its integration of master lectures, workshops, and special screenings into its program. Rather than functioning solely as a screening venue, Gimme Some Truth is designed as a forum for filmmakers and audiences to discuss creative, ethical, and technical issues related to the documentary form. The festival includes panel discussions, filmmaker Q&As, and educational programming alongside its screening schedule.
The Gimme 10 in 30! Doc Challenge is a signature program: 10 participants chosen via random lottery draw are tasked with completing a new documentary film in 30 days. The resulting films, each 7 minutes or less, are screened at the Cinematheque as part of the festival and are eligible for a $500 audience award sponsored by DOC Manitoba. Participants can finish films that are in an existing state of production prior to the challenge, as long as the final touches are completed during the 30-day period. Registration for the 2026 challenge closes at 12pm CST on Friday, October 2.
Key Sections
- Canadian Documentary Features - feature-length documentaries from across Canada
- Canadian Documentary Shorts - short documentary programs, including local and Manitoba films
- Gimme 10 in 30! Doc Challenge - 10 new short docs made in 30 days, screened at the festival with a $500 audience award
- Master Lectures and Workshops - educational programming with visiting and local filmmakers
- Panel Discussions - moderated discussions on documentary craft, ethics, and industry topics
- Special Screenings - curated selections of the year's most acclaimed documentaries from the international circuit
Submission Details
Gimme Some Truth accepts submissions via an online form on the Winnipeg Film Group website. Submissions are free - there is no submission fee.
Eligibility requirements:
- Open to Canadian documentary films (short and feature length)
- Films must have been completed in the last two years
- The deadline for the 17th edition (2026) is Monday, August 3 at 11:59pm
Filmmakers submit their film by filling out the online form and providing a screener link. The festival does not use FilmFreeway; submissions are handled directly through the Winnipeg Film Group's website.
What Filmmakers Should Know
The free submission process is a significant benefit, particularly for emerging filmmakers. Unlike most Canadian festivals that charge $25 to $70 in submission fees, Gimme Some Truth has no submission fee. This removes a financial barrier for documentary filmmakers working with limited budgets.
The festival's Canadian Screen Award qualifying status means that winning a qualifying award at Gimme Some Truth can make a film eligible for Canadian Screen Award consideration. This places the festival alongside other Canadian Screen Award qualifying events, though at a smaller scale than major festivals like Hot Docs or the Calgary International Film Festival.
The festival's focus on documentary craft and community engagement makes it particularly valuable for filmmakers seeking substantive feedback and discussion. The master lectures, workshops, and panel discussions create opportunities for direct engagement with experienced filmmakers and industry professionals. Past programs have included panel discussions on topics such as physical media, archives, restoration, and distribution, moderated by film academics and featuring visiting filmmakers.
The Dave Barber Cinematheque (100 Arthur St.) is a single-venue festival experience. The theatre is located in the Artspace building in Winnipeg's Exchange District, a National Historic Site known for its early 20th century architecture and arts community. General admission for individual screenings is $10.50. The intimate venue creates a focused, community-oriented festival atmosphere.
The Gimme 10 in 30! Doc Challenge is open to anyone interested in documentary filmmaking. Registration is via a Google Form, and participants are selected by random lottery. The challenge is produced in partnership with DOC Manitoba. The 10 resulting films screen at the festival and are eligible for the $500 audience award. This is an accessible entry point for filmmakers who want to create new work within a structured deadline and have it screened at a festival.
The festival programs primarily Canadian documentaries, with a curated selection of international documentaries in special screenings. Recent editions have included acclaimed international documentaries such as All the Beauty and the Bloodshed (Laura Poitras), Ever Deadly (a portrait of Tanya Tagaq), Black Ice (examining anti-Black racism in hockey), and Nelly & Nadine (Magnus Gertten). Local and Canadian short documentary programs explore themes including media influence, loss, environmental decline, Indigenous connections to land, and mental health.
Major Awards
- Gimme 10 in 30! Audience Award - $500 cash prize sponsored by DOC Manitoba, awarded to the audience favourite among the 10 challenge films
- Canadian Screen Award qualifying category - winning a qualifying award at the festival makes a film eligible for Canadian Screen Award consideration
The festival's awards program is smaller than major Canadian festivals. The primary competitive element is the Gimme 10 in 30! Doc Challenge audience award. The festival's value lies more in its screening platform, educational programming, and Canadian Screen Award qualifying status than in a large awards program.
Festival History
Gimme Some Truth was started in 2008 by film writer, publisher, producer, and filmmaker Kier-La Janisse during her tenure as staff at the Winnipeg Film Group. The festival was created as a documentary-focused event that would combine screenings with educational programming, filling a gap in Winnipeg's film culture for dedicated documentary exhibition.
The festival is produced by the Winnipeg Film Group, a filmmaker cooperative founded in 1971 that supports independent filmmaking in Manitoba through production resources, distribution, and exhibition. The Winnipeg Film Group's Cinematheque was initiated by past Executive Director Merit Jenson Carr, beginning with programming in the fall of 1982 at the NFB's Cinema Main. The Cinematheque has been a cornerstone of independent film culture in Winnipeg for over four decades.
The Cinematheque was renamed the Dave Barber Cinematheque in honor of longtime programmer Dave Barber, who shaped the theatre's programming for nearly four decades. Barber championed emerging filmmakers with the same care he brought to internationally recognized directors, helping foster an environment where independent artists could develop their work and engage directly with audiences. Dave Barber passed away on July 26, 2021, and the theatre was officially renamed on what would have been his 68th birthday.
The festival has grown from a small local event into a recognized Canadian documentary festival. The 14th edition in 2022 was the first under the newly christened Dave Barber Cinematheque name. The 15th edition in 2024 ran for five days (November 6 to 10) and included the Gimme 10 in 30! challenge, panel discussions, and a program of early and newly completed Winnipeg documentaries from founding members of the Winnipeg Film Group from the 1970s. The 16th edition ran November 6 to 9, 2025. The 17th edition runs November 5 to 8, 2026.
Past Winners
The Barry Lank Memorial Award is the festival's top juried prize. It awards $1,500 to a Manitoba filmmaker for a social justice documentary. The award is presented by DOC Manitoba and the Winnipeg Film Group, with sponsorship from Frank Digital and Merit Motion Pictures. It was named after Barry Lank, a Winnipeg-born director and producer. The 4th annual award was offered in 2025.
The Gimme 10 in 30! Audience Award ($500) is voted live by audiences after the challenge screening. It is sponsored by DOC Manitoba. Past winners are local Winnipeg filmmakers selected through the lottery-based challenge.
The festival's Canadian Screen Award qualifying status means a qualifying award win can make a film eligible for CSA consideration. This is the festival's most significant industry-facing benefit for filmmakers.
Notable Alumni Films and Where They Ended Up
- Freedom Road (2019) - directed by Angelina McLeod. World premiered at the 11th Gimme Some Truth festival in 2019 as the opening night presentation. Produced by the NFB. The five-part series streams free on NFB.ca and YouTube. It documents Shoal Lake 40 First Nation's battle to build a road after a century of isolation caused by Winnipeg's water diversion.
- Framing Agnes (2022) - directed by Chase Joynt. Screened at the 13th edition in 2022. The film premiered at Sundance 2022, winning the NEXT Audience Award and the Innovator Award. Distributed theatrically by Kino Lorber. It blends fiction and nonfiction to explore trans history through UCLA case files.
- All the Beauty and the Bloodshed (2022) - directed by Laura Poitras. Programmed as a special screening. Won the Golden Lion at Venice 2022, only the second documentary to do so. Distributed by Neon. Nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.
- Black Ice (2022) - directed by Hubert Davis. Screened at the festival. Won the TIFF People's Choice Award in 2022. Distributed by Roadside Attractions in the US and available on Hulu. Produced by LeBron James and Drake.
- Ever Deadly (2022) - co-directed by Chelsea McMullan and Tanya Tagaq. Screened at the festival. Premiered at TIFF 2022. Distributed by Kino Lorber. Available on Tubi and Prime Video. Won the Audience Choice award at the Yellowknife International Film Festival.
Submission Tips Specific to This Festival
Submissions are free and open only to Canadian documentaries. The festival programs formally adventurous nonfiction, so experimental and essayistic docs have an advantage over conventional reportage. Films completed in the last two years are eligible.
Manitoba filmmakers should also submit to the Barry Lank Memorial Award. This separate $1,500 prize is for social justice documentaries by Manitoba residents. It has its own submission process through the Winnipeg Film Group website.
The festival values films that generate discussion. Docs about media, archives, environmental decline, Indigenous land connections, and mental health have been programmed in recent editions. Socially engaged work aligns with the festival's curatorial identity.
The Gimme 10 in 30! Doc Challenge is a separate entry point. Registration is via Google Form with a random lottery draw. No prior festival credit is needed. The 30-day deadline and 7-minute maximum make it ideal for emerging filmmakers.
Industry Reputation Notes
Gimme Some Truth occupies a distinct niche among Canadian documentary festivals. It is smaller than Hot Docs (Toronto) but more education-focused. Where Hot Docs is a major industry market with sales agents and distributors, Gimme Some Truth is a community-oriented event centered on craft discussions.
Compared to DOXA (Vancouver), another Canadian documentary festival, Gimme Some Truth is more intimate and locally rooted. DOXA programs a broader international slate, while Gimme Some Truth prioritizes Canadian work with a curated selection of international specials.
The festival's Canadian Screen Award qualifying status gives it real industry weight despite its small size. Filmmakers in the Canadian documentary community respect the festival for its serious engagement with documentary form. The master lectures and panel discussions attract filmmakers who value substantive conversation over networking parties.
The free submission model is unusual and well-regarded. It removes financial barriers that emerging documentary filmmakers face at other festivals. This accessibility contributes to the festival's reputation as a supportive platform for early-career directors.
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See Also
To calculate the return on your festival submission spending, use the Festival ROI Calculator. To estimate your probability of acceptance based on festival tier and film characteristics, use the Festival Acceptance Odds Estimator. For documentary filmmaking guidance, see Documentary Filmmaking Guide. For festival circuit planning, see Film Festival Strategy. For Canadian Screen Award eligibility, see Film Awards Guide.
