August 2023 Newsletter

MIF Summer/Fall Deadline Next Week!
Image Description: Over a white background with tendriled light blue-green organic shapes, blue and green text announces: Calling New England nonfiction filmmakers. Pre-production & Early Development Applications due on Monday, August 7.
Applications for Pre-production and Early Development grants through the Moving Image Fund are due Monday, August 7.
A maximum of (6) Pre-production grants of $5,000 each and (6) Early Development grants of $2,500 each will be awarded for the use of research, travel, location scouting, script or storyboard development, experimentation with shooting picture and sound, distribution planning, fundraising, creating a trailer, and schedule and budget development.
Applications for both phases require a written proposal and a full line-item budget. Pre-production applications require a current work sample from the project you are proposing for funding. Early Development applications require two past work samples.

Please review the Moving Image Fund guidelines and take a look at our frequently asked questions.
Virtual Info Session

LEF staff hosted a virtual info session last month to provide information about the MIF application process. You can watch a recording of the Zoom.

LEF Moving Image Fund Grantee News
Image descriptions: [Left image] In this still from Jennifer Redfearn's APART, a figure in a hooded coat seen from the waist up walks along a barbed-wire fence with a factory in the background. [Right image] In this still from Dan Habib and Samuel Habib's MY DISABILITY ROADMAP, Samuel Habib, a smiling young man with light skin and short brown hair in a magenta tuxedo jacket, moves down a beaming spectator-lined path in his wheelchair with his prom date, who has light skin and long dark hair and is wearing a long satiny pink dress.
APART, a LEF-supported film by Jennifer Redfearn about three women facing the challenge of mothering their children from prison and upon release, has been nominated for a News and Documentary Emmy Award in the category of Outstanding Politics and Government Documentary. Also, MY DISABILITY ROADMAP, the NYT Op-Doc by prior LEF grantees Dan Habib and Samuel Habib, has been nominated in the category of Outstanding Soft Feature Story: Long Form. The film, which is soon to be a feature supported by LEF, follows Samuel Habib, a young man with a complex disability, as he navigates adulthood, mentorship, and community. You can stream APART on Kanopy, and MY DISABILITY ROADMAP Op-Doc is available on the New York Times website.

ISRAELISM, the LEF-supported project by Eric Axelman and Sam Eilertsen about two young American Jews joining the battle against the old guard over Israel’s centrality in American Judaism, will have its Rhode Island premiere at the Flickers' Rhode Island International Film Festival in Providence on August 9, and its Boston premiere at the Coolidge Corner Theatre on August 20. Both screenings will be followed by a Q&A with the filmmakers. The film recently received national coverage through an article in Jacobin, as well as local coverage in central Maine about co-director Eric Axelman's growing up in Norridgewock.

LEF-supported project JOONAM, directed by Sierra Urich about her Iranian identity and her mother and grandmother's pasts, will make its (homecoming!) Vermont premiere at the Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival on August 26. Among interviews with the Joonam team, the film was reviewed by Iranian Diaspora Studies, and Hyperallergic wrote about its New York premiere, which was followed by a Q&A with actor Arian Moayed and food at a local Iranian restaurant.

The production company of prior LEF grantee Nerissa Williams Scott (PARADISE), TCGT Entertainment, in collaboration with Secret Society of Black Creatives and Next Leadership Development Corporation, was selected as one of eleven arts and cultural grantees receiving funding totaling $7,350,000 as part of the City of Boston’s new Cultural Investment Grant program. The collaboration's focus is on connecting Black people and other People of Color to unique storytelling and career opportunities.

Over four weekends in August, THE ARC OF OBLIVION, the latest film from prior LEF grantee Ian Cheney (BLUESPACE), will be playing at the "Ark Light Theatre" in Maine. The theatre is inside of a full-sized ark built by the filmmaker and others to function as the centerpiece of the film that muses on human desire to leave a trace. Each screening will be followed by a discussion with the filmmaker and other special guests, and tickets must be requested in advance.

Prior LEF grantee Raúl O. Paz Pastrana has been awarded a Princess Grace Foundation Special Projects Grant for his film, BACKSIDE, about the daily life and expertise of the migrant workers behind the Kentucky Derby.

The work of prior LEF grantee Angelo Madsen Minax—including his LEF-supported project NORTH BY CURRENT—was featured in the program of the Flaherty's most recent film seminar, Queer World Mending. A description of this year's program was covered in a recent article in Film Comment.
Are you a LEF grantee or fellow with news to share about your film?

Notes from the Flaherty Film Seminar
Image Description: The 2023 LEF New England-Flaherty Fellows (left to right) Chloe Zimmerman, Stephen Wardell, Cam/a.c. Howard, and Enrique Rivera stand in front of a sunny brick wall, smiling with their arms around each other.
In June, the 68th Flaherty Film Seminar, titled Queer World Mending, took place at Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, NY.

Since 2009, LEF New England has partnered with the Flaherty to support the participation of 4-5 New England-based nonfiction filmmakers at the Flaherty Film Seminar each year.

We're grateful to share these reflections from this year's LEF New England-Flaherty Fellows.
"Having the opportunity to connect with other queer storytellers, filmmakers, and cinema lovers from all over the world expanded my horizons in a really formative way. The friends I made alone would have made it worthwhile, but then add on top of that a rigorous dialogue about the possibility of institutions to hold productive conversations about otherness. There were films that made me go and run through a field afterwards."
— Cam/a.c. Howard 

“Our world moves fast and to have a space to pause and unite creative thinkers that can question, provoke, and inspire our field of work is so special... I’m so grateful for the ways we were able to inspire each other, listen to each other, and value historical education while imagining future storytelling to push the documentary genre to special heights. Thanks to LEF for making this possible!”
— Enrique Rivera

"The Flaherty was such an intense and life-affirming experience! It was so special, so dynamic, to be completely surrounded by other queer people and queer experimental films for a week; I'll be thinking about it for years to come."
— Stephen Wardell

Upcoming Film Opportunities
Vermont Flood Assistance

If you're a Vermont-based artist affected by the recent flood disaster, the Vermont Arts Council has compiled a list of resources.

While funds for Flood Relief Grants for artists have been exceeded, artists are being asked to complete a short questionnaire if they would like to apply for funding should more become available, and also to help the Vermont Arts Council assess unmet need.

Additional Vermont flood resources can be found on Vermont.gov's dedicated webpage. You can read about how to help with flood recovery through Vermont Public.
SAG-AFTRA New England Strike Rally

August 9 at 3:45pm ET.
Parkman Bandstand, Boston Common.

Join fellow members, pre-members, labor activists, industry partners and special guests to rally in support of a fair contract. This rally is open to all who support the cause.
Summer Independent Film and Media Arts Group (IMAG) Summer Field Meeting

August 18 from 11am–2:30pm PT.
Free virtual event hosted by BAVC Media and the National Endowment for the Arts. Registration details coming soon.

This virtual meeting will provide a national forum for ideas exchange, peer learning, and technical assistance to deepen connectivity between existing independent film and media arts networks, organizations, and collectives across the United States. Regardless if you are an individual, arts collective, or organization working to strengthen communities through the power of storytelling or build accessible and equitable career pathways into the film and media arts industry…this event is for you!

The Independent Film & Media Arts Field-Building Initiative is a collaborative partnership between the National Endowment for the Arts and Bay Area Video Coalition (BAVC) focused on creating a space for knowledge exchange and relationship-building, with an emphasis on promoting regional networks, equity, and career sustainability for individuals working in the film and media arts industry.
Image Description: New Hampshire State Council on the Arts Logo
Artist Entrepreneurial Grants (Deadline: August 4)
Artist Entrepreneurial Grants between $250–$1,000 support opportunities that will benefit New Hampshire artists’ careers, including the development of business skills, participation in programs to raise the level and quality of their art, and participation in programs that will bring their art to the widest possible markets.

This opportunity has additional quarterly deadlines of: November 3, 2023, and February 2, 2024.

Image Description: UFO Logo
Untitled Filmmaker Org Short Film Lab (Deadline: August 9)
The UFO Short Film Lab supports early-career directors as they produce two short film projects from development through distribution. Over 18 months, filmmakers advance and refine their voice and craft, while receiving $10,000 in project financial support, mentorship, professional development, and industry connections as part of a collaborative community.

Image Description: ITVS Logo
ITVS Open Call (Deadline: August 11)
Open Call gives independent producers up to $350,000 in the form of a co-production agreement to complete production for a standalone broadcast length documentary to air on public television. The documentary can be on any subject, viewpoint or style as long as it is in active production already, as evidenced via a ten to fifteen minute work in progress sample.
Image Description: Working Films Logo
Docs in Action (Deadline: August 13)
Under this call-for-media, Working Films and union partners are looking for short documentary works-in-progress (under 30 minutes) that uplift worker-led organizing to be considered for up to $30,000 in funding to complete production. Alternatively, filmmakers may submit completed documentary or narrative films to be included in a compilation that will be used to support worker organizing in 2024.
Image Description: Working Films Logo
Impact Kickstart (Deadline: August 31)
Two films will be selected for Impact Kickstart, which aims to help underrepresented filmmakers create strategic goals for impact and specific plans to engage future partners, funders, and audiences in meaningful ways. Impact Kickstart recipients will receive $60,000 in funding, 1:1 mentorship, and planning, facilitation and reporting out from a day-long strategy summit with potential partners and key collaborators.
Image Description: The Gotham Logo
Documentary Development Initiative (Deadline: August 31)
Through The Documentary Development Initiative, a partnership between The Gotham and HBO Documentary Films, filmmakers who identify as BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and/or storytellers with disabilities will receive grants of $50,000 for research and creative development at an early stage, as well as access to resources and mentorship.
Image Description: Bloomberg Green Logo
Bloomberg Green Docs (Deadline: September 1)
The Bloomberg Green Docs competition is open to all eligible filmmakers who would like to compete to win a $25,000 grand prize for a short (10 minutes or less) climate documentary. The top five films will be shown at the Green Docs Film Festival in Los Angeles in October.
Image Description: Interlace Logo
Interlace Project Grants (Deadline: September 12)
Interlace Project Grants range from $4,000 to $6,000 and support artist-driven projects in the Providence area. Interlace prioritizes the making of new visual artworks that expand the public’s understanding of the visual arts, especially through unexpected collaborations.

Application drafts may be submitted by August 14 for early review.

Image Description: Black Public Media Logo
Black Public Media Open Call (Deadline: September 25)
Each year, BPM issues an open call for feature-length documentaries, limited series, or shorts (nonfiction or scripted) that are currently in pre-production, production, or post-production and intended for public media distribution. One broadcast-length project will receive up to $100,000, and one short project will receive up to $50,000. BPM may also extend the opportunity to participate in the PitchBLACK forum. The focus for this open call is: Climate Stories.

Applications open September 1.
Image Description: Vermont Arts Council Logo
Artist Development Grants (Deadline: September 26)
Artist Development Grants support artists at all stages of their careers. Grants up to $2,000 can fund activities that enhance mastery of an artist’s craft or skills or that increase the viability of an artist's business. Funding may also support aspects of the creation of new work when the activity allows the grantee to accept a rare and important opportunity. 
Image Description: Connecticut Office of the Arts Logo
Artists Respond Grants (Deadline: October 25)
The Artists Respond grant program awards funds of $3,000 to Connecticut artists for community-based projects that occur in Connecticut as anything from large audience events to small group activities, and should engage and consider the community where the project takes place, as well as serve as a Call to Action and be responsive to the social issue identified by the artist/applicant.

Image Description: From the Heart Productions Logo
Roy W. Dean Film Grant (Deadline: October 31)
The Roy W. Dean Grant winner for Fall will receive $3,000 and thousands more in donated services including a film score as well as animation to help them complete their project. Eligible projects include documentary films, narrative features, short films, and web series.
Thanks for reading and 'til next time,

The LEF New England team
Lyda, Gen, & Matthew

LEF Foundation
PO Box 382066
Cambridge, MA 02238
617.492.5333
A private family foundation dedicated to the support of contemporary arts, LEF was established in 1985 with offices in Massachusetts and California. The Moving Image Fund was launched in 2001 through the LEF office in Cambridge, MA to support independent film and video artists. Since its inception, the Moving Image Fund has awarded over 450 grants to New England-based independent filmmakers with nearly $5 million in funding. The goal of LEF New England is to fund the work of independent documentary film and video artists in the region and to broaden recognition and support for their work locally and nationally. It also supports programs that highlight the rich history and ongoing legacy of innovation within New England's independent film community. The overarching goal of LEF New England's philanthropic investment is to help build a sustainable and strong community of support for artists and their work.