New York Women in Film & Television

FYI women filmmakers…

New York Women in Film & Television (NYWIFT) is now accepting applications for its four 2015 Funds for Women Filmmakers. Applications are available online at www.nywift.org and are due June 15, so you’ve got about a month.

The available grants are The Loreen Arbus Disability Awareness Grant, In-Kind Post-Production Grants, The Nancy Malone Marketing & Promotion Grant and The Ravenal Foundation Feature Film Grant.

The Loreen Arbus Disability Awareness Grant

NYWFIT established The Loreen Arbus Disability Awareness Grant through the generosity of Loreen Arbus. The film completion grant for $7,500 is awarded to a woman filmmaker for a film on physical or developmental disability issues. Directors and producers are eligible to apply. Films may be of any length or genre. The Grant is awarded to help complete a work-in-progress. Films must have completed principle photography to be eligible. Finished films are not eligible. Filmmakers must be U.S.-based.

The 2014 Loreen Arbus Disability Awareness Grant was awarded to Jennifer Redfearn for her feature film”Tocando La Luz” (“Tough the Light”), which premiered at both The Full Frame Documentary Film Festival in Durham, NC, and The Ashland Film Festival in Ashland, OR, in April.

The 2012 recipient,“Do You Dream in Color?,” a full-length documentary feature directed by Abigail Fuller and Sarah Ivy, will screen at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on July 18 in celebration of the 25^thAnniversary of the Americans With Disabilities Act.

In-Kind Post-Production Grants

NYWIFT offers grants of in-kind post-production services to documentary and narrative films directed and produced by New York area–based women filmmakers. Grants for an online session and/or a sound mix are awarded. Films may be up to one and a half hours long. The Grants are awarded to help complete a work-in-progress. Films must have completed principle photography and be at a rough cut or fine cut stage to be eligible. NYWIFT’s In-Kind Post-Production Grants are made possible by Onomatopoeia/Bridge Multimedia and Park Avenue Post.

The 2014 In-Kind Post-Production grants were awarded to Gabriela Bortolamedi for her short documentary film”Ni Aqui, Ni Alla”(“Neither Here, Nor There”) and Betty Bastidas for her feature-length documentary “DreamTown.““Ni Aqui, Ni Alla”screened at The American Museum of Natural History’s 2014 Margaret Mead Festival and the 2015 San Diego Latino Film Festival. “DreamTown“has received the National Association of Latino Independent Producers (NALIP)/HBO Documentary Award and the National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures (NALAC) grant, and a short version of the film (about Afro-Ecuadorian soccer players) was published on PBS’s”Frontline/World.”

The Nancy Malone Marketing & Promotion Grant

The New York Women in Film & Television Nancy Malone Marketing and Promotion (MAP) Grant will provide resources to help an emerging woman director get her film recognized and ready for distribution.

The 2014 Nancy Malone MAP Grant was awarded to Marielle Heller for her feature”Diary of a Teenage Girl.” The film premiered to rave reviews at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival, where Sony Pictures Classics and K5 Intl acquired the rights for distribution. 

The Ravenal Foundation Feature Film Grant

The NYWIFT Ravenal Foundation Grant supports a woman second-time feature film director who is over 40 years of age in the production of a dramatic feature film with $7500. Grant funds may be used for pre-production, production or post-production. Grant-seekers must have previously directed a dramatic feature film or feature documentary that was released theatrically in the United States or included in a major film festival, or a feature-length television movie shown on a national TV platform. Women who have directed one dramatic feature (for theatrical or TV) or more than one feature documentary are eligible. Applicants must be US residents and the works must be primarily in English.

The 2014 Ravenal Grant was awarded to director Janet Grillo for her feature”Jack of the Red Hearts.” The film will premiere this May at the inaugural Bentonville Film Festival, which champions women and diversity in film and was co-founded by Geena Davis and Trevor Drinkwater.

New York Women in Film & Television supports women calling the shots in film, television and digital media. NYWIFT energizes the careers of women in entertainment by illuminating their achievements, providing training and professional development, and advocating for equality.

The preeminent entertainment industry association for women in New York, NYWIFT brings together nearly 2,000 women and men working both above and below the line. NYWIFT is part of a network of 40 women in film chapters worldwide, representing more than 10,000 members. NYWIFT produces over 50 innovative programs and special events annually, including the Muse Awards for Vision and Achievement, which honors women in front of and behind the camera, and Designing Women, which recognizes costume designers, makeup artists and hair stylists in the industry.

NYWIFT is a nonprofit, 501c3 public charity, and contributions are tax-deductible to the extent provided by law. It is governed by an 18 member board of directors. The board is elected by the membership.

More information can be found online at: www.NYWIFT.org.