Artist News | “Made in NY” Women’s Film, TV and Theatre Fund Screenings and Performances
In 2019, finishing funds in the combined amount of $1.5 million were awarded to 63 film, TV, theatre, and digital projects. Now’s the time to see several of the finalized works!
The “Made in NY” Women’s Film, TV and Theatre Fund, a centerpiece of a groundbreaking series of initiatives by the City of New York Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment (MOME), was unveiled in 2018 to address the underrepresentation of those who identify as women in film, television and theatre. Administered by New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA), the program provided finishing funds for film, television, digital projects, and theatre productions. Now, many of the first round of grant recipients are presenting their projects at venues in New York and internationally, some with world premieres.
Below, we’re rounding up opportunities to see the projects that were recognized in the first round of funding and highlighting a couple of projects that recently world premiered at respected international film festivals. NYFA will recognize a second group of creatives through the NYC Women’s Fund for Media, Music and Theatre in Spring 2020.
UPCOMING
Filmmaker: Dominica Eriksen
What: In Saint Catherine of Bensonhurst, a young girl with a vivid imagination feels it is her calling to become a nun. In this quirky dramedy, she takes her passion to extremes, not considering the effect it might have on her family.
When/Where: Fusion Film Festival Launch Program at NYU Tisch School of the Arts (721 Broadway, New York, NY 10003, Theatre 006) on Friday, November 1 – FREE and open to the public (timing TBC). New York Shorts Festival Block 16 at Cinema Village (22 East 12th Street, New York, NY 10003) on Wednesday, November 6 at 8:00 PM.
Artist: Zoey Martinson, Smoke & Mirrors Collaborative
What: Theatre production The Black History Museum…According to the United States of America invites audiences to experience life as a Black American throughout history. This world premiere employs powerful and satirical visual art, performance, sound installation, and dance to transform HERE Arts Center’s entire building into a theatrical museum. An experience unlike any other, The Black History Museum… entreats audiences to see the American notion of “Blackness” through new lenses, in 2019, the 400th anniversary of the beginning of American slavery.
When/Where: HERE Arts Center (145 6th Avenue, New York, NY 10013), runs Friday, November 1-Sunday, November 24 with performances nightly (except Mondays) at 7:00 PM and Sundays at 3:00 PM.
Filmmaker: Beth B
What: World premiere of Lydia Lunch – The War is Never Over, a lively portrait of American singer, writer, and actress Lydia Lunch. By turning trauma into precise and angry feminist rock, Lunch helped birth the No Wave music scene in the late 1970s and early ’80s. The film includes filmmakers, musicians, and friends who discuss the relevance of Lunch’s brilliantly vitriolic world.
When/Where: The film will world premiere as part of DOC NYC at IFC Center (323 6th Avenue, New York, NY 10014) on Saturday, November 9 at 7:05 PM. Beth B., co-producer Kathleen Fox, cinematographer Peter Gordon and subjects Lydia Lunch, Kembra Pfahler, Richard Kern, JG Thirlwell, and Carlo McCormick are expected to attend.
Filmmakers: Lydia Cornett, Jenny Groza
What: Short film Narmin’s Birthday examines the relationship of 15-year-old Narmin and her 84-year-old grandmother Ismat, who share a bedroom in their family’s Sheepshead Bay apartment. Though their nights are spent four feet away from each other on parallel beds, the cultural identities they’ve chosen are worlds apart. It world premiered at the Art of Brooklyn Film Festival in June 2019.
When/Where: Nitehawk Shorts Festival opening night at Nitehawk Cinema Williamsburg (136 Metropolitan Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11249) on Tuesday, November 12 at 7:00 PM. SOLD OUT.
Filmmaker: Eliza Cossio
What: La Bruja (The Witch), a featured funny video on Vulture, is a bi-lingual dark comedy about a Mexican American woman who is suddenly dumped by her boyfriend and meets a witch who offers to help. It world premiered at the Lower East Side Film Festival in June 2019.
When/Where: Milwaukee Film Festival’s “Shorts: Out of this World” program at Times Cinema (5906 West Vliet Street, Milwaukee, WI 53208) on Friday, October 25 at 9:15 PM. Nitehawk Shorts Festival’s “NSF19 with NOBUDGE” program at Nitehawk Cinema Williamsburg (136 Metropolitan Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11249) on Thursday, November 14 at 7:00 PM.
Filmmakers: Crystal Kayiza, Cady Lang
What: World premiere and New York City premiere of short documentary See You Next Time, which captures the intimate moments between a Chinese nail tech and her Black client in a Brooklyn nail salon. It reaches across the nail salon table for a nuanced look into how two women of color see each other in a space unlike anything else in the world.
When/Where: World premiere at Chicago International Film Festival’s “Shorts 7: Some Kind of Tomorrow” program at AMC River East 21 (322 East Illinois Street, Chicago, IL 60611) on Saturday, October 26 at 3:00 PM. New York City premiere at Nitehawk Shorts Festival’s “Closing Nite” program at Nitehawk Cinema Williamsburg (136 Metropolitan Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11249) on Monday, November 18 at 7:00 PM.
Filmmaker: Isabel Sandoval
What: In Lingua Franca, Olivia, an undocumented Filipino trans woman, works as a caregiver to Olga, an elderly Russian woman, in Brighton Beach, Brooklyn. When Olivia runs out of options to attain legal status in the U.S., she becomes romantically involved with Alex, Olga’s adult grandson, in the pursuit of a marriage-based green card. The film world-premiered at the Venice International Film Festival in September and also screened at BFI London Film Festival and Busan International Film Festival earlier this month. Read reviews and interviews here from International Cinephile Society, Women and Hollywood, and View of the Arts.
When/Where: Cork Film Festival at The Gate Cinema in Cork, Ireland on Saturday, November 9 at 6:30 PM. Hawaii International Film Festival at Regal Dole Cannery IMAX & RPX (735 B Iwilei Road, Honolulu, HI 96817) on Tuesday, November 12 at 7:45 PM and Wednesday, November 13 at 6:15 PM. San Diego Asian Film Festival at Ultrastar Cinemas Mission Valley (7510 Hazard Center Drive, San Diego, CA 92018) on Thursday, Novemeber 14 at 7:50 PM.
PAST
Filmmakers: Myna Joseph, Lucy Owen, Amy Lo
What: FIT MODEL follows a day in the life of Lu Simon, a woman of substantial charisma but limited means, as she navigates her city and juggles two bags, three jobs, and multiple negotiations with an unhelpful hospital billing department.
Where: The film world premiered earlier this month at the 57th New York Film Festival at Lincoln Center. Film critic Jaime N. Christley (Village Voice, Slant Magazine, Filmmaker Magazine) called it a highlight of the short film lineup saying “I hope there are more Joseph projects in the future; Lucy Owen (who co-wrote) makes a commanding lead.” The film was also recognized with Jury Award at the New Hampshire Film Festival.
Filmmaker: Tania Cypriano
What: Born to Be documents the remarkable emotional and physical journey of surgical transitioning soon after New York State passed a law that health insurance should cover transgender-related care and services. Lending equal narrative weight to the experiences of the center’s groundbreaking surgeon Dr. Jess Ting and those of his diverse group of patients, Born to Be perfectly balances compassionate personal storytelling and fly-on-the-wall vérité. Read reviews and interviews here from Variety, Women and Hollywood, IndieWire, and POV Magazine.
Where: The film world premiered at the 57th New York Film Festival at Lincoln Center and had its New York premiere at the Hamptons International Film Festival, both held earlier this month.
Find out about additional awards and grants here. Sign up for our free bi-weekly newsletter, NYFA News, to receive announcements about future NYFA events and programs.
Funding for this program provided by the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment.
Images from top: Judy and Arrianna from See You Next Time, Image Courtesy Crystal Kayiza and Cady Lang; Lydia Lunch – The War Is Never Over, Image Courtesy Beth B; and Lingua Franca, Image Courtesy Isabel Sandoval
