ROUND 14

PLANNING AWARD GRANTS (up to $2,000)

Aliyah Jefferies -Saman Enn Og Aftur (Together Once Again)    

Logline: During the midnight sun in Reykjavik, Iceland, two sisters are forced to face their traumatic past while reliving the journey of their ancestor.

Arraiyan DuBose - …And Breathe            

Logline: ...AND BREATHE will follow the journey of a 34-year-old African American Muslim woman as she learns to swim.

Conrad Burgos Jr - LIQUIDATION             

Logline: Conrad used to be an entertainer, which solved all of his problems. Now that the show has come to an untimely end, he is selling all the shit that kept the show, and himself alive. When he accidentally sells his soul to an audience member, he must bargain to get it back. (experimental comedy, immersive)

Danielle Burrows - The Jack Rabbit Project         

Logline: America's oldest continuously operating wooden roller coaster was demolished without fanfare in 2007 – an as-yet unreleased scene captured on DVCAM by funding applicant Danielle Burrows. Mapping memory-rich interviews to the demolition footage and additional imagery spanning the coaster's lifetime, this short documentary celebrates Clementon Park's Jack Rabbit, the spartan 1919 Philadelphia Toboggan Company structure that paved the way for modern coasters and introduced generations to the thrill of the mechanical hill.

Dasha Saintremy - 4HER              

Logline: A young Haitian woman wrestles with the relationship her parents have with one another, while sacrificing the most important relationship she'll ever have with herself.

David Block - GET CAFÉ: A place for everyone   

Logline: The Get Cafe hires and trains people with disabilities so they can be a part of the working world.

Destiny Cox - You Were Dead Yesterday

Logline: At the height of a zombie apocalypse, one family discovers the outbreak that is destroying their community was a conspiracy led by the federal government.

Kenneth Reveiz - The Legend of Maximiliano García      

Logline: A ten-year-old boy runs off to a courthouse in the middle of the night: why? The bedtime story his mother tells him - about the great civil rights lawyer Maximiliano García - helps to uncover the answer.

Kyle Crichton - Reckless Education             

Logline: When the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, PA abruptly shuts down, a close-knit community faces a wave of betrayal and loss. Through intimate interviews and behind-the-scenes footage, this documentary explores the emotional fallout and resilience of those impacted and the broader implications for the nation's arts institutions.

Loan Nguyen - Nourishing Change        

Logline: Nourishing Change in Philly. Where and who you eat with matters as much as what you eat

Long Luu - Out and Breakin'       

Logline: Follow the journey of Dosu, the first openly gay Bboy, as he navigates the intersections of his identity and culture within the breakdancing world, challenging stereotypes and fostering inclusivity in hip-hop and beyond.

Maya Yu Zhang - Addresses Unknown  

Logline: A literal “séance de cinéma,” Addresses Unknown is an experimental nonfiction in which a collection of letters from five Chinese diasporic queers, uncover the insidious yet ubiquitous losses and grief in our post-pandemic life.

Paul Giess & Christina Jackson - Stepping in Time: A Tour of Philly's Historic Jazz Venues           

Logline: Stepping in Time is a set of 3 audio walking tours of historic jazz venues around Philadelphia that will highlight important facts and utilize creative storytelling. This tour will deepen emotional connection with these cultural centers through an immersive experience of audio storytelling.

Sarah Krusen - SOFT      

Logline: "SOFT" is a short experimental film exploring the portrayal of Black women at rest, challenging stereotypes by advocating for self-care as a form of resistance against oppressive systems.  It normalizes the idea of prioritizing one's well-being and basic rights, countering the "strong/angry black woman" trope. Ultimately, it is a call to action for Black women to slow down, listen to their bodies and to find a sustainable path forward that both allows them to heal and dream of a better future.

 

FINISHING AWARD GRANTS (up to $3,500)

Alexander Kucy - Dreams I Cannot See: A David Block Story        

Logline: Discover how David Block, a legally blind documentary filmmaker and journalist from Philadelphia, uses his talent and unwavering spirit to create his tenth documentary film as he challenges perceptions about vision, artistry, and himself.

Austin Mayer - Blue World Gallery's First Online Exhibition curated by Kaja Silverman

Logline: Exhibition Title: The Inhabitable and Uninhabitable

Barbara Martin Ellis - Homeschooled to Harvard             

Logline: How one Black family ditched the system to chart their own way.

Cheryl   Hess - Marriage Cops    

Logline: In a small city in northern India, unhappy couples seek solutions to their marriage troubles in the most unlikely of places–the local police station, where a group of hard-working women officers try to institute marital harmony using a combination of carrot and stick.

John Morrison - Ill Harmonic: The World's First Hip-Hop Orchestra

Logline: A Joyous and triumphant look into the inner workings of the world’s first hip hop orchestra

Jon Appel - Good People            

Logline: Lives intersect in West Philadelphia.

Juliette Rando   I Cite As Witness The Time: The Story of Karen and Omar Ali     

Logline: Transcending a wrongful conviction to a life sentence in one of Pennsylvania’s most violent prisons, Omar Askia Ali and his wife Karen dedicate themselves to transforming the lives of men behind bars and fighting the devastating community impacts of mass incarceration.

Kris Mendoza - Underdogs         

Logline: A girls gymnastics team in Philadelphia struggles to stay together following the closure of their practice facility that stood as a pillar of comradery for over 100 years. Through the power of sport and community, the City of Brotherly Love comes together to rebuild their beloved recreation center.

Shehrezad Maher - The Curfew

Logline: As Ayaan cares for his frail grandmother, the shards of a distant memory pierce the silence of their language barrier, shifting the resonance of his everyday encounters.

Tanya Latortue - Of Black Wombhood   

Logline: Of Black Wombhood (“OBW”) is a narrative portrait project that inquires into the interiority of Black womb-bearing people beyond the experiences of pregnancy and birthing.

 

NEXT LEVEL AWARD GRANTS ($500)

Alice Beachum - From Good Stock to Woodstock            

Logline: The subjects of "From Good Stock to Woodstock" are two very grounded, socially and morally conscious recording Artists. For both Jimi and Carl, music was their blessing, but the business aspect proved to be the curse. This phase was the catalyst propelling one of these men to Guitar God status. Through the working relationship lasted only a short while, theirs may have been the only legitimate handshake they experienced throughout their entire careers.

Camille Acker - Privates               

Logline: A woman dates, falls in love, and breaks up all from the most intimate place in her home, the bathroom.

Gabrielle Patterson - Soil to Soul: Portraits of a Community Farm           

Logline: A short documentary showcasing stories of food, love, and gardening through intimate portraits of neighbors who find belonging and forge cross-cultural connections in a Southwest Philly community farm.

Jenine Lowery- Black Female Therapist

Logline: Black Female Therapist invites three African-American mental health professionals to share their personal and professional journeys, tackling the stigmas of therapy in the Black community and showcasing how embracing mental health care fosters resilience, understanding, and strength.

Michael Dennis- The Lady Alma Project               

Logline: An intimate portrait of Lady Alma, Philly’s Queen of House Music, who took a 10 year break to care-give for her mother and returned to the stage a global phenomenon, thanks to a viral video clip uploaded by a South African DJ. 

Amit Das & Sam Dellert - Incarnations of Chris 

Logline: The story of the glitterest, sladest, rockin’est, laidest, overtime paidest, boogiest man in South Jersey.

Sarah Trad - Mountain Daughter بنت الجبل    

Logline: Mountain Daughter بنت الجبل is an experimental film that connects topics of climate change, mental health, migration and Arab identity between the American Northeast and the Levant.  

Tatiana Bacchus - Christmas Crossing

Logline: Discovering there were free Black soldiers at Washington’s Crossing of the Delaware, an inquisitive African-American 11-year-old sets out to excavate hidden history and pass the hardest test of her life to become a boat reenactor at the annual Christmas Crossing. With her home in mom-returning-to-the-workforce chaos and a surly reenactor blocking her path, she struggles to secure her place and purpose in the world.  

 

ROUND 13

PLANNING AWARD GRANTS (up to $2,000)

Angel Edwards - Let 'im Move You         

Logline: Let ‘im Move You is an experimental performance documentary that illuminates a dance company’s legacy of intimacy, care, rigor, and most importantly J-sette while following their journey toward a performance tour of the United States South. Let ‘im Move You has changed the lives of many.

Anula Shetty - Planting Resilience          

Logline: Planting Resilience will highlight the struggles and strength of the Cambodian American community in Philadelphia, through the stories of Master Khmer classical dancer Chamroeun Yin and Lanica Angpack, founder of CAGE – Cambodian American Girls Empowering.

Barbara Martin Ellis- Homeschooled to Harvard (or Tailored Prep)

Logline:  Homeschooled to Harvard is a documentary film styled as a Bildungsroman/Künstlerroman, (German: “artist’s novel”) coming-of-age story of two brothers who were homeschooled here in Philadelphia. The story depicts successes and challenges and, by extension, critiques traditional school systems and the gatekeepers who allow some students in while others remain ignorant of widely available opportunities.

Erik Lobo- Mr. Lobo Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla

Logline: Presenting a classic movie with an original wraparound story that takes place over multiple decades, Cinema Insomnia’s Mr. Lobo Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla is a talent show special with approximately 10 additional artists featured.

Jimmy Bonds and Tyrone Richardson - Broken: A Podcast Series On Black Men's Mental Health

Logline: The primary goal of “Broken” is to destigmatize conversations around mental health within the Black male community, encourage help-seeking behavior, and provide a platform for authentic and diverse voices to share their experiences.

King  Lu-  From June to July

Logline: A tight-knit group of Chinese American families in Atlanta, Georgia grapple with the fallout of a near-death boating accident that occurs during a potluck at Lake Lanier.

Krystal Sotomayor- Untitled Paleontology Documentary

Logline: Dr. Alejandra Martinez-Melo is an immigrant from Mexico City and a single mother raising her eight-year-old son. She embodies care as the primary caretaker of her son and as the keeper of a collection of ancient invertebrate fossils. 

Olaiya Olayemi - Amorah y Pedro           

Logline: A young black college student begins a love affair with a Puerto Rican waiter at her favorite café. Race and class tensions and family expectations threaten to tear them apart, but their love prevails nonetheless.               

Pace Ford -  Word for World

Logline: The Word for World is a short poetic animation illustrating the stories of 6 land-defenders in Philadelphia and the environmental and land justice movements they are a part of. 

Rudy Gerson & Lexi Welch - The Center              

Logline: The Center is an experimental essay film, sited during the archival relocation project at the William Way LGBT Center, that meditates on material transitions, the place of the archive, and queer time.  

Shehrezad Maher - The Curfew

Logline: As Ayaan cares for his frail grandmother, the shards of a distant memory pierce the silence of their language barrier, shifting the resonance of his everyday encounters.        

Vernon Jordan III - Lavender Boy             

Logline: A Philadelphia boy obsessed with flowers, dirt and the occult, is queered by his ancestral ability to see ghosts. But when his spiritual teacher passes away, he is left alone to help a heartbroken spirit on the journey back to love.

Zainab Sultan - Caste Out

Logline: Caste Out follows the man who is leading anti-caste movement in America as he tries to introduce a bill in NJ’s legislature.

 

FINISHING AWARD GRANTS (up to $3,500)

Aliyah Jefferies - Be Back By 3

Logline: While embarking on a journey to buy water ice in West Philly, two women reach a tipping point in their secret relationship as they celebrate their unbeknown final day together.

Antonio Arroniz-Castro - La Sal de mi tierra

Logline: La Sal de mi tierra juxtaposes two narratives centered on food: how food unites Mexican immigrant and indigenous communities in Philadelphia as well as how food traditions adapt and change to correspond to the desires of their American born children.

Christian Hayden -  I Spoke to a Tomato Plant

Logline: A heartfelt portrait of urban gardening in Philadelphia that explores the differing dimensions of how people use gardening in healing from trauma while reconnecting to others, their communities, and themselves.

Claudia Zamora-Valencia - The Lure

Logline: An anthropologist’s camera turns inward as she observes a fishing village weathering almost twenty years of development on the Pacific coast of Mexico.

Janet Goldwater & Barbara Attie -  Hollywood Does Abortion

Logline: HOLLYWOOD DOES ABORTION explores fifty years of abortion onscreen, revealing how flawed portrayals contribute to pervasive misperceptions that allow abortion to remain a morally fraught issue. Leading Hollywood creators and cultural critics share their reactions to these seminal depictions and tell how diverse Hollywood creators are racing to tell stories that push back against today’s post-Roe reality.

Jasmine Lynea - Della Can Fly!

Logline: In order to preserve family history and rectify a family myth, a paranoid 80-something-year-old man needs to prove his long-lost sister can fly.

Simone Holland                - Glass Bricks

Logline: Holding a mirror to what is means to be perceived, through Curt's inner journey we ask the question -- do stereotypes keep us from seeing one another?

Tamara Jackson - The Invitation

Logline: A group of women living with autoimmune disease face their new normal and choose not to just survive but thrive.

Zuff Idries - The Nile Splits

Logline: In the months leading to a civil conflict, a filmmaker reunites with his family in Sudan after fifteen years apart. Along his journey, he probes for answers to a whimsical question: does the Nile split, or does it meet?

 

NEXT LEVEL AWARD GRANTS ($500)

Darien  Woodard - Queer Memoirs

Logline: When Nasir moves in with his cousin Cam after leaving his father's house, their strained relationship is tested as Cam grapples with grief and Nasir seeks independence, revealing a dynamic of selfishness and passivity that threatens to tear them apart.

 

ROUND 12

PLANNING AWARD GRANTS (up to $2,000)

Alyssa Shea - Defeating the Crosstown Expressway

Logline: In 1960s Philadelphia, a blighted South Street is endangered by demolition to make way for the crosstown expressway. The community bands together to protest the destruction via grassroots organizing and achieves a stunning victory from which the South Street Renaissance of the 1970s blooms. This is the inspiring true story behind one of Philly’s most vibrant neighborhoods.

Debra  Powell-Wright - My Mother's Hands

Logline: Lissen…making art is as ancient as our African ancestors, and their legacies will always be passed down from one generation to the next. Word is bond.

Eboni Zamani - A Song for Nia

Logline: The death of her cousin brings a young Black woman back to Philadelphia where she is forced to confront all the people and circumstances that she left behind.

Feini Yin - Our Fishing Log

Logline: A Philly podcast and storytelling project about our local fish, people who love fish, and the ways fish connect us to the world, each other, and ourselves.

Jon Appel - Good People

Logline: Lives intersect in West Philadelphia.

Samuel Dellert & Amit Das - Incarnations of Chris (w.t.)

Logline: While planning to release a new record, South Jersey glam-rocker Chris Dipinto shows us what it takes to be a small-town rockstar.

Shontel Horne - Herb City

Logline: As Pennsylvania gets closer to passing legislation to legalize marijuana, this short documentary explores the challenges faced by women of color in the cannabis industry while celebrating the community built by Sheena Roberson, the founder of Cannabis Noire.

Tamara Suber & Adrian Connor - The Black Shepherdess

Logline: An artist and mother connects to the land, her family, and herself through her work as a shepherd, work that proves both challenging and deeply, spiritually rewarding

Tanya Latortue - Of Black Wombhood

Logline: Of Black Wombhood is an integrative narrative portraits project that seeks to explore how ideas of culture, fertility, health, identity, and socio-politicization shape our understanding of Black Wombhood beyond pregnancy and birthing.

Zainab Sultan - Untitled Muslimahs in Politics

Logline: This film follows the reelection campaign of Delaware Representative Madinah Wilson-Anton and explores what it means to have more Muslim women running for elected offices in America.

 

FINISHING AWARD GRANTS (up to $3,500)

Chelsea Abbas & Erin Semine Kökdil - Love in the Time of Migration

Logline: Ronny and Suly are in love. The only problem is that Ronny is in the US, while Suly is in Guatemala. LOVE IN THE TIME OF MIGRATION illustrates the modern day romance between two individuals from a community deeply impacted by migration, and asks the question: can love conquer all?

Marcellus Armstrong - Talking Walls

Logline: Talking Walls, is a project on space, place, and experience. An experimental audio-visual film and archiving project canvasing the narratives of queer and Black “elders.” It is a project rooted in the vital responsibility and need to archive and collect the oral histories that are most fragile to us. More specifically, the project is interested in the language, sounds, touch, history and choice of public and private, Black and queer spaces.

Neal Dhand – Genoa

Logline: Alphonso jumps parole, kidnaps his daughter, and flees to Genoa, where he assumes a new identity amidst a group of surreal characters, all as the world may be coming to an end.

 

NEXT LEVEL AWARD GRANTS ($500)

Antonio Arroniz - La Sal De Mi Tierra

Logline: Mexican chefs and cooks look to make a living in the city of Philadelphia while preserving their culture and tradition through the art of cooking.

Danielle DeLoatch - For Black Girls Who Can’t Roll Weed When the Liquor Isn’t Enough

Logline: When four fun-loving girlfriends decide to indulge in some recreational highs after a day of day drinking, they encounter a hilarious challenge: none of them possess the crucial skill of rolling. As their quest to get high spirals into a series of misadventures, they must rely on their friendship, resourcefulness, an, unconventional allies to achieve their intoxicating aspirations.

David  Block - How Sweet the Sounds

Logline: He made the best with little he had.

Jay Sand – Engine

Logline: A narrative podcast series, with hosts Lily Sand and Sarah Zdancewic -- high school students and curious young scientists, that tells the complex -- but inspiring! -- human stories of the real scientists who make the world work.

Kevin O'Neill - Free At Last

Logline: Two "Juvenile Lifers", one black, one Latino, having served some 80 years combined jail-time return to their North Philly communities after a SCOTUS decision ruling their life sentences unconstitutional. Free At Last tells their story.

Nasya Jenkins – Confide

Logline: In an attempt to diffuse a heated basketball court exchange, two young men on the side lines work to understand the game of love as one copes with a recent break up.

Stephanie Renée - The DNA

Logline: One woman's surprising DNA test results leads to a vast journey of self-discovery about identity and the Black experience in America.

 

 

ROUND 11

PLANNING AWARD GRANTS (up to $2,000)

Alison Crouse - My Cells are Red Bananas         

It’s not until Sakaiyah sees footage of herself as a child that she realizes there is a story in how far she’s come.

Ollin Yoliztli Calmecac - Cempōhualli Xiuhtonalli Macehualiztli Philadelphia

Twenty years of Aztec Dance in Philadelphia (A full account)

Drew Swedberg - Illusions of Winter

A prismatic portrait of the filmmaker’s childhood home, oscillating between textured archives of his family and the ceaseless labor behind New Hampshire’s lucrative and increasingly precarious industry of winter recreation. As climate change and capitalism collide at a ski resort, the documentary is punctuated by his mother’s repetitive work at the resort’s condos, the recovered celluloid archives of his father’s family arriving at a home that is slowly fading in the present, and the intimate memories of growing up oblivious to these volatile forces.

Malachi Lily - Beast & Beloved

Our anxious Hero, an ant-like spirit, embarks across the perilous underbrush of a spirit dimension to rescue their Beloved. However, instead of vanquishing the Beast they held responsible, the Hero must confront their Beloved and the nature of Death itself.

Mike Lyons - The Redemption Project

Men and women sentenced to die in prison as children come home to a different world after 30, 40 and even 50 years inside.

Nebila Oguz – Amadeus

Steve is an unsuccessful freelancer whose life changes when he discovers the VR game "Amadeus". Using surveillance footage the game allows the player to re-live his day with full control of the outcomes. When Steve becomes increasingly addicted to the game, the audience begins to question what is real and what is virtual.

Tamara Jackson - The Invitation

Journey with a group of women who are determined not just to survive but to thrive while living with autoimmune disease.

 

FINISHING AWARD GRANTS (up to $3,500)

Ilana Trachtman - Ain't No Back to a Merry-Go-Round 

A forgotten milestone in the Civil Rights Movement: in June 1960, Black students stormed a segregated Maryland carousel, aided by white suburbanites. Over ten weeks of picketing the amusement park, the two groups built an unprecedented collaboration, attracting Nazis and Congressmen. This unexamined history forged Jewish - Black alliances, and catapulted future civil rights leaders to their destinies.

Katrina Sorrentino – Storming

A family hangs in limbo, caring for their comatose son. Hope and denial blur as seasons circle in this meditation on love and letting go.

Matthew Ober - Nothing Left Undone: The Art of G

An intimate portrait of eccentric Philadelphia artist G Kellum.

Raphael Xavier - Swerve the Movie

Old Habits ride hard! Looking for a change in life, Van Xander is given the chance to mentor a young boy trying to make a name in Philly's wheelie culture. They'll quickly learn to ride for each other.

Sift Media Collective - COVID 1619 Project

The COVID 1619 Project is a series of short films that explore the impact of the twin pandemics of racism and the health disparities in Black and Brown communities.

Sonia Szczesna - Trenton Makes: The Blacksmith

Reflected in the waters along New Jersey's Capitol City are a glowing combination of letters that read "Trenton Makes, the World Takes." In this video series, we take a look at the artisans that call this city home and carry the torch of Trenton's industrial past.

 

NEXT LEVEL AWARD GRANTS ($500)

Amelia Carter - Spirit of 52nd Street         

“Spirit on 52 nd St.” is an experimental short documentary about the historically Black business corridor in West Philadelphia. This film will cultivate an intergenerational community conversation about the corridor. Through dialogue exploring culture, ownership, gentrification, uprising and memory we will excavate the “spirit” embodied by the street. With the community we will reimagine the corridor’s future by reconciling its past and letting the spirit speak.

Angelica Riley  - Where Are My People

Ukrainian war refugees in America are under constant psychological pressure - should we return home to help or protect the lives of their children in a safe place.

Caleb Chen - Renewed Fellowship

Two young men, driven by their own personal grief to become whole people, sit beside each other on a dinner table as their memories and lives become reflected in their vulnerable conversation.

Debra  Powell-Wright - My Mother's Tongue

This is our story, my mother's and mine: she is my muse and I am her Phillis Wheatley.

Florence Fire - ES*CHA*TON

ES·CHA·TON is a fashion film using documentation of a live performance to encompass ideas around dystopia, material scarcity, surreality, and metamorphosis.

Keyssh Datts – Crowned

When a teenage boy finds out his mother was shot and killed, he seeks revenge in the streets and a brutal gang initiation becomes a journey of self-elevation.

Samantha Rise - Monarch: Live performance video project      

An intimate live concert performance, featuring short visual poems/interstitial content inspired by the music.

Suzi Nash - Ready, Set, Christmas

Elle, a busy talk show set decorator receives a call that compels her to go home for the holidays. A storm has destroyed the family ranch and threatens the town’s 100th Christmas celebration. Once there she finds herself reuniting with the woman who was her childhood best friend and perhaps more. With Shakespearean mistaken intentions, the plot is infused with humorous and sometimes moving twists and turns. With the help of friends old and new, Elle rediscovers the magic of Christmas and rekindles an old flame. It is a love story for our times.

 

ROUND 10

PLANNING AWARD GRANTS (up to $2,000)

 

Amari Johnson - The Full Never Told (Documentary)

As the Caribbean island of Dominica neared independence, the nation’s Rastafarian community found themselves on the violent end of government persecution.

Cyndie Beacham & Dwight Wilkins - Grown (Narrative)

GROWN is an intricate drama about a family of women who struggles to overcome, despite a legacy of trauma and hard choices.

Janet Goldwater & Barbara Attie - Hollywood Does Abortion (Documentary)

Hollywood Does Abortion is a provocative look at depictions of abortion in film and television, revealing how Hollywood both reflects and distorts the facts and emotions surrounding this overwhelmingly safe but politically controversial medical procedure. Looking back on how abortion came into our living rooms and our psyches starting in the 1970s and continuing into the era of streaming, we see how these stories helped shape public discourse . . . and today’s seismic shift in access to abortion.

Joshua James -Self Taught (Narrative)

A young man finds an abandoned arcade game which turns out to be a time machine that takes him back to key moments in his life where he finds himself facing inner demons in a way he never thought he would.

Katarina Poljak - Source Architecture (Narrative)

Simulated bodies, brains engineered for gore. A feminine cyborg reflects on the tragedy of human history and the role capitalism has played in human disposability. Eating ourselves alive as we let capitalism destroy the good in us. As humans evolve to become robots, can we stay true to the source architecture of our body and spirit?

Katherine Clark - Francine's Moon Landing (Narrative)

An inexperienced dancer wins a one-way ticket to perform on the moon, only to find that she’s trapped with an audience that cares more about affluence and pool parties than art.

Kim Dinh - The Legacy of AAPI Labor Activists (Documentary)

The Legacy of AAPI Labor Activism is a 5-part documentary series featuring the AAPI labor movement and the people in it, from rank-and-file union members, non-union workers, historians, and other labor leaders. This docuseries tells the story of the movement, past and present, through interviews, archival footage, and recent footage from protests, strikes, and other significant events.

Lynn Denton - The Milliners (Narrative)

At the dawn of women’s suffrage, two young milliners transcend racial and cultural barriers when they form an unlikely partnership to pursue their artistic dreams in Jim Crow-era Georgia.

Nikki Brake-Silla  -Transmorfication (Narrative)

Mercedes makes a promise to her sister, Tisha. It’s the first time she will attempt this feat and she only has one shot.

Wi-Moto Nyoka - Affordable Housing (Narrative)

When Constance moves into a suspiciously cheap apartment with socially challenged roommate Hailey, both women discover the truth behind its low price and must fight for their right to affordable living.

Yvonne Chireau - Conjure: The Docuseries (Fire) (Documentary Series)

Gullah Jack’s Goofer Bag: Conjure, Power, and Survival explores the theme of resistance in Conjure, Hoodoo, and Rootworking traditions with Renee Stout, a sculptor, painter, and mixed media artist whose work reflects the strong influence of Nature and the elements, and sculptor Ellamaria Ray, who materializes clay-fired forms conjured from an aesthetic vision of Black ancestral resiliency.

 

FINISHING AWARD GRANTS (up to $3,500)

 

Amy Lee Ketchum - Origins: Seven Indigenous Dances (Animation)

Dance is at the heart of Native American culture and each has a story to tell.

Anito Gavino - Tagong Yaman (Experimental Documentary)

An experimental dance documentary capturing the beauty and loss of the Filipino diaspora often unseen by modern Filipinos themselves.

Artina Nimpson - This Too is Liberia (Documentary)

A West African surfer is healing his community in Monrovia, Liberia through Waves for Change, a surf therapy program for children.

Barry Dornfeld -  Reconstructing Mishkan (Documentary)

A Synagogue Evolves

Celyne Camen - Y Nosotros Que (Documentary)

As the pandemic hits Philadelphia, thousands of undocumented immigrants -- mostly descendants from the Indigenous people of the American continent -- are left out of economic relief pushing them to find any kind of work, depleting their savings, and putting their lives at risk while carrying the stress of immigration limbo.

Joy Marzec - 24 Frames Lalla (Narrative)

A nonbinary artist having suicidal thoughts makes a film during lockdown of the Covid-19 pandemic to heal themselves.

Linda Wei - Unicorn (Narrative)

An imaginative but selfish toddler refuses to share with her little sister. When spurned at her birthday party, she begins to learn how to make amends.

Ted Lieverman - Harvey: Eyes on the Struggle (Documentary)

A beloved Philadelphia documentary photographer wants to continue his work with the disability rights movement and other social justice organizations, but finds that at age 85, his deteriorating eyesight forces him to put down his camera and change his perspective on the real value of his photographs.

 

NEXT LEVEL AWARD GRANTS ($500)

 

Annie Wilson - Always the Hour (Documentary)

Through storytelling and choreography, Always the Hour traces a web of inheritance among descendants of WW2 veterans, alcoholics, and residents of rural western New York State.

 

Conrad Burgos - Last Summer (Experimental Film & Performance)

New to Philadelphia, a talk show host struggles to finish his final episode and let go of his past during the last summer on Earth.

 

Malachi Lily - Beast & Beloved (Animation)

Our Hero, an ant-like spirit, embarks across the perilous underbrush of a parallel reality to rescue their Beloved. However, instead of vanquishing the Beast they held responsible, the Hero confronts their Beloved and the nature of Death itself.

 

Samuel Dellert - Wake (Experimental Documentary)

In a remote, mountainous region of Greece, nature and its inhabitants wake and live through an endless summer day.

 

Shereen Williams - The Return Back 2 Africa (Documentary)

The Historic Woodard family addresses the struggles of the pandemic and racial unrest in America. While the process through DNA testing, confronting past and present racial events, and currently identifying which tribe they are from in Africa. Their quest to discover who they are ignites them to return to Africa, and unfolding a journey changes their lives' trajectory.

 

ROUND 9

PLANNING AWARD GRANTS (up to $2,000)

Anthony Lopes - Hungry to Win (Documentary)

Three student-athletes, through their skills on the field or court, struggle to escape the homelessness or food insecurity that has loomed over their lives to realize their dreams of achieving a better life through academics or sports.

Frauke Levin & Jen Schneider - The Road From Recovery (Documentary)

The past shapes the present, the present echoes the past - but nothing is written in stone.

King King Lu - Shot Clock (Narrative)

Three teenagers – an Asian boy, Black boy, and Latina girl - join forces to hustle on basketball courts around town, raise money, and buy tickets to an NBA game, in a plot to get revenge against a high school boys' basketball team that spurned them.

Lokia Owens - Save the Black Girl (Video Podcast)

Step into the lives of single black mothers. Explore some of the hardships she’s endured, common to her community and how it has affected her mental health.

Melissa Beatriz - La Lucha Sigue (The Fight Continues) (Documentary)

Just outside of Philly sits the Berks Detention Center—one of only three prisons in the U.S. that detains immigrant children and families. La Lucha Sigue (The Fight Continues) will follow the story of four activists—all with their own immigration stories—in their tireless efforts to close down Berks once and for all.

MK Tuomanen - REAL PlaNet Life (Narrative)

High satire reality TV show meets sci-fi adventure as a house full of wildly different alien species try to live together harmoniously – all while navigating misunderstanding, mistakes, and unintentional murder.

Saladin White II - Wholesome (Narrative)

Cory and Nyla are in a relationship and are both afraid to share their true feelings. Cory, a filmmaker, works on a documentary that highlights black love. While working on the documentary, he discovers a truth that he can no longer hide.

 

FINISHING AWARD GRANTS (up to $3,500)

Artina Nimpson - Dance Transplant (Documentary)

Documentary short about two immigrant sisters who use dance and their faith to stay close to their culture.

Brice Goldberg - Darwin Nix (Documentary)

The story of Darwin Nix's life as an artist, from his success as a younger painter in Philadelphia to his current protest work in rural Alabama

Chad Murdock - Fingers in the Wind (Narrative)

After the sudden end of her closest friendship leaves a young woman stranded in reflection on the eve of her visit home, she finds herself unraveling when she mistakes a mysterious man of the same age for a complicated figure from her childhood.

Esteban Serrano - Symbol of Solidarity (Documentary) 

After racialized violence rips open old wounds, a young Black artist in a predominantly white town attempts to paint his message of unity, despite fierce opposition from angry residents who fear the art will incite violence and lower property values.

Frances McElroy - Malawi Nutcracker (Documentary)    

An African teen pursues her love of ballet through a small dance school in Malawi founded in response to a community desire for an accessible children's dance program.

Lois Moses - Justice for Matt (Documentary)

A heroic journey of a young woman’s quest to bring her brother’s assailant to justice and bring peace to her mother and entire family.

 

NEXT LEVEL AWARD GRANTS ($500)

Cyndie Beacham & Dwight Wilkins - Grown (Experimental Narrative)

A woman navigates through her life with questions that take her deeper into her childhood memories, family history, traumas, and identity struggles which leads to an awakening.

 

ROUND 8

PLANNING AWARD GRANTS (up to $2,000)

Christina Blackburn – The Accomplices (Documentary)

Logline: Candid discussion with those working on the frontline of gender-based domestic violence.

Eboni Zamani-  The Long Way Home (Experimental Documentary)

Logline: A Black woman's personal journey through identity, heritage and ancestry, after the passing of her great-grandmother.

Farrah Rahaman – The Claudia Jones Project (Experimental Documentary)

Logline: The Claudia Jones Project is an experimental study circle, research collective and grounding space for deep reflection and interpretation of the life and legacy of the Trinidadian Marxist cultural worker, Claudia Jones. The project is an attempt to make a film from a place of shared curiosity, ancestral memory, radical world making and embodied knowledge and intuition.

Kiameshia McPherson – Eric McPherson: Living History (Documentary)

Logline: A Jazz master's reflections on his education at the feet of giants, during the end of an era.

Matthew Ober – “G” The Glenn Kellum Story (Documentary)

Logline: While preparing for an upcoming exhibition and trying to launch his new clothing line, eccentric Philadelphia artist Glenn "G" Kellum gives us a glimpse into his creative process and life philosophy.

Melissa Langer – Untitled Illegal Dumping Project (Documentary)

Logline: Untitled Illegal Dumping Project traces Philadelphia's protracted efforts to curb illegal dumping and littering through a series of vignettes about excess, neglect, and human behavior.

Raishad Hardnett – Motha (Documentary)

Logline: Motha is a verite documentary film exploring motherhood in Black queer and gender non-conforming families, specifically in the ballroom scene.

 

FINISHING AWARD GRANTS (up to $3,500)

Asha Molock – Fuel for the Fire: HIV Stigma in the Black Community (Documentary)

Logline: Fuel for the Fire is a film about resiliency and transformation. It tells the stories of people from populations in the Black Community mostly affected by HIV and how their lives were impacted by HIV-related stigma. After going through a journey of self-discovery they recover their strength to move on with their lives.

Chen-Yi Wu – Separated (Documentary)

Logline: Separated is a documentary that tells the overseas experience of two Taiwanese artists, Julia Hsia and Shou-An Chiang, during the pandemic. Reflecting on their COVID experience, Julia and Shou-An both put on a performance/exhibition that tells the fragmented history of their oppressive lives which can't be told in words.

Layla Marcelle – Chapter 3: Pacifies a Lier (Experimental Film)

Logline: Four figures of authority: The Lecturer, The Mother, The Scientist, and The Artist guide you towards a material understanding of your beliefs. Sometimes this can be painful, but it is easier in your sleep.

Vernon Jordan III – One Magenta Afternoon (Narrative)

Logline: The lesson is love: when Pop Pop and his grandson, Les, play jazz, they summon six queer spirits and tumble through their memories.

Wi-Moto Nyoka – Black Women Are Scary (Podcast)

Logline: A radio-dramatic podcast that celebrates and produces short horror stories by BIPOC authors.

 

NEXT LEVEL AWARD GRANTS ($500)

Audrey Cuff – The Lies That Bind Us (Narrative)

Logline: Nathaniel, with the odds against him, fights to overcome the betrayal of his twin sister to reach his goal of receiving a quality education.

Idalah Womack – Words Making Girls and Women Disappear: “You Guys” (Narrative)

Logline: A young President of the Parent/Teachers Organization discovers teachers and others in the school environment referring to boys and girls and "you guys" later is realized anywhere she goes. She becomes determined to understand its effect upon females and becomes hindered by a jealous older parent.

Kristal Sotomayor – Alx Through the Labyrinth (Animation)

Logline: Alx Through the Labyrinth will present a magical realistic story about Alyx, a non-binary Latinx restaurant worker, who navigates the labyrinth of COVID-19, trying to receive medical care, and the disproportionate impact COVID-19 has on Latinx communities.

Lokia Owens – Save The Black Girl (Documentary)

Logline: A documentary by a single mother about a few of the issues in the African American community, and how it affects Black mothers.

 

 

ROUND 7

ROUND 5 

Planning Grant:

A Lock of Hair directed by Amadee Braxton (Documentary)

Through family lore, genetic research, and neighborhood gossip, siblings try to solve the mystery of their deceased father’s paternity and reckon with the intergenerational reverberations of abandonment.

Black Power directed by Nadine Patterson (Scripted Narrative)

Black Power is a biopic about the extraordinary life of inventor, draftsman, designer and electrical engineer Lewis H. Latimer. The film, as told by his wife and life partner Mary Latimer, will chronicle their life in Boston, New York, Montreal, Philadelphia and London.

Dinagyang (JOY) directed by Jasmine Lynea Callis and Ani Gavino (Documentary)

Documentary meets dance features the indigenous Afro-asiatic people of the Philippines --the not Blackface version.

Houses of Domestic Memory directed by Lisa Marie Patzer (Experimental Media)

“Houses of Domestic Memory” is a creative look at visual patterns in archival material from the mid-1960’s using new computer vision technologies enabling the visual analysis of large collections of images. Starting with a collection of 8mm found-footage films and combining them with images of a major on-line digital archive, the culmination of “Houses of Domestic Memory” will be a series of collaged still images and looping videos.

Malawi Nutcracker directed by Fran McElroy (Documentary)

The short film tells the story of how “The Nutcracker” ballet came to be presented by youngsters in Lilongwe, Malawi and what happens when different artistic cultures meet.

Me and My Daddy directed by Chet Pancake (Scripted Narrative)

Set in rural Appalachia, a precocious 6 year old boy spends a court ordered custody weekend with his middle-class father struggling with addiction. As the next 48 hours unfold, the boy must choose between his love for his father and reaching out to family members to preserve his safety.

Paper Trail directed by Rachael Moton (Scripted Narrative)

In rapidly gentrifying North Philadelphia, two genius Black siblings at risk of eviction, begin doing the coursework of local college students in exchange for cash. When one of their clients, a white woman, goes viral from an essay they wrote, they’re forced to come to terms with her using their voices for personal gain

Slow Burn directed by Stephanie Malson (Scripted Narrative)

Two ex-lovers at a crossroad in their lives find themselves flooded with unexpected memories of each other that they are forced to reconcile.

The Difference Between Us directed by Imran Siddiquee  (Scripted Narrative)

Sufia just moved into a sublet in New York, and even before she’s met her new roommate face-to-face, she feels herself falling in love - sharing her deepest secrets in the daily notes they leave each other. Yet there’s more to her roomie, and to her own story, than what’s on paper or in her dreams.

Why Improvisation Matters: World Building and the "Jazz Mind"  directed by Mark Christman , ArsNova Workshop)  (Podcast)

Exploring our world and how we make it up as we go along through a non-fiction podcast that explores the creativity and possibility expressed and fostered through improvisation—not only in music, but in a wide range of practices and phenomena.

 

Finishing Grant:

Expanding Sanctuary directed by Kristal Sotomayor (Documentary)

When countless Philadelphia immigrants faced deportation because of the city’s secret sharing of its police database with Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE), Juntos, a grassroots Latinx immigrant rights organization, teams up with Philadelphia’s Latinx immigrant community to put an end to this unconstitutional agreement.

Falaka Fattah and the House of Umoja directed by Jos Duncan (Documentary)

Fifty years ago, Falaka Fattah started The House of Umoja by moving active gang members into her home and drastically reduced gang-related deaths in Philadelphia.

Places of Power directed by Michael Kuetemeyer (VR Documentary and Web Based App)

"Places of Power" is an immersive Virtual Reality (VR) documentary and web-based App inviting viewers to experience North Philadelphia anew as a tapestry of knowledge, healing, and civic leadership. It features community leaders like Nandi and Khalid Muhammad, who run a penny candy store out of their living room, using candy to teach children counting and Black history.

SteelPan Now! directed by Ryan Saunders (Documentary)

“Whey pan gone?” is cry that is often heard from many a steelpan pioneer afraid that what they have fought for in the early days of the instrument’s turbulent development is now lost. SteelPan Now peers into the current world of the steelpan, its players, arrangers, composers, pan makers and early pioneers to find some answers.

Ulrick directed by Tatiana Bacchus (Documentary)

Haitian master painter Ulrick Jean-Pierre channels his ancestors and pours his soul onto the canvas with exacting detail and visceral impact. Ulrick, is a love letter to the Haitian Diaspora about a visual griot, fighting with each stroke to preserve Haitian history and her impact, while overcoming personal tragedy.

Wisdom Gone Wild directed by Rea Tajiri (Experimental Documentary)

Wisdom Gone Wild is a personal essay documentary that poses the question: can dementia can be a form of wisdom that has gone wild? Filmmaker Rea Tajiri shares daily interactions, archival fragments and performative acts from her sixteen-year journey caregiving her mother Rose. In a non-chronological unfolding, the film shuffles between hospice, early onset and mid-term dementia; a reflection of her mother’s own ‘travels through time.’

 

Next Level Grant:

Midnight Oil directed by Bilal Motley (Documentary)

The Maestro directed by Cedra Walton (Documentary)

Unoticed: Poverty and Depression directed by Sophia Poe (Scripted Narrative)

 

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ROUND 4 

Finishing Grant:

Abortion Helpline: This is Lisa directed by Barbara Attie (Documentary)

What is the Hyde Amendment and why is its repeal becoming a litmus test for progressive politicians? In this short documentary we see how the Hyde Amendment successfully worked to prevent those struggling financially from access to abortion. At an abortion fund in Philadelphia, counselors arrive each morning to the nonstop ring of calls from women and teens who seek to end a pregnancy, and can’t afford to.

Higher Grounds directed by Christian Graham (Scripted Narrative)

On the fateful day intelligent life arrives to destroy Earth, one slacker alien becomes sidetracked when he finds himself smitten with a bitter barista. Suddenly, our survival depends on whether or not this space-schmuck can get her number.

Women’s Mobile Museum directed by Cindy Burstein (Documentary)

A compilation of individual portraits celebrating the year long journey of the Women’s Mobile Museum, a unique vision of internationally renowned South African visual activist, Zanele Muholi. The eleven video portraits capture moments in each woman’s collective journey to learn photography while exploring and challenging the social and economic barriers of the traditional art world.

In Our Right Mind: Alzheimer’s and Other Dementias Impact on Communities of Color directed by Renee Chenault Fattah (Documentary)

Communities most at risk are not forgotten in the escalating war against the health and economic threat posed by Alzheimer’s and other dementias. This film examines why these disorders disproportionately affect communities of color; how, even with no current cure or effective treatments, there are things individuals can do to reduce the risks; and why early diagnosis and participation in clinical research is key.

Those Who Wait directed by Tyler Burdenski (Scripted Narrative)

A young misfit in antebellum Portland, ME must decide what to do when a series of prophets-- including her twin sister--convince tens of thousands that the world is ending on October 22, 1843. Does  she, like the rest of her family and community, abandon her life, wealth, and abolitionist ideals in exchange for the promise of a heavenly utopia?

Next Level Grant:

Forbidden Truth directed by Audrey Cuff (Documentary)

Four Losses and a Happy Day directed by Cati Coe (Documentary)

 

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ROUND 3 

Stevie Robot directed by Philip Asbury (Scripted Fiction)

After her mother is in a serious accident, 11 year old Olivia is forced to rely on her ingenuity, some broken appliances, and a little bit of Magic, to save her.

Philip Asbury is a Project Manager at Mural Arts Philadelphia (MAP) where he develops and implements public art projects with local/international artists in collaboration with Philadelphia youth. Prior to 2013 when he started working at MAP, Asbury held the position of “Registrar” at Fleisher Art Memorial, a community art school based in South Philadelphia. His first short film “ See Me On The Beat” in 2016 was featured in the 2016 Black Star Film Festival.

Under Pressure: The Hidden Story of Pregnancy and Preeclampsia directed by Kristine Weatherston (Documentary)

Under Pressure: The Hidden Story of Pregnancy and Preeclampsia is both a 26 minute documentary film and a podcast series anchored in personal narratives. Beyond raising awareness about preeclampsia, Under Pressure will explore a broader context – why women’s health issues have a long history of being marginalized, and what we can do to keep the spotlight on these critical issues. 

Kristine Weatherston is media artist and Assistant Professor in the Department of Media Studies and Production at Temple University whose creative practice intersects archival research, family narrative, and documentary production. Through modes of nonfiction, she explores stories of survival, identity, history, and our everyday superpowers.

Sanctuary Stories Project directed by Ariel Goodman (Multimedia)

The Sanctuary Stories Project is a multimedia storytelling collaboration led by Colorado’s sanctuary leaders: Rosa Sabido, Sandra Lopez, Ingrid Encalada Latorre, and Araceli Velasquez. The project will be housed online as an interactive website that through audio narratives, original music compositions, and striking photography the women speak to their spiritual growth, their activism, and their perspectives on the system that now confines them.

Ariel Goodman is a media maker, educator, and works with young people in Philly public schools to create their own media that reflects their stories, communities, and perspectives on the world. With a background in radio, Ariel has worked with various media collectives in both Ecuador and the US to bring the voices from the streets of movements for social justice to the airwaves.

Finding Elijah directed by Yolonda Johnson-Young (Documentary)

Told from a mother’s perspective, Finding Elijah follows a young man’s journey from home; into mental illness, to homelessness, and ultimately to suicide. How a search for answers leads a mother to action.

Yolonda Johnson-Young is a Philadelphia native filmmaker, survivor, and activist. She began to learn documentary filmmaking at Scribe Video Center through the Film Scholar Program. In October 2018, Yolonda received the Leeway Foundation’s Art and Change Grant to further her endeavors as a 1st time filmmaker.

Moment to Moment directed by Michael Attie (Documentary)

Moment to Moment tackles the difficult issue of slowly losing someone you love, but is also a testament to human resilience and the power of enduring love. Carl Duzen and Susan Jewett met over forty years ago, when they were both physics and art teachers, respectively, at a Lower Merion High School. Now in the early stages of Alzheimer’s, Carl is unable to engage in the scientific inquiry of his prior physics career.

Mike Attie is a filmmaker and an Assistant Professor at the University of the Arts and Program Director of the Film + Video major. In 2014, Attie released his co-directed feature documentary, In Country — an examination of reenactments of the Vietnam War as performed by veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. In Country premiered at the 2014 Full Frame Documentary Film Festival and screened at Hot Docs, CPH:DOX, DocNYC, Camden International, Sarasota, IFFBoston, New Orleans, and Big Sky.

 

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ROUND 2

How to Tell an Immigrant Story directed by Aggie Ebrahimi Bazaz

Cosmic Egg directed by Anula Shetty

Who Said You Can’t Dance directed by David Block

ELDER VOICES: Wisdom for our Times directed by David Goodman

Squirrel Hill Falls directed by Hilary Brashear

Chekhov's Dogs directed by Katya Gorker

Sisters directed by Kaye Pyle

Herrings directed by Keith Chamberlain

Laoban (老板) directed by Shane Scott

 

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ROUND 1

Muñe directed by Catalina Jordan Alvarez

Marriage Cops directed by Cheryl Hess

Baobab Flowers directed by Gabriela Watson Aurazo

The Inside Look, An Artists’ Series directed by Jeree Edmunds

Resistance: The Battle of Philadelphia directed by M. Asli Dukan

New Divisions directed by Sarah Milinski