New York Women in Film & Television 2016 Fund for Women Filmmakers Applications Now Available

Previous winning projects featured at Sundance Film Festival, IFP Documentary Completion Lab, and Bentonville Film Festival founded by Geena Davis

 

New York, NY (May 19, 2016) – New York Women in Film & Television (NYWIFT) is now accepting applications for its four 2016 Funds for Women Filmmakers. Applications are available online at www.nywift.org. 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.

Applications for the Loreen Arbus, In-Kind Post-Production, and Nancy Malone Grants are due June 15, 2016. Nominations for the Ravenal Foundation Grant are due July 15, 2016.

 

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 2015 Loreen Arbus Disability Awareness Grant was awarded to Lara Stolman for her feature documentary Swim Team, about a multiethnic New Jersey swim team made of up autistic teens. It was recently selected for Independent Filmmaker Project’s (IFP) prestigious Documentary Completion Lab.

The 2014 recipient, Jennifer Redfearn’s feature Tocando La Luz (Tough the Light), premiered at both The Full Frame Documentary Film Festival in Durham, NC, and The Ashland Film Festival in Ashland, OR, in April 2015.

Applications for the Loreen Arbus Disability Awareness Grant are due June 15, 2016.

 

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, Park Avenue Post, and Nice Shoes.

The 2015 In-Kind Post-Production grants were awarded to Diane Paragas for Yellow Rose, Betty Bastidas for Dreamtown, and Heather White for Who Pays the Price? 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.

Applications for the In-Kind Post-Production Grants are due June 15, 2016.

 

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 2015 Nancy Malone MAP Grant was awarded to Valerie Weiss for her feature film The Light Beneath their Feet, which stars Orange is the New Black star Taryn Manning as a young mother with bipolar disorder struggling with the looming loss of her daughter. It was released by Emerging Pictures in up to 15 theatrical markets on May 6, 2016.

The 2014 Nancy Malone MAP Grant recipient, Marielle Heller’s Diary of a Teenage Girl, premiered to rave reviews at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival, where Sony Pictures Classics and K5 Intl acquired the rights for distribution. Variety named Heller one of its “Ten Directors to Watch” in January 2015, and the film won the 2016 Independent Sprit Award for Best Feature Film.

Applications for the Nancy Malone Marketing & Promotion Grant are due June 15, 2016.

 

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.

Filmmakers for the Ravenal Grant will be considered by nomination only. Filmmakers must be nominated by a member of the programming staff or another senior level staff member of a U.S. film festival.

The 2015 Ravenal Grant was awarded to director and co-writer Rachel Feldman for her feature Ledbetter, a suspense drama based on the true story of Lilly Ledbetter, the woman for whom President Obama named The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Restoration Act. The script is an Athena List Screenplay award winner.

The 2014 Ravenal Grant recipient, Janet Grillo’s Jack of the Red Hearts, premiered at May the inaugural 2015 Bentonville Film Festival, which champions women and diversity in film. The festival was co-founded by Geena Davis and Trevor Drinkwater. Jack of the Red Hearts was released nationwide in February 2016 and is now available on DVD.

Nominations for the Ravenal Foundation Feature Film Grant are due July 15, 2016.

###

About New York Women in Film & Television:

The preeminent entertainment industry association for women in New York City, NYWIFT 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 activities, and advocating for equality. Membership includes more than 2,100 women and men working in all areas of the industry. NYWIFT is part of a network of 40 women in film organizations worldwide, representing more than 10,000 members.

For further information about New York Women in Film & Television, please visit nywift.org and follow them on social media for additional event updates, news and photos.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nywift
Instagram: https://instagram.com/nywift/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/NYWIFT
Tumblr: http://nywift.tumblr.com/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/nywift/

Press Inquiries:

New York Women in Film & Television
Katie Chambers
kchambers@nywift.org
212.679. 0870

 

JOIN OUR NEWSLETTER