Strike While The Iron Is Hot
Is all money created equal? When is the right (and wrong) time to apply for grant funding? How do investors work? Join us for an informal fireside chat about film financing with Tribeca Film Institute’s former Director of Scripted Programs Bryce Norbitz and filmmaker Dyana Winkler where no question is off limits as we look honestly at how savvy filmmakers have to be in order to get our films funded and made. Moderated by Film Fatales member Sharmila Ray.
Bryce currently serves as the Program Director for the Athena Screenwriting Lab and the Director of Stowe Launch, an Advanced Development Program for Stowe Story Labs. She is the former Director of Scripted Programs at Tribeca Film Institute. Dyana spent the first half of her career working inside funding organizations including the Sundance Documentary Film Program and Tribeca Film Institute where she learned who gets money, what gets into festivals and why. Her films have gone on to receive funding and support from Sundance, IFP, Film Independent, Chicken and Egg, Fledgling Foundation, New York State Council for the Arts (NYSCA), California Humanities, Threshold Foundation, Doc Society (formerly Brit Doc), Women in Film, the Sloan Foundation and many others.
Recommended Reading
A Child's Quest written by Fabian Garcia
Challenges Facing Independent Filmmakers written by Elliot Grove
How to Build Values-Based Documentary Funding Strategies written by Rounak Maiti
How the ‘United Skates’ Directors Made the Film Everyone Said Was Impossible written by Liz Nord
One of 2019’s Most Exciting HBO Documentary Debuts written by Mary Alice Miller
Massive List of Spring 2021 Grants All Filmmakers Should Know About written by Oakley Anderson-Moore
Meet Sharmila Ray of Saywhatfoo Films in Echo Park written by VoyageLA
New-look North Fork TV Festival wants to turn your idea into a hit show written by Sarah Austin
The Ultimate Film Grants List for Every Filmmaker in 2021 written by Herman Wilkins
Tips for Successfully Producing a Micro-Budget Feature written by Jennifer Westin
United Skates Review: A Rallying Cry for Black Roller Skating Culture written by Teo Bugbee
Documentary Producers Alliance Unveils Guidelines for the Documentary Waterfall written by Marilyn Ness
Additional Resources
Film Independent Grants and Awards
On the Front Lines
Join Film Fatales for a discussion about filming in conflict zones with documentary filmmakers Amber Fares (Speed Sisters), Elizabeth Mirzaei (3 Songs for Benazir), and Sedika Mojadidi (Facing the Dragon) as they share advice on the strategies, logistics and hazards of filming in daunting locations. How do they make authentic films that resonate with the wider world? What is it like to work in a conflict zone, both technically and emotionally? How do they keep their stories intimate and their subjects safe? How can films shift culture and create tangible and lasting change?
Recommended Reading
Afghan Female Directors Fear the End of Filmmaking Under Taliban: ‘They Can Easily Find Us, Kill Us, Get Rid of Us’ written by Rebecca Davis
Afghan Film Progress Obliterated By Taliban Takeover written by Hollie McKay
Amber Fares of Speed Sisters written by Yasmina Tawil
Cannes-Winning Afghan Director Trying to Escape Kabul: “If I Survive This, I Will Make Films About What Happened” written by Alex Ritman
Director Q&A: Elizabeth and Gulistan Mirzaei of 'Laila at the Bridge' written by A.T. Callaghan
How Sedika Mojadidi made her "immersive and intimate" doc about Afghan women written by Gary M. Kramer
Save Documentary Translator from Taliban Execution - An Urgent Call to Action written by James Longley
Shooting Amidst the Shooting: Doc-Making in War Zones written by Suz Curtis
‘Speed Sisters,’ Revving to Go in the West Bank written by Jeannette Catsoulis
The Afghanistan We Know and Fight For: Filmmakers Share Shards of Memories written by Elizabeth and Gulistan Mirzaei
Women’s Education Before, During, and After the Taliban Regime written by Shagufa Habibi
Additional Resources
CrossCurrents International Doc Fund
Film Independent Docuseries Intensive
IDA Enterprise Documentary Fund
Impact Partners Development Fund
International Cities of Refuge Network
International Documentary Association
International Refugee Assistance Project
ITVS Diversity Development Fund
IWMF Journalism Emergency Fund
Whose Story Mixer
Members of Film Fatales and A-Doc participated in a networking mixer for filmmakers of all backgrounds, led by Film Fatales and A-Doc members Eunice Lau and Theresa Loong.
Recommended Reading
'A complete erasure': Asian, Pacific Islanders face stunning lack of representation in Hollywood written by David Oliver
‘Crazy Rich Asians’ director Jon M. Chu on Asian representation in Hollywood written by Sarah Whitten
"Decolonize" the Documentary? written by Nadia Gill
Decolonizing Documentaries in South Asia written by Rounak Maiti
The Documentary Future: A Call for Accountability written by Sonya Childress and Natalie Bullock Brown
How Film Fatales are Tackling Hollywood's Inclusion Problem written by Melissa Silverstein
Practicing What You Preach: Examples of Accountable Documentary Filmmaking written by Yi Chen
The Documentary Future: A Call for Accountability written by Sonya Childress & Natalie Bullock Brown
We Need Documentarians of Color to Tell Their Own Stories written by Miasarah Lai
Who Is Telling Whose Story, To Whom, and Why? written byLisa Valencia-Svensson
Whose Story? Five Doc-Makers on (Avoiding) Extractive Filmmaking written by Lauren Wissot
Additional Resources
Center for Asian American Media
International Documentary Association
Love Is Love
Join us for a discussion about Queer Love Stories with Film Fatales members Marion Hill (Ma Belle, My Beauty), Mari Walker (See You Then) and Natalia Leite (Bare).
The Queer Cinema movement has been politically and aesthetically innovative, growing to include an entire generation of queer artists, filmmakers, and activists. What does this look like in today’s landscape? How has onscreen representation evolved alongside our understanding of gender? How does identity intersect with art? Is there such a thing as a “Queer Aesthetic”? Filmmakers telling stories of unconventional queer romances discuss their films, their creative process and various gazes.
Recommended Reading
A record year for LGBTQ representation in film — for gay white men written by Gwen Aviles
Centering Trans and Non-Binary Voices in Film and TV written by Kate Bove
LGBTQ Characters Got More Movie Screen Time In 2020 written by Andrew Limbong
New Films About Queer Women Are Revealing the Future of LGBTQ+ Cinema written by Jill Gutowitz
Queer History Through A Hollywood Lens written by Long Tran
What’s Happening to ‘Queer’ Cinema in the LGBT Film Boom? written by E. Alex Jung
Why Does Hollywood Dismiss Women-Directed Films About Queer Women? written by Sophie Willard
In Your Words
Join us for a discussion about Writing for Television with C.A. Johnson (Filthy Rich), Dr. David Renaud (The Good Doctor), and Marilyn Fu (The Baxters). Moderated by Film Fatales member Jenna Laurenzo (Lez Bomb).
This round table conversation with episodic television writers will explore their creative process and how they are making waves in the industry. Where did they find their style and how do they maintain it? What are the challenges to breaking into television? What happens day to day in a writer's room? How can we uplift marginalized voices so there are more seats at the table? Where do we go from here?
Recommended Reading
PayUpHollywood explained written by Nardine Saad
The Limits of Hollywood Fantasy written by Vinson Cunningham
What 4 Showrunners Look for When Staffing a Writers Room written by Priyanka Mattoo
Writers Lab Created For Women Screenwriters Over 40 written by Suzanna Bowling
Writing Tips From Shonda Rhimes written by M. Olchawska
Additional Resources
Language of Light
Join us for a discussion about the Language of Light with cinematographers Nancy Schreiber (P-Valley), Rose Bush (Colette), and Vatsala Goel (Aggie). Moderated by Film Fatales member Chithra Jeyaram (Foreign Puzzle).
Come hear from working cinematographers who are forging a path with their uniquely creative visions. Learn where they find inspiration, how they cultivate their style, and how they maintain it in the fast-paced and ever-changing landscape of the film industry. Do bold choices help you stand out or are they something you have to fight to hold onto? How do you maintain your artistic integrity? How do cinematographers like to communicate with directors?
Recommended Reading
11 Great Female Cinematographers Who Subvert the Male Gaze written by Chris O’Falt
'Ever heard of a woman cameraman?' written by Pamela Hutchinson
First Woman to Receive ASC’s Presidents Award Helps Pave Way to Equality for Cinematographers written by Valentina I. Valentini
Female cinematographers to celebrate written by Nikki Baughan
When Women in Film and TV Were Looking for That Union Label written by Melena Ryzik
Why Don't Female Cinematographers Get Hired On Big Movies? written by Monica Bushman
Why Have There Been No Great Women Cinematographers (According to Hollywood)? written by Justine Smith
Additional Resources