Exclusive: Bavc Media has named the latest group of nonfiction filmmakers to take part in its prestigious documentary film fellowship program. The octet announced today will receive $10,000 each in “unrestricted funding, mentorship, industry access, feedback sessions, and workshops during an immersive 9-month experience.”
The Bavc MediaMaker Fellowship was established in 1991 to support emerging filmmakers and diverse projects. This year’s cohort includes Ademola (Ellas Vinieron de Las Nubes / They Came From the Clouds); Chelsi Bullard (Unfiltered); Caron Creighton (Wood Street); Julia Hunter (This is Me Loving You); Patrick G. Lee (Untitled Kqt Project); Ivan MacDonald (When They Were Here); Khai Thu Nguyen (The Full Thao), and Pallavi Somusetty (Coach Emily). [Scroll for more about the filmmakers and their projects].
The fellowship provides “two intensive convenings in San Francisco, a slate of virtual workshops throughout the year, and all-access travel to the International Documentary Association’s biennial Getting Real conference in Los Angeles and the Camden International Film Festival in midcoast Maine.
The Bavc MediaMaker Fellowship was established in 1991 to support emerging filmmakers and diverse projects. This year’s cohort includes Ademola (Ellas Vinieron de Las Nubes / They Came From the Clouds); Chelsi Bullard (Unfiltered); Caron Creighton (Wood Street); Julia Hunter (This is Me Loving You); Patrick G. Lee (Untitled Kqt Project); Ivan MacDonald (When They Were Here); Khai Thu Nguyen (The Full Thao), and Pallavi Somusetty (Coach Emily). [Scroll for more about the filmmakers and their projects].
The fellowship provides “two intensive convenings in San Francisco, a slate of virtual workshops throughout the year, and all-access travel to the International Documentary Association’s biennial Getting Real conference in Los Angeles and the Camden International Film Festival in midcoast Maine.
- 4/2/2024
- by Matthew Carey
- Deadline Film + TV
Madeleine Gavin’s Sundance award-winning documentary “Beyond Utopia” will kick off the winter season of PBS documentary series “Independent Lens” on Jan. 9.
Using hidden camera footage, the 115-minute doc follows the high-stakes journey that a handful of desperate families make in order to defect from North Korea — a country with the most brutal regime on earth, led by a dictator, Kim Jong-un. The doc, which was acquired by Roadside Attractions in August, is vying for Academy Award attention.
“Beyond Utopia” is one of six feature docus that make up the program’s winter slate, which begins in January and concludes on Mach 25. Notably, all six films were directed by women and filmmakers of color.
The selected titles cover a wide range of timely issues including racial tensions, gentrification, mental health, representation, and humanity through the lens of individuals, families, and tight-knit communities,
“At a time of tremendous upheaval around the world,...
Using hidden camera footage, the 115-minute doc follows the high-stakes journey that a handful of desperate families make in order to defect from North Korea — a country with the most brutal regime on earth, led by a dictator, Kim Jong-un. The doc, which was acquired by Roadside Attractions in August, is vying for Academy Award attention.
“Beyond Utopia” is one of six feature docus that make up the program’s winter slate, which begins in January and concludes on Mach 25. Notably, all six films were directed by women and filmmakers of color.
The selected titles cover a wide range of timely issues including racial tensions, gentrification, mental health, representation, and humanity through the lens of individuals, families, and tight-knit communities,
“At a time of tremendous upheaval around the world,...
- 12/5/2023
- by Addie Morfoot
- Variety Film + TV
This year’s Montclair Film Festival has announced its full lineup, with new films from Andrew Haigh, Ryusuke Hamaguchi, Alice Rohrwacher, and Wim Wenders joining previously announced titles like Alexander Payne’s “The Holdovers” and Todd Haynes’s “May December.”
Among the films in competition for fiction film are “La Chimera” by Rohrbacher, “Do Not Expect Too Much From the End of the World” (directed by Radu Jude), “Evil Does Not Exist” by Hamaguchi, “Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell” directed by Phạm Thiên Ân, and “Totem” directed by Lila Avilés.
Among the highlight films, screening throughout the festival, are “All of Us Strangers” by Haigh, “Fingernails” directed by Christos Nikou, “Nyad” directed by Jimmy Chin & Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, and “The Taste of Things” directed by Trân Anh Hùng.
Those films join the previously announced opening night film “Dream Scenario,” the centerpiece film “The Holdovers,” and the closing night film “Eileen.
Among the films in competition for fiction film are “La Chimera” by Rohrbacher, “Do Not Expect Too Much From the End of the World” (directed by Radu Jude), “Evil Does Not Exist” by Hamaguchi, “Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell” directed by Phạm Thiên Ân, and “Totem” directed by Lila Avilés.
Among the highlight films, screening throughout the festival, are “All of Us Strangers” by Haigh, “Fingernails” directed by Christos Nikou, “Nyad” directed by Jimmy Chin & Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, and “The Taste of Things” directed by Trân Anh Hùng.
Those films join the previously announced opening night film “Dream Scenario,” the centerpiece film “The Holdovers,” and the closing night film “Eileen.
- 9/30/2023
- by Christopher Rosen
- Gold Derby
The lineup for Montclair Film’s 2023 festival is set to feature screenings of Dream Scenario, Eileen and Stamped From the Beginning, as well as discussions with director Todd Haynes and award-winning musician Jon Batiste.
The 12th annual edition of the New Jersey-based event will kick off with an opening night screening and Q&a for Kristoffer Borgli’s Dream Scenario, a comedy starring Nicolas Cage as a listless family man and professor who becomes an overnight celebrity after becoming a central figure of others’ dreams. It will close with William Oldroyd’s period psychological thriller Eileen, starring Anne Hathaway and Thomasin McKenzie.
This year, the Alexander Payne-directed and Paul Giamatti-starring The Holdovers has been named the Fiction Centerpiece selection and Pablo Berger’s Robot Dreams, based on Sara Varonas’ popular graphic novel, is the Family Centerpiece. As the 2023 Documentary Centerpiece, Roger Ross Williams’ adaptation of Dr. Ibram X. Kendi...
The 12th annual edition of the New Jersey-based event will kick off with an opening night screening and Q&a for Kristoffer Borgli’s Dream Scenario, a comedy starring Nicolas Cage as a listless family man and professor who becomes an overnight celebrity after becoming a central figure of others’ dreams. It will close with William Oldroyd’s period psychological thriller Eileen, starring Anne Hathaway and Thomasin McKenzie.
This year, the Alexander Payne-directed and Paul Giamatti-starring The Holdovers has been named the Fiction Centerpiece selection and Pablo Berger’s Robot Dreams, based on Sara Varonas’ popular graphic novel, is the Family Centerpiece. As the 2023 Documentary Centerpiece, Roger Ross Williams’ adaptation of Dr. Ibram X. Kendi...
- 9/20/2023
- by Abbey White
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Examining the growing pains of The 19th*, a non-profit, non-partisan news agency founded right before Covid swept the United States in 2020, Breaking the News is an immersive documentary exploring the importance of and some problems in their work. Founded by former Texas Tribune writers Emily Ramshaw and Amanda Zamora with their life savings as a digital-first, virtual enterprise, the outfit aims to address the gatekeeper problem in journalism: that most editors are still straight white men setting the agenda.
Kate Sosin, a nonbinary reporter who was an early hire, is tasked with covering all Lgtqia+ issues in the nation without much support. Candidly, Sosin speaks of feeling alienated by certain language used by Ramshaw and Zamora in staff emails touting the group as a “sisterhood,” while Ramshaw shares her concern over hiring a staff member that they fear they may not be able to properly support.
Another early hire, Errin Haines,...
Kate Sosin, a nonbinary reporter who was an early hire, is tasked with covering all Lgtqia+ issues in the nation without much support. Candidly, Sosin speaks of feeling alienated by certain language used by Ramshaw and Zamora in staff emails touting the group as a “sisterhood,” while Ramshaw shares her concern over hiring a staff member that they fear they may not be able to properly support.
Another early hire, Errin Haines,...
- 6/29/2023
- by John Fink
- The Film Stage
Subject Matter, the nonprofit organization that supports social issue documentary films and other nonprofits, announced that its second annual round of grantees have been awarded a total of $100,000.
Subject Matter and Tribeca Festival unveiled that Tribeca’s Documentary Film Program’s “Breaking the News” and “Every Body” have both been awarded $25,000 grants. The documentaries’ corresponding nonprofits, The 19th* nonprofit with “Breaking the News” and interACT nonprofit with “Every Body,” have also received $25,000 grants.
Subject Matter will present “Breaking the News” and “Every Body” at the Tribeca Festival in an effort to raise awareness and support for the selected nonprofits.
“Breaking the News” follows a group of women and LGBTQ+ journalists who launch a news startup for those who have been excluded from mainstream coverage. Directed by Heather Courtney, Princess A. Hairston and Chelsea Hernandez, “Breaking the News” was produced by Diane Quon, Courtney, Hairston and Hernandez.
The 19th* will be...
Subject Matter and Tribeca Festival unveiled that Tribeca’s Documentary Film Program’s “Breaking the News” and “Every Body” have both been awarded $25,000 grants. The documentaries’ corresponding nonprofits, The 19th* nonprofit with “Breaking the News” and interACT nonprofit with “Every Body,” have also received $25,000 grants.
Subject Matter will present “Breaking the News” and “Every Body” at the Tribeca Festival in an effort to raise awareness and support for the selected nonprofits.
“Breaking the News” follows a group of women and LGBTQ+ journalists who launch a news startup for those who have been excluded from mainstream coverage. Directed by Heather Courtney, Princess A. Hairston and Chelsea Hernandez, “Breaking the News” was produced by Diane Quon, Courtney, Hairston and Hernandez.
The 19th* will be...
- 5/24/2023
- by Charna Flam
- Variety Film + TV
For 10 American docu teams, this year’s Ji.hlava International Documentary Film Festival will be opening new doors for collaboration and support that are completely unknown to most indie filmmakers in the West.
The New Visions Forum: U.S. Docs section, building on a successful launch last year, is a financing, co-production and networking event dedicated to “supporting documentary production in its diversity and creativity.”
It features U.S. projects in development as well as in production and post-production, with selected projects spanning diverse genres and audiovisual formats – from fiction films with documentary aspects, to hybrid, “cinema expanded,” experimental and short films. The platform connects American filmmakers with the potential co-producers, distributors, sales representatives and film festivals from Europe.
Each project is pitched and presented by a director-producer pair, who screen a preview of the upcoming film at Ji.hlava on Oct. 27.
The U.S. projects feature a diversity of approaches and subjects,...
The New Visions Forum: U.S. Docs section, building on a successful launch last year, is a financing, co-production and networking event dedicated to “supporting documentary production in its diversity and creativity.”
It features U.S. projects in development as well as in production and post-production, with selected projects spanning diverse genres and audiovisual formats – from fiction films with documentary aspects, to hybrid, “cinema expanded,” experimental and short films. The platform connects American filmmakers with the potential co-producers, distributors, sales representatives and film festivals from Europe.
Each project is pitched and presented by a director-producer pair, who screen a preview of the upcoming film at Ji.hlava on Oct. 27.
The U.S. projects feature a diversity of approaches and subjects,...
- 10/25/2022
- by Will Tizard
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Buffalo 8 has announced that it will release Ruben Pla’s feature directorial debut The Horror Crowd on digital and VOD on September 2nd.
The doc brings together an all-star cast of actors and filmmakers to discuss the Hollywood horror community, covering such wide-ranging topics as women in horror, race relations, “being the weird kid,” and film festivals, as well as the unique community and support that exists in the space. Among the near-40 people who appear are filmmakers Russell Mulcahy (Highlander), Oren Peli (Paranormal Activity), Ernest R. Dickerson (The Walking Dead), Adam Robitel (Escape Room), Chelsea Stardust (Satanic Panic) and Darren Lynn Bousman (Saw franchise), as well as actors Lin Shaye (Insidious), Brea Grant (Dexter), Greg Grunberg (Star Wars: Episode IX) and Clare Kramer (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), and Blumhouse’s Director of Development Ryan Turek.
The Horror Crowd has played to film festivals like FrightFest and Grimmfest and...
The doc brings together an all-star cast of actors and filmmakers to discuss the Hollywood horror community, covering such wide-ranging topics as women in horror, race relations, “being the weird kid,” and film festivals, as well as the unique community and support that exists in the space. Among the near-40 people who appear are filmmakers Russell Mulcahy (Highlander), Oren Peli (Paranormal Activity), Ernest R. Dickerson (The Walking Dead), Adam Robitel (Escape Room), Chelsea Stardust (Satanic Panic) and Darren Lynn Bousman (Saw franchise), as well as actors Lin Shaye (Insidious), Brea Grant (Dexter), Greg Grunberg (Star Wars: Episode IX) and Clare Kramer (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), and Blumhouse’s Director of Development Ryan Turek.
The Horror Crowd has played to film festivals like FrightFest and Grimmfest and...
- 8/5/2022
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
In-person and virtual meetings set for September.
New work from Venice Horizons 2019 best director Théo Court and Australian filmmaker Darlene Johnson are among 142 international and US titles selected for the 2022 Gotham Week Project Market.
In-person Project Market industry meetings with distributors, financiers, production companies, festival programmers, sales and talent agents and other potential collaborators are set for September 19-21, while virtual meetings take place from September 22-23.
The Gotham Week Conference exploring the art and business of film and media returns and programming highlights include the inaugural Gotham Week Expo, which will bring together partners from The Gotham’s Expanding Communities,...
New work from Venice Horizons 2019 best director Théo Court and Australian filmmaker Darlene Johnson are among 142 international and US titles selected for the 2022 Gotham Week Project Market.
In-person Project Market industry meetings with distributors, financiers, production companies, festival programmers, sales and talent agents and other potential collaborators are set for September 19-21, while virtual meetings take place from September 22-23.
The Gotham Week Conference exploring the art and business of film and media returns and programming highlights include the inaugural Gotham Week Expo, which will bring together partners from The Gotham’s Expanding Communities,...
- 8/1/2022
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
In-person and virtual meetings set for September.
New work from Venice Horizons 2019 best director Théo Court and Australian filmmaker Darlene Johnson are among 142 international and US titles selected for the 2022 Gotham Week Project Market.
In-person Project Market industry meetings with distributors, financiers, production companies, festival programmers, sales and talent agents and other potential collaborators are set for September 19-21, while virtual meetings take place from September 22-23.
The Gotham Week Conference exploring the art and business of film and media returns and programming highlights include the inaugural Gotham Week Expo, which will bring together partners from The Gotham’s Expanding Communities,...
New work from Venice Horizons 2019 best director Théo Court and Australian filmmaker Darlene Johnson are among 142 international and US titles selected for the 2022 Gotham Week Project Market.
In-person Project Market industry meetings with distributors, financiers, production companies, festival programmers, sales and talent agents and other potential collaborators are set for September 19-21, while virtual meetings take place from September 22-23.
The Gotham Week Conference exploring the art and business of film and media returns and programming highlights include the inaugural Gotham Week Expo, which will bring together partners from The Gotham’s Expanding Communities,...
- 8/1/2022
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
WME has signed filmmaker Iliana Sosa, whose latest documentary “What We Leave Behind” took home two prizes at this year’s South by Southwest Film Festival.
“What We Leave Behind,” Sosa’s first feature film, won two special jury awards at SXSW: the Louis Black “Lone Star” award and the first-ever Fandor New Voices award.
Described as a personal and poetic love letter to family, “What We Leave Behind” tells the story of Sosa’s grandfather, Julián, who starts building a house in rural Mexico after a lifetime of bus rides to the United States to visit his children. In addition to directing, Sosa also narrated the film in Spanish.
Sosa constructed “What We Leave Behind” by filming her grandfather’s work over the course of several years. The documentary unfolds as Julián, at the age of 89, takes a final trip to El Paso, Texas to visit his children and their children.
“What We Leave Behind,” Sosa’s first feature film, won two special jury awards at SXSW: the Louis Black “Lone Star” award and the first-ever Fandor New Voices award.
Described as a personal and poetic love letter to family, “What We Leave Behind” tells the story of Sosa’s grandfather, Julián, who starts building a house in rural Mexico after a lifetime of bus rides to the United States to visit his children. In addition to directing, Sosa also narrated the film in Spanish.
Sosa constructed “What We Leave Behind” by filming her grandfather’s work over the course of several years. The documentary unfolds as Julián, at the age of 89, takes a final trip to El Paso, Texas to visit his children and their children.
- 5/16/2022
- by Rebecca Rubin
- Variety Film + TV
This year at the Sundance Film Festival, three feature documentaries — Paula Eiselt and Tonya Lewis Lee’s “Aftershock,” Reid Davenport’s “I Didn’t See You There” and Isabel Castro’s “Mija” — share in common a $10,000 grant provided by the Points North Institute and CNN Films’ American Stories Documentary Fund.
Launched in 2020, the fund underwritten by CNN has dispensed a total of $100,000 in grants to emerging U.S. filmmakers working on 10 documentary projects that highlight pivotal moments in America. Eiselt and Lewis Lee’s “Aftershock,” and Davenport’s “I Didn’t See You There” are two of nine films in the Sundance U.S. Documentary Competition program, while Castro’s “Mija” is featured in the festival’s Next program. “Aftershock” addresses the U.S. maternal health crisis, “I Didn’t See You There” examines the discrimination people with disabilities face throughout the country, and “Mija” explores America’s immigration issues via music manager Doris Muñoz.
Launched in 2020, the fund underwritten by CNN has dispensed a total of $100,000 in grants to emerging U.S. filmmakers working on 10 documentary projects that highlight pivotal moments in America. Eiselt and Lewis Lee’s “Aftershock,” and Davenport’s “I Didn’t See You There” are two of nine films in the Sundance U.S. Documentary Competition program, while Castro’s “Mija” is featured in the festival’s Next program. “Aftershock” addresses the U.S. maternal health crisis, “I Didn’t See You There” examines the discrimination people with disabilities face throughout the country, and “Mija” explores America’s immigration issues via music manager Doris Muñoz.
- 1/25/2022
- by Addie Morfoot
- Variety Film + TV
The International Documentary Association (IDA) and Xrm Media have launched a new international fund to support short verité documentaries with an emphasis on emerging filmmakers.
The IDA+Xrm Media Incubator will provide three filmmakers with $25,000 each. In addition, Academy Award-nominated directors Skye Fitzgerald (“Hunger Ward”) and Smriti Mundhra (“St. Louis Superman”), and Emmy-nominated director Nadia Hallgren (“Becoming”) will be paired with the grantees as mentors.
Applications will open July 5 and close Aug. 2.
Simon Kilmurry, IDA’s executive director, said: “Xrm Media’s commitment to filmmakers aligns very well with IDA’s mission, and by joining forces we can ensure that filmmakers receive all the resources they need to make high-impact films.”
Michael Y. Chow, chief instigator at Xrm Media, added: “Xrm Media has long respected and valued what Simon Kilmurry and the entire IDA team have brought to the documentary filmmaking community and are thrilled to announce our partnership and...
The IDA+Xrm Media Incubator will provide three filmmakers with $25,000 each. In addition, Academy Award-nominated directors Skye Fitzgerald (“Hunger Ward”) and Smriti Mundhra (“St. Louis Superman”), and Emmy-nominated director Nadia Hallgren (“Becoming”) will be paired with the grantees as mentors.
Applications will open July 5 and close Aug. 2.
Simon Kilmurry, IDA’s executive director, said: “Xrm Media’s commitment to filmmakers aligns very well with IDA’s mission, and by joining forces we can ensure that filmmakers receive all the resources they need to make high-impact films.”
Michael Y. Chow, chief instigator at Xrm Media, added: “Xrm Media has long respected and valued what Simon Kilmurry and the entire IDA team have brought to the documentary filmmaking community and are thrilled to announce our partnership and...
- 5/10/2021
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: The Independent Filmmaker Project on Thursday unveiled 26 feature and series projects set to participate in the indie organization’s three annual yearlong Ifp Filmmaker fellowship programs for first-time filmmakers: The Ifp Filmmaker Labs’ Documentary Lab, Narrative Lab and Episodic Lab.
In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, all will take place virtually, with the Documentary Lab now underway and running through Friday. The Episodic Lab, for series projects in development for TV and digital platforms from new creators, will run June 1-5, and the Narrative Lab, for feature films by directors currently in post-production on their debut features, is set for June 15-19.
The Narrative Lab supports fellows through the completion, marketing, and distribution of their debut features, providing support from staff and mentorship from leading filmmakers. The Episodic Lab provides knowledge, resources and mentor support necessary in writing pitches and creating development strategies.
All 2020 projects will participate in...
In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, all will take place virtually, with the Documentary Lab now underway and running through Friday. The Episodic Lab, for series projects in development for TV and digital platforms from new creators, will run June 1-5, and the Narrative Lab, for feature films by directors currently in post-production on their debut features, is set for June 15-19.
The Narrative Lab supports fellows through the completion, marketing, and distribution of their debut features, providing support from staff and mentorship from leading filmmakers. The Episodic Lab provides knowledge, resources and mentor support necessary in writing pitches and creating development strategies.
All 2020 projects will participate in...
- 5/21/2020
- by Patrick Hipes
- Deadline Film + TV
Festival concluded in Austin, Texas, at weekend.
March 19 Update: Wes Anderson’s Isle Of Dogs was named Headliners audience award winner on Monday, after Olivia Newman’s First Match earned the Narrative Feature Competition award on Saturday night (March 17).
Gabriel Silverman and Fiona Dawson prevailed in the Documentary Feature Competition on Saturday with TransMilitary, while John Hyams’ All Square took audience award honours in the Narrative Spotlight Section, and The Dawn Wall by Josh Lowell and Peter Mortimer triumphed in Documentary Spotlight.
Timur Bekmambetov’s Profile won in Visions, Leigh Whannell’s Upgrade was declared winner in Midnighters, and Alonso Ruizpalacios...
March 19 Update: Wes Anderson’s Isle Of Dogs was named Headliners audience award winner on Monday, after Olivia Newman’s First Match earned the Narrative Feature Competition award on Saturday night (March 17).
Gabriel Silverman and Fiona Dawson prevailed in the Documentary Feature Competition on Saturday with TransMilitary, while John Hyams’ All Square took audience award honours in the Narrative Spotlight Section, and The Dawn Wall by Josh Lowell and Peter Mortimer triumphed in Documentary Spotlight.
Timur Bekmambetov’s Profile won in Visions, Leigh Whannell’s Upgrade was declared winner in Midnighters, and Alonso Ruizpalacios...
- 3/19/2018
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Audience Awards to be handed out on March 17.
March 17 Update: Olivia Newman’s First Match was named audience award winner of the 2018 SXSW Narrative Feature Competition on Saturday night (March 17).
Gabriel Silverman and Fiona Dawson prevailed in the Documentary Feature Competition with TransMilitary, while John Hyams’ All Square took audience award honours in the Narrative Spotlight Section, and The Dawn Wall by Josh Lowell and Peter Mortimer triumphed in Documentary Spotlight.
Timur Bekmambetov’s Profile won in Visions, Leigh Whannell’s Upgrade was declared winner in Midnighters, and Alonso Ruizpalacios and So Yong Kim won in Episodic for Vida.
Earlier...
March 17 Update: Olivia Newman’s First Match was named audience award winner of the 2018 SXSW Narrative Feature Competition on Saturday night (March 17).
Gabriel Silverman and Fiona Dawson prevailed in the Documentary Feature Competition with TransMilitary, while John Hyams’ All Square took audience award honours in the Narrative Spotlight Section, and The Dawn Wall by Josh Lowell and Peter Mortimer triumphed in Documentary Spotlight.
Timur Bekmambetov’s Profile won in Visions, Leigh Whannell’s Upgrade was declared winner in Midnighters, and Alonso Ruizpalacios and So Yong Kim won in Episodic for Vida.
Earlier...
- 3/17/2018
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Audience Awards to be handed out on March 17.
Jim Cummings’ Midwest-set drama Thunder Road was anointed winner of the 2018 SXSW Narrative Feature Competition on Tuesday night (March 13).
The corresponding Documentary Feature Competition winner was People’s Republic Of Desire by Hao Wu.
In the short film awards, Carey Williams’ Emergency won Narrative Shorts, while Charlie Tyrell’s My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes prevailed in Documentary Shorts, Milk by Santiago Menghini won Midnight Shorts, and Alexa Lim Haas’ Agua Viva was named winner of Animated Shorts.
An Uncertain Future by Iliana Sosa and Chelsea Hernandez won the Texas Shorts category.
Jim Cummings’ Midwest-set drama Thunder Road was anointed winner of the 2018 SXSW Narrative Feature Competition on Tuesday night (March 13).
The corresponding Documentary Feature Competition winner was People’s Republic Of Desire by Hao Wu.
In the short film awards, Carey Williams’ Emergency won Narrative Shorts, while Charlie Tyrell’s My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes prevailed in Documentary Shorts, Milk by Santiago Menghini won Midnight Shorts, and Alexa Lim Haas’ Agua Viva was named winner of Animated Shorts.
An Uncertain Future by Iliana Sosa and Chelsea Hernandez won the Texas Shorts category.
- 3/14/2018
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Juried prizes were presented tonight at the 25th annual Swsw Film Festival. Jim Gaffigan, in Austin to represent the Miranda Bailey-directed ensemble comedy “You Can Choose Your Family,” presided as host. The venue was the Paramount Theatre, a 103-year-old landmark just blocks from the Texas Capitol.
SXSW will continue screening films through Saturday, when most of the festival’s audience awards recipients will be announced. The exception is for the headlining films, such as “A Quiet Place,” “Blockers,” and “Ready Player One” — those verdicts follows on March 19.
This year’s line-up comprised 256 total features and shorts, culled from 8,183 submissions. Best narrative feature “Thunder Road” was adapted from the namesake, one-take short that won a Grand Jury award at Sundance in 2016.
Lena Dunham’s “Tiny Furniture” (2010) and Destin Daniel Cretton’s “Short Term 12” (2013) are among the best-known past jury victors at SXSW. IndieWire’s Dana Harris helped choose the Louis Black “Lone Star” honoree,...
SXSW will continue screening films through Saturday, when most of the festival’s audience awards recipients will be announced. The exception is for the headlining films, such as “A Quiet Place,” “Blockers,” and “Ready Player One” — those verdicts follows on March 19.
This year’s line-up comprised 256 total features and shorts, culled from 8,183 submissions. Best narrative feature “Thunder Road” was adapted from the namesake, one-take short that won a Grand Jury award at Sundance in 2016.
Lena Dunham’s “Tiny Furniture” (2010) and Destin Daniel Cretton’s “Short Term 12” (2013) are among the best-known past jury victors at SXSW. IndieWire’s Dana Harris helped choose the Louis Black “Lone Star” honoree,...
- 3/14/2018
- by Jenna Marotta
- Indiewire
Tribeca All Access alumni include Mudbound director Dee Rees.
The Tribeca Film Institute (Tfi) has announced the 10 projects selected for this year’s Tribeca All Access programme, each of which will receive a $10,000 grant from Tfi in addition to support and resources.
The programme, in its 15th year, selects scripted and documentary projects from historically underrepresented voices.
The 2018 Tribeca All Access programme’s selected projects are: Ekwa Msangi’s Farewell Amor; Natalia Leite’a Joy Ride; Francesca Mirabella’s Modern Love; Joel Vargas’ No Half Steppin’; Anu Valia’s We Strangers; Jacqueline Olive’s Always In Season; Chelsea Hernandez’s Building The American Dream; Hassan Fazili’s Midnight Traveler; Ivete Lucas and Patrick Bresnan’s Pahokee; and Nehad Khader’s Unbowed.
At this year’s Tribeca Film Festival, the selected filmmakers will take part in the At&T Presents Tfi Network, where they will take part in one-on-one meetings with industry professionals.
“As demonstrated by the...
The Tribeca Film Institute (Tfi) has announced the 10 projects selected for this year’s Tribeca All Access programme, each of which will receive a $10,000 grant from Tfi in addition to support and resources.
The programme, in its 15th year, selects scripted and documentary projects from historically underrepresented voices.
The 2018 Tribeca All Access programme’s selected projects are: Ekwa Msangi’s Farewell Amor; Natalia Leite’a Joy Ride; Francesca Mirabella’s Modern Love; Joel Vargas’ No Half Steppin’; Anu Valia’s We Strangers; Jacqueline Olive’s Always In Season; Chelsea Hernandez’s Building The American Dream; Hassan Fazili’s Midnight Traveler; Ivete Lucas and Patrick Bresnan’s Pahokee; and Nehad Khader’s Unbowed.
At this year’s Tribeca Film Festival, the selected filmmakers will take part in the At&T Presents Tfi Network, where they will take part in one-on-one meetings with industry professionals.
“As demonstrated by the...
- 2/28/2018
- by Jenn Sherman
- ScreenDaily
The fall is often perceived as the launch pad for awards season, as numerous prestige films compete for attention in the final weeks of the year. For much of the film community, however, it’s also the first major window into movies worth talking about next year. That’s because the Sundance Film Festival lineup typically drops in the middle of November, shaking up the holiday season with a mixture of familiar faces and newcomers who could make an impact in Park City this January. With programmers working in overdrive to complete the lineup in the coming weeks, and filmmakers praying to break through as the deadlines loom, we’ve cobbled together as much intel as we can for this extensive preview featuring dozens of promising titles that stand a good chance at making their way to Sundance this year. As usual, we’ve tried to avoid projects that are...
- 11/20/2017
- by Eric Kohn, Jude Dry, Chris O'Falt, Kate Erbland, Jenna Marotta, David Ehrlich and Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
Online crowdfunding tool and distribution platform Seed&Spark has long been dedicated to diversity and inclusion behind the camera, championing a “healthier environment” to create work within and the steadfast belief that “artists are responsible for teaching their audiences why they are essential” for inciting change and deepening empathy. To that end, founder and CEO Emily Best has posted an impassioned and emotional new blog, inspired by this week’s election results and, in true Seed&Spark fashion, it calls upon artists and their supporters to use their craft to as an effective political act.
In the new post, entitled “A Wicked Problem,” Best writes, “We are facing down a wicked problem. We have fundamentally lost the thread of empathy essential to both progress and maintaining the social contract. And no single factor is to blame for the dangerous new condition of American life.”
Read More: 7 Revelations From Indiegogo and...
In the new post, entitled “A Wicked Problem,” Best writes, “We are facing down a wicked problem. We have fundamentally lost the thread of empathy essential to both progress and maintaining the social contract. And no single factor is to blame for the dangerous new condition of American life.”
Read More: 7 Revelations From Indiegogo and...
- 11/11/2016
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
Today, Project Greenlight Digital Studios and the crowdfunding platform Seed&Spark have announced the grand prize winner of #UntoldStory Crowdfunding Rally. Documentarian Chelsea Hernandez won for her film “Building the American Dream,” which explores the exploitation of undocumented workers on Texas construction sites. This announcement was made at the release party for the sixth issue of Bright Ideas magazine at the Ace Hotel in downtown Los Angeles on August 10th.
Read More: Seed&Spark, SeriesFest Partner to Find the Next Great Voice in Independent TV
“Winning this contest helps validate not only the artistic quality and trust in me to make the film but also signifies the film’s importance,” said Hernandez. “More than ever before, documentaries have the ability to disrupt and influence change.”
This past March, Seed&Spark and Project Greenlight put out a call for submissions for the next great Untold Story in documentary, specifically looking for...
Read More: Seed&Spark, SeriesFest Partner to Find the Next Great Voice in Independent TV
“Winning this contest helps validate not only the artistic quality and trust in me to make the film but also signifies the film’s importance,” said Hernandez. “More than ever before, documentaries have the ability to disrupt and influence change.”
This past March, Seed&Spark and Project Greenlight put out a call for submissions for the next great Untold Story in documentary, specifically looking for...
- 8/12/2016
- by Vikram Murthi
- Indiewire
In March, Seed&Spark and Project Greenlight Digital Studios announced the world’s first crowdfunding rally. The Untold Story Crowdfunding Rally was created to find “the next great untold story in documentary,” accepting submissions in search for feature documentaries on stories and perspectives not seen before.
Read More: Exclusive: Project Greenlight Digital Studios is Launching Brand New Advisory Board
The ten finalists were announced today, and from vertical farms to Native American comedians, the chosen stories certainly are untold. The finalists had to raise $10,000 in crowdfunding money on Seed&Spark in order to qualify, and now will have the chance to will $20,000 in finishing funds for their projects, distribution in millions of homes, and $5,000 in data storage.
“We are excited not only to celebrate the finalists, but to celebrate all participants who made of the most of the rally and used it to spread the word about their unique stories,...
Read More: Exclusive: Project Greenlight Digital Studios is Launching Brand New Advisory Board
The ten finalists were announced today, and from vertical farms to Native American comedians, the chosen stories certainly are untold. The finalists had to raise $10,000 in crowdfunding money on Seed&Spark in order to qualify, and now will have the chance to will $20,000 in finishing funds for their projects, distribution in millions of homes, and $5,000 in data storage.
“We are excited not only to celebrate the finalists, but to celebrate all participants who made of the most of the rally and used it to spread the word about their unique stories,...
- 7/5/2016
- by Kate Halliwell
- Indiewire
The Marfa Film Festival is back after a hiatus of a couple of years, and several of us at Slackerwood couldn't be more thrilled. Yesterday, the fest announced most of the movies that will screen from June 26-30. The lineup includes several films with Austin and Texas connections:
An Oversimplification of Her Beauty -- Dallas native Terence Nance's narrative film is about what happens when a young man is stood up. It will screen here in Austin at Alamo Drafthouse Ritz later this month.The Taiwan Oyster -- Don reviewed this movie about two Americans on a road trip in Taiwan when it screened at SXSW 2012. He said, "The Taiwan Oyster is a gorgeous and captivating film, a physical and spiritual journey in an exotic land. It has much to say about life, loneliness and death, and our eternal struggles with all three." Filmmaker Mark Jarrett is from Austin.
An Oversimplification of Her Beauty -- Dallas native Terence Nance's narrative film is about what happens when a young man is stood up. It will screen here in Austin at Alamo Drafthouse Ritz later this month.The Taiwan Oyster -- Don reviewed this movie about two Americans on a road trip in Taiwan when it screened at SXSW 2012. He said, "The Taiwan Oyster is a gorgeous and captivating film, a physical and spiritual journey in an exotic land. It has much to say about life, loneliness and death, and our eternal struggles with all three." Filmmaker Mark Jarrett is from Austin.
- 5/9/2013
- by Jette Kernion
- Slackerwood
The Austin Film Festival has announced its 2012 Film Competition winners from its seven categories. The films were selected from a record number of entries this year and were all chosen by industry jurors. "Sparrows Dance" by writer/director Noah Buschel prevailed in the Narrative Feature category, while Jamie Meltzer's "Informant" won best Documentary Feature; Bryan Buckley's "Asad," which he wrote and directed, took home the award for Narrative Short; "Hatch" by writer/director Christoph Kuschnig and writer Karl Goldblat topped the Narrative Student Short category; Timothy Reckart's "Head Over Heels" won for Animated Short; best Documentary Short went to Chelsea Hernandez and Erik Mauck's "See The Dirt"; and "Crumbs," directed by Nicco Vasquez and written by Keith Limon, won the Young Filmmakers Competition. The Austin Film Festival is recognized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts...
- 10/22/2012
- by Justin Krajeski
- Indiewire
Here's the latest Austin and Texas film news.
Austin Film Festival announced its 2012 film competition awards, which includes the locally made short documentary, See The Dirt. Chelsea Hernandez's and Erik Mauck's film, about a Georgetown teen who collects vacuum cleaners, won Best Documentary Short. Director Jamie Meltzer's documentary Informant, about Austinite Byron Darby's turn from left-wing protestor to FBI informant, won Best Documentary Feature at this year's festival.Austin Film Society is hosting a member mixer with beer, snacks and short film clips from local filmmakers on Friday, October 26 from 5:30-7:30 pm at Austin Studios. The mixer is also providing info about the Love Austin initiative, which supports the municipal bond on the Austin ballot in November. Proposition 18 includes provisions to expand Austin Studios by transforming the neighboring National Guard Building into 50,000 square feet of office space for creative media professionals.In more festival news,...
Austin Film Festival announced its 2012 film competition awards, which includes the locally made short documentary, See The Dirt. Chelsea Hernandez's and Erik Mauck's film, about a Georgetown teen who collects vacuum cleaners, won Best Documentary Short. Director Jamie Meltzer's documentary Informant, about Austinite Byron Darby's turn from left-wing protestor to FBI informant, won Best Documentary Feature at this year's festival.Austin Film Society is hosting a member mixer with beer, snacks and short film clips from local filmmakers on Friday, October 26 from 5:30-7:30 pm at Austin Studios. The mixer is also providing info about the Love Austin initiative, which supports the municipal bond on the Austin ballot in November. Proposition 18 includes provisions to expand Austin Studios by transforming the neighboring National Guard Building into 50,000 square feet of office space for creative media professionals.In more festival news,...
- 10/22/2012
- by Jordan Gass-Poore'
- Slackerwood
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