News You Can Use
Published regularly by Women Make Movies Production Assistance Program, News You Can Use serves as a resource for independent filmmakers and film enthusiasts. You'll find news about sponsored projects in our program, upcoming workshops, calls for entries and other filmmaker opportunities.
Learn more:
Production Assistance
Fiscal Sponsorship
Filmmaker Workshop Series
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Cinereach Supports
Two WMM Films
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Cinereach awarded grants to both Yance Ford's STRONG ISLAND and Tanaz Eshaghian's THE WORLD IN A ROOM in its most recent round of awards. Cinereach facilitates the creation of films that challenge, excite, innovate, offer new perspectives and inspire action through grants, fellowships, and funding collaborations. Get more info.
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At a Festival, Theatre or TV Screen Near You
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ELLA ES EL MATADOR (She is the Matador), by Gemma Cubero and Celeste Carrasco, will be screening at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, between November 6 - 14. More info.
Natalia Almada's EL GENERAL will show at the ICA in Boston this Sunday, November 1, at 4pm. It will screen again on November 28. More info.
Camilla Calamandrei will be making her NYC premiere of THE TIGER NEXT DOOR at the Margaret Mead Film Festival on November 13. More info.
Nandini Sikand and Alexia Prichard's SOMA GIRLS is showing in the MIAAC Film Festival, at the Quad Cinema on November 13. More info.
The 2009 Starz Denver Film Festival will be showing a "Women + Film" program, featuring one film from the P.A. Progam - Anne Aghion's MY NEIGHBOR, MY KILLER, and two WMM distributed films - Catherine Ulmer López's AFTER THE RAPE and Olivia Klaus's SIN BY SILENCE. They will all screen between November 14 - 18. More info.
Nicole Opper's OFF AND RUNNING will be showing at the Boston Jewish Film Festival on November 10. More info.
Anthology Film Archives will have a week-long run of Augusta Palmer's HAND OF FATIMA November 13 – 19. More info.
Joan Braderman's THE HERETICS will be featured in the Santa Fe Film Festival December 2 – 9. More info.
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Recent Funding & Awards
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Pratibha Parmar's ALICE WALKER: YOU CAN'T KEEP A GOOD WOMAN DOWN has received support from the Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice.
THE SARI SOLDIERS, by Julie Bridgham, will receive outreach support from the Fledgling Fund.
The Mary Duke Biddle Foundation has awarded a grant to Dempsey Rice for her project, FORGET ME NOTS.
Suzanne Wasserman's THE SWEATSHOP CINDERELLA has been awarded a grant by the Lucius & Eva Eastman Fund.
TALES OF THE WARIA, by Kathy Huang, is receiving funding from the Pacific Pioneer Fund.
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NALIP Doing Your Doc: Diverse Visions, Regional Voices
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November 6 - 8 | San Antonio, TX | $100/$150 at the door
Don't miss this unique chance to receive project mentoring on your proposal, trailer or documentary idea. This intensive three-day workshop is right for you whether you are just beginning, have already shot footage on a documentary project, or are seeking finishing funds. Workshop led by story consultant Fernanda Rossi. Register here.
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Internships at WMM: Apply today!
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WMM is looking for fall interns. Our internship program is a fantastic opportunity to learn all aspects of independent film, from distribution, outreach, and promotion to funding and program assistance. Past WMM interns have gone on to pursue a range of careers, working as successful directors, media librarians, and within other parts of the filmmaking industry. Interns receive free access to our huge collection of films and popular filmmaker workshop series. Apply today!
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Thanks to Our Funders
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October 2009
October 09 News You Can Use | WMM Fall Workshops, Emmy Awards, Funding Opportunities + More
 WMM Fall Workshops Continue
November 4 and 11 | New York City
A WALK TO BEAUTIFUL Wins Emmy Award
MY NEIGHBOR MY KILLER Gotham Nomination Plus Other WMM Awards
WILLIAM KUNSTLER: DISTURBING THE UNIVERSE Coming to a Theater Near You
Funding & Opportunities
Festivals
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WMM Fall Workshops Continue
November 4 and 11 | New York City
Meet the Funder: Incite Productions
November 4 | 7:00-8:30pm | WMM Office | $15/$12
Join us as we welcome Daniel J. Chalfen of Incite Productions, a non-profit organization that finances, develops, produces and markets high-quality documentaries (and occasionally narratives) that focus on global social, political and human rights issues. Incite utilizes film as a medium for activism and to create awareness of subjects of contemporary importance. They become involved with films that have a strong potential for advocacy, outreach and commercial success.
Come with questions and learn about this largely unknown resource for independent filmmakers! A reception will follow the event.
Register today! Space is limited. The $12 discount rate is available to PA Program Participants, WMM Friends, and members of our co-sponsoring organizations. Become a WMM Friend!
Your Fundraising Blueprint: Designing a Strategy That's Right for Your Project
November 11 | 6:30-8:00pm | WMM Office | $50/$40
Don't miss this nuts-and-bolts workshop that will help you design a fundraising plan best suited to your project. From traditional grant-seeking from private and government foundations to targeted appeals through events and on-line solicitations, come hear about the many different ways to raise money in these tough economic times.
Topics include: writing proposals, making appeals to individual donors, organizing benefits and events, raising money on-line and more. This workshop will help broaden your outlook on fundraising and help you come up with a fundraising plan that's right for you. Presented by Tracie Holder, filmmaker, fundraiser and consultant to WMM. A reception will follow the event.
Register today! Space is limited. The $40 discount rate is available to PA Program Participants, WMM Friends, and members of our co-sponsoring organizations. Become a WMM Friend!
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A WALK TO BEAUTIFUL Wins Emmy Award
A WALK TO BEAUTIFUL by Amy Bucher and Mary Olive Smith recently won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Informational Programming – Long Form at the 30th Annual News & Documentary Emmy Awards. Lisa Jackson's THE GREATEST SILENCE: RAPE IN THE CONGO was nominated for two awards - Outstanding Informational Programming – Long Form and Outstanding Individual Achievement in a Craft. Congratulations to all!
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MY NEIGHBOR MY KILLER Gotham Nomination Plus Other WMM Awards
Anne Aghion's MY NEIGHBOR MY KILLER was nominated for a
Gotham Independent Film Award in Best Documentary. This powerful documentary follows the reconciliation process in Rwanda after the 1994 genocide of the country's Tutsi minority by Hutus. Gotham Award winners will be announced on November 30. View a full list of nominees.
Kim Longinotto's ROUGH AUNITIES, distributed by WMM, has recently won two awards. At the Heartland Film Festival, the film won the Crystal Heart Award for Documentary Feature. And on the other side of the world, the film was honored at the Films from the South Film Festival is Oslo when it was given The Dok:Sør Award by the documentary jury. Congratulations to both filmmakers!
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WILLIAM KUNSTLER: DISTURBING THE UNIVERSE Coming to a Theater Near You
 WILLIAM KUNSTLER: DISTURBING THE UNIVERSE, which premiered at Sundance this year, will be having a theatrical release in November. The film, directed by Emily and Sarah Kunstler, explores the life of their father, the late radical civil rights
lawyer of the 1960s and '70s, described by the New York Times as "the most hated and loved lawyer in America."
The film will open in New York and Boston on November 13, then add six more cities on November 20. For the full list of theaters and dates, click here.
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Funding & Opportunities
Directors Guild Assistant Directors Training Program
Deadline: November 20, 2009
The Assistant Directors Training Program recruits a diverse group of applicants from across the United States and provides selected candidates with education, training and paid experience in professional settings, facilitating their development into successful Assistant Directors. The Training Program's ultimate goal is to provide the Directors Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers with Assistant Directors of the highest quality and professionalism. Apply here.
NYWIFT Women’s Film Preservation Fund
Deadline: November 30, 2009
The Women’s Film Preservation Fund (WFPF) is the premier effort of women in the industry to preserve our cultural legacy. Since its inception, the WFPF has provided financial support for presentation of over 75 short and feature films. The Fund awards cash grants, as well as in-kind post-production services to preserve or restore films in which women have played a significant creative role. Apply here.
Cinereach
Deadline: December 1, 2009 (LOI)
Cinereach supports artful fiction and nonfiction films that depict underrepresented perspectives, cross cultural boundaries and promote dialogue by giving up to $400,000 in grants and awards every year. Cinereach requires prospective applicants to submit an initial 2-page letter of inquiry and will then invite selected applicants to follow up with a full proposal. Apply here.
New York Foundation for the Arts' Professional Development Program for Individual Artists
Deadline: December 1, 2009
NYFA’s statewide program supports visual artists living outside of the five boroughs of New York City who wish to further develop the professional side of their careers. The six-month MARK Program will help participants focus on strategies for expanding their visibility as artists. Apply here.
GWU Doc Center Int’l Emerging Filmmakers Fellowship
Deadline: December 4, 2009
George Washington University’s Documentary Center’s International Emerging Filmmakers Fellowship will take place May 26 – July 8, 2010. The intensive six-week program seeks twenty emerging documentary filmmakers from across the globe to participate in this unique international cultural exchange and professional development opportunity. Apply here.
TFI Sloan Filmmaker Fund
Deadline: January 11, 2010
In 2010, the TFI Sloan Filmmaker Fund will provide up to $140,000 in support of innovative and compelling filmmaking that explores scientific, mathematical, and technological themes and storylines, or a leading character who is a scientist, engineer, innovator or mathematician in fresh ways. TFI Sloan is seeking exceptional narrative work of all genres (except science fiction or fantasy) with scientifically accurate themes or characters. Apply here.
Global Film Initiative Production Grants
Deadline: January 15, 2010
Global Film Initiative production grants are awarded twice a year, in winter and summer, to filmmakers whose work exhibits artistic excellence, authentic self-representation and accomplished storytelling. The granting program furthers the Initiative's mission of contributing to the development of local film industries while offering audiences a variety of cultural perspectives on daily life around the world.
Apply here.
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Festivals
Gen Art Film Festival
Deadline: October 31, 2009 (Regular) / December 9, 2009 (Late)
The Gen Art Film Festival is one week of film premieres in New York that spotlight talented emerging filmmakers from North America. By showcasing only one short and one feature each night, the festival's energy is focused nightly towards granting the audience access to the most captivating voices on the festival circuit. More info.
International Film Festival Rotterdam
Deadline for features: November 1, 2009
The 38th International Film Festival is still accepting feature-length fiction and documentary entries for its 2010 edition. The International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR), one of Europe's biggest and most important film events, focuses mostly on innovative and independent cinema. More info.
True/False Film Festival
Deadline: November 16, 2009 (Late) / December 7, 2009 (Withoutabox.com)
The True/False Film Fest returns for its seventh edition Feb. 25-28, 2010. The festival highlights innovative work with a cinematic scope, creative takes on contemporary currents, and most of all work that provokes dialogue about its subject and the documentary form itself. More info.
Full Frame Film Festival
Late deadline: November 30, 2009
Full Frame is recognized as the premier documentary film festival in the United States by both The New York Times and indieWIRE. Its mission is to provide documentary filmmakers with opportunities to showcase their work theatrically, stimulating conversation and community between filmmakers, industry executives and the general public. More info.
56th International Short Film Festival Oberhausen
Deadline: January 15, 2010
In the course of more than five decades, the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen has become one of the world's most respected film events - a place where filmmakers and artists such as Martin Scorsese, George Lucas, Roman Polanski, Alexander Kluge and Werner Herzog, and more recently Ulrike Ottinger, Romuald Karmakar, Pipilotti Rist, Jean-Pierre Jeunet and François Ozon have presented their first films. The 2010 Festival will run April 29 to May 4, 2010. More info.
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About WMM:
Women Make Movies is the world's leading distributor of
independent films by and about women. For the third year in a row,
films from WMM took home top prizes at Sundance. This year, ROUGH
AUNTIES by acclaimed filmmaker Kim Longinotto won the World Cinema
Documentary Jury Prize; and last year, THE GREATEST SILENCE: RAPE IN
THE CONGO received the Special Jury Prize in Documentary. Additionally,
WMM's well-established Production Assistance (PA) Program helps
American women directors get their stories to the screen. Recent films
of note from the Production Assistance Program include Oscar-nominated
NERAKHOON (THE BETRAYAL) by Ellen Kuras and EL GENERAL, by Natalia
Almada, winner of the Sundance Directing Award in U.S. Documentary. For
more, visit our website at www.wmm.com.
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