(Featured image credit: Harlan County, USA, 1976, Directed by Barbara Kopple)
By Kirsten Larvick
The NYWIFT Women’s Film Preservation Fund (WFPF) is currently seeking volunteers for significant positions within its committee: Head of our Fundraising Subcommittee, additional Fundraising Subcommittee members, and post-production professionals, especially with film experience, to serve on our Preservation Subcommittee. These positions are essential to strengthening our ongoing work to SAVE WOMEN’S FILM LEGACY.
The WFPF, since its inception in 1995, has saved over 100 women-made movies, from silent to contemporary eras, in all genres. The films are on all subjects and represent women makers of all colors and a wide range of ethnic backgrounds. WFPF is the only fund in the world that focuses solely on preserving women’s cinematic heritage.

(image credit: Harlan County, USA, 1976, Directed by Barbara Kopple)
About the Fundraising volunteer positions:
These volunteers should be NYWIFT members with experience or interest in fundraising.
Our fundraising approach: We would like to rejuvenate our fundraising efforts, cultivate new partnerships and supporters, continue work with corporations and individual contributors, as well as grant-making opportunities. Looking ahead to the next generation of film preservation supporters, we would also like to engage younger filmmakers and film lovers.

(image credit: You are Not I, 1981, Directed by Sara Driver)
About the Preservationist volunteer positions:
These volunteers should be NYWIFT members with experience in film and video preservation, and/or film post-production work.
What does it involve? The Preservation Subcommittee reviews our grant applications, which include lab estimates and preservation options. Our Preservation Subcommittee members also communicate directly with labs, filmmakers, and archivists and help shepherd grantees through the preservation process to completion.

(image credit: Harlan County, USA, 1976, Directed by Barbara Kopple)
If you would like to join the WFPF in any of the following capacities:
- Fundraising Subcommittee Head
- Fundraising Subcommittee member
- Preservation Subcommittee member
please contact Kirsten Larvick, WFPF Co-Chair, at kirsten@kirstenstudio.com
The WFPF would like to start working on fundraising in June.
Remember, WFPF is open to NYWIFT members only. Not a member yet? If you have 4 or more years of experience beyond entry level in film, television or digital media, you can join NYWIFT today! Less than 4 years? Next Wave membership might be right for you – email membership@nywift.org for details.
For more information on the WFPF, please visit: https://www.nywift.org/article.aspx?id=FPF
Follow us on Facebook at:
https://www.facebook.com/TheWFPF
Kirsten Larvick is a documentarian and preservationist. To find out more, please visit www.kirstenstudio.com
Related Posts
Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Jaime Schwarz
Welcome to NYWIFT, Jaime Schwarz! Jaime Schwarz grew up in NJ, the daughter of a Korean immigrant mother and son of Holocaust- survivors, father. Jaime earned her BFA in Acting from PACE University in NYC, appearing Off- Broadway in The Doctor at the Park Avenue Armory and on TV in Difficult People (Hulu), Younger (Paramount+), Jane the Virgin (The CW), Sorry for Your Loss, and Elsbeth (CBS). She is the director, writer, and star of the short film The Sandwich Line, which premiered at the Oscar-qualifying Indy Shorts International Film Festival, and her other writing work has been published in Mixed Asian Media and JoySauce. She’s currently developing several projects and is repped by Gersh + MJ Management. In our interview, Jaime discussed her journey from acting to directing and shared her experience of working in TV.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Esther Casas Roura
Welcome to NYWIFT, Esther Casas Roura! Esther is an award-winning filmmaker known for blending metaphorical storytelling with animation. Originally from Barcelona, Spain, she began her career as a molecular biologist before moving to New York and transitioning into filmmaking, focusing on animation while working across both commercial and narrative projects. She later founded Claymaniak Studios (now ECR Films) to create emotionally resonant films across stop-motion, traditional animation, and motion graphics. Her animated shorts—Check Date: An Underdog Love Story, Creamen, and FLOCKY—have screened internationally at over 150 film festivals. FLOCKY was recently shortlisted for the Goya Awards in Spain, has received 18 international awards, and has gained international recognition for its social impact. Esther is currently developing her fourth short, The Melody Within, and her first animated feature, TAO.
READ MOREFrom Set to Screen: Katherine Filaseta and Ellie Sachs Celebrate Lucy Shulman at Tribeca
The 25th anniversary of the Tribeca Festival is shining a spotlight on bold storytelling, unforgettable voices, and films that capture the spirit of New York City — and Lucy Shulman is doing exactly that. Premiering as part of the festival’s prestigious U.S. Narrative Competition, the sharply funny and deeply heartfelt feature follows a young woman navigating heartbreak, family dynamics, bad dates, and the complicated journey of finding herself again. Written, directed by, and starring filmmaker Ellie Sachs, the film blends humor with emotional honesty in a way that feels both intimate and universally relatable.
Behind the scenes, NYWIFT member Katherine Filaseta played a vital role as Second Assistant Director, helping keep the ambitious production moving while supporting the creative vision that brought the story to life. In this exclusive conversation, Ellie Sachs and Katherine Filaseta open up about collaboration, creative trust, independent filmmaking, the realities of balancing multiple roles on set, and what it means to premiere a deeply personal New York story at one of the city’s most celebrated film festivals.
NYWIFT Member Spotlight: Shahnaz Mahmud
When award-winning journalist Shahnaz Mahmud set out to write and direct her first narrative film, she landed on a deeply personal story inspired by her parents’ own arranged marriage. And when it came time to a select an editor to collaborate with, she turned to the NYWIFT membership directory, where she found veteran editor Susan B. Ades – the perfect match for her project. Members Shahnaz and Susan sat down with us to discuss their adventures (and misadventures!) making the short film The Blossom, how their partnership brought new elements of the story to light, and the unique path to bringing such an intimate tale to the screen.
READ MORE