Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Candece Tarpley
Welcome to NYWIFT, Candece Tarpley! Candece Tarpley, of Sissipahaw/Tuscarora/Tsalagi descent, is a World Champion Powwow dancer, an actress and a poet-storyteller-playwright who has been writing since childhood. Holding her heritage close, she's been a featured performer nationwide, weaving her crafts with the patrons of the Public Library of Boulder Colorado; Middlebury College in Vermont; Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts; the Pequot Museum in Connecticut; the Brooklyn Museum and the Museum of Natural History in New York City, as well as other creative venues. Candece spoke to us about how her Indigenous heritage influences her work, the response to her television series, and her next major projects.
READ MOREThe Redford Center Joins Black Public Media’s Climate Open Call
The Redford Center, one of the only US-based nonprofits solely dedicated to environmental impact filmmaking, has joined forces with Black Public Media (BPM) on BPM’s 2023 open call for climate stories. BPM will award a total of $230,000 in production funding for feature-length documentaries and documentary or scripted shorts. Projects in all stages of production (research and development, pre-production, production, or post-production) are invited and should be suitable for public media distribution. The application window for the open call is September 1-25.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Tanis Parenteau
Welcome to NYWIFT, Tanis Parenteau! Tanis Parenteau is Métis/Cree from the Métis Nation of Alberta. She is an actor, producer, and casting director. Her work focuses on uplifting Native voices telling contemporary and futuristic Native stories. As an actor, she has appeared on Billions, House of Cards, Designated Survivor, FBI: Most Wanted, Gossip Girl, and Tribal, and she has performed at The Public Theater, Signature Theater, 59E59, and Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Tanis has produced eight short films, has a short form digital series in post-production, and is developing multiple Native-led features and series. She is an associate casting director at tbd casting co in NYC. Her latest project, the short film Glenburn 12 WP, is fiscally sponsored by NYWIFT. Tanis spoke to us about her dedication to uplifting Native voices, how working in casting has influenced her performing, and the best advice she’s ever received.
READ MORENYWIFT Member Spotlight: Yolanda Gibson
Meet NYWIFT Member Yolanda Gibson! Yolanda Gibson is an online entertainment writer and documentarian originally from Detroit, Michigan. She has a Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree in Political Science from Michigan State and Illinois State University respectively. She began writing for online entertainment publications in 2010 in Atlanta, GA. Through writing she has been given the opportunity to conduct red carpet interviews for some of the biggest events and names in the industry such as the Tribeca Film Festival, BET Hip Hop Awards and the Soul Train Music Awards. Gibson has been a member of NYWIFT since 2019. She attended our NYWIFT Night Out networking mixer with the Telly Awards at Neuehouse Madison Square in March 2023, where Telly Awards reps encouraged her to submit her projects for consideration. This Summer, she won a 2023 Bronze Telly Award in the Online Documentary Long Form (over 40 minutes) category for her documentary Wisdom from the Brooklyn Bridge, which follows her Covid-19 weight loss journey as she walks through political and social protests in New York City. Yolanda spoke to us about her documentary, the award, and her future projects.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Jacinta Hayne
Welcome to NYWIFT, Jacinta Hayne! Jacinta was born in New South Wales, Australia. She has worked in film, commercials & stills productions for over 19 years, both in Australia and internationally. She was 2nd AD on major motion pictures including Titanic, The Quiet American, and Babe: Pig in the City, as well Production Coordinator many other films, TVC’s, and music videos. She is also a stills photographer. She is based in New York and a member of the Directors Guild of America, and is both an Australian and US Citizen. Jacinta’s most recent project as a set photographer was the late Jeff Darling’s short film He Went That Way, which stars Zachary Quinto and Jacob Elordi and premiered at the 2023 Tribeca Festival. Jacinta spoke to us about her most meaningful moments on set, working with George Miller and James Cameron, and her smart techniques for staying organized.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Marchelle Thurman
Let’s give a warm NYWIFT welcome to new member Marchelle Thurman! Marchelle is originally from the suburbs of Chicago and graduated from NYU with a BFA with honors in Theater. She is a New York-based actor, writer, producer, director, and voice over artist. The 10-time award-winning feature film Black White and the Greys, which she acted in, wrote, directed, and produced, recently became available on Amazon, Google Play, and YouTube. Some of her favorite acting credits include FBI, Law & Order, Dynasty, NCIS: New Orleans, and How to Tell You’re a Douchebag (2016 Sundance Festival). She loves traveling, baking, and rooting for the St. Louis Cardinals. Marchelle shared her insight into her award-winning films, juggling multiple hats on set, and her favorite baking recipes!
READ MORENYWIFT @ Tribeca: In Conversation with the Team Behind Breaking the News
The new documentary Breaking the News, which just premiered at the 2023 Tribeca Festival, follows the determined efforts of women and nonbinary journalists launching a news “startup,” The 19th*, to foreground voices omitted from mainstream news. Filmmakers Heather Courtney, Princess A. Hairston, and Chelsea Hernandez provide a deep look into bias and inclusion in the ever-shifting media landscape. We spoke to the three co-directors and producer Diane Quon about their communal approach to making this film, and the challenges and triumphs of building a news organization (and making a film about it) during a global pandemic, political strife, and social unrest.
READ MORENYWIFT @ Tribeca: In Conversation with Cinematographer Karen Rodriguez
NYWIFT member Karen Rodriguez is naturally drawn to projects that align with her values, which made her latest cinematography outing, Deciding Vote, a perfect fit! The film just premiered at the 2023 Tribeca Festival in the Documentary Shorts category, and follows a landmark moment in New York state politics 50 years ago, when assemblyman George Michaels cast a single vote on New York’s abortion bill that changed the course of American history but destroyed his political career in the process. Rodriguez spoke to us about her work on Deciding Vote and what types of projects inspire her creativity.
READ MORENYWIFT @ Tribeca: In Conversation with Location Manager Dana Morgan
NYWIFT Member Dana Morgan is a New York-based stunt woman, actress and director. She has been in the film industry for over 15 years which during this time has afforded her the opportunity to work in front and behind the camera. Her diverse experience has brought unique ideas, concepts and solutions to the table while working with crew, directors, and support teams to bring their vision to life. She has expanded her creative reach to the role of location manager through her production company Going Up? Productions, LLC with business partner Cara S. Liander. Their latest project is Fresh Kills, the feature directorial debut of actor Jennifer Esposito, premiering now at the 2023 Tribeca Festival.
READ MORENYWIFT @ Tribeca: In Conversation with Casting Director Bess Fifer
As an independent casting director based in New York, NYWIFT member Bess Fifer has played a key role in shaping numerous careers across film and television. Her commitment to authentic, diverse, and inclusive casting has made her an in-demand collaborator, an Artios Award Winner, and an Emmy Nominee. Fifer specializes in ground-breaking independent features, such as Lingua Franca and The Light of the Moon, and hugely popular television shows, including Severance, It’s Bruno!, and Escape at Dannemora. Fifer’s latest project – The Seeding – will be scaring up audiences at the 2023 Tribeca Festival. Fifer talked to us about her process casting the film.
READ MORENYWIFT @ Tribeca: In Conversation with Director Julie Cohen
NYWIFT member and Academy Award-nominated, Emmy-winning director Julie Cohen is no stranger to tackling hot button issues and profiling fascinating people in her work, from Ruth Bader Ginsburg to Julia Child to Pauli Murray and more. With each of her stories, she offers audiences a powerful and intimate look at a different slice of humanity, and empowers us to expand our horizons and learn from those from different walks of life. In her latest film, Every Body, produced with NBC News Studios, Cohen focuses her lens on the intersex community. The film will premiere at the Tribeca Festival and be released theatrically by Focus Features on June 30. Cohen is one of 15 NYWIFT members with projects premiering at the 2023 festival.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Priya Mishra
Welcome to NYWIFT, Priya Mishra! Priya is an award-winning screenwriter and director. She wrote, directed, and co-produced her debut short film Bath Bomb in 2019. Currently, Bath Bomb and Only Business, the second film she directed, are both having successful runs on the festival circuit. A queer second-generation Indian immigrant, and a girl who lost her mom during her junior year of college, Priya’s work centers love, grief, acceptance, social-critique, and embracing your anger. Priya hopes that her work will make audiences feel more connected with other human beings, more angry at the state of the world, and more willing to improve it by embracing vulnerability and kindness. Priya spoke to us about identity, wildly fun times on set, and exploring grief through her creative work.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Ifeyinwa Arinze
Please join us in welcoming Ifeyinwa Arinze to NYWIFT! Ifeyinwa is a neuroscientist-turned-filmmaker from Nigeria and is currently based in New York City. Her work draws inspiration from human behavior and prioritizes intimate portrayals of Black women and girls that are grounded in generosity and care. Her short film, Two or More, premiered at the 2022 New York African Film Festival and has screened at the 2022 Palm Springs International ShortFest, 2022 Bushwick Film Festival and 2022 TIDE Film Festival, where she received the 2022 NYWIFT Outstanding Woman Content Creator Award. Ifeyinwa spoke to us about why the TIDE Film Festival is special to her, her transition from STEM to the arts, and the inspirations behind her work.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Edna Luise Biesold
Welcome to NYWIFT, new member Edna Luise Biesold! Edna is a German-born and New York-based filmmaker who honed her craft at NYU Tisch School of the Arts with a special focus on cinematography. She received the Franz Wieser Grant from ARRI as DP for the fantasy short film The Molok. She co-wrote and co-directed The Color of Time, and is presently developing 3 Monkeys, a screenplay which earned her a Creative Career Design Fellowship from NYU's Production Lab in 2022. Most recently, Sunscreen, her first film in ASL, has won her a Best Narrative Short award at 1904 Deaf Film Festival and the NYWIFT Award for Excellence in Directing at the 2022 SOHO International Film Festival. Edna spoke to us about her favorite collaborators, the challenges of lighting 16-foot tall puppets, and exploring the subtleties of communication throughout her work.
READ MORENYWIFT at Sundance: In Conversation with Nitasha Bhambree
The wildly inventive 2023 Sundance Film Festival feature film Landscape with Invisible Hand follows Adam, a teenage artist coming of age in the aftermath of an alien takeover. Based on the novel by M.T. Anderson, the genre-bending sci-fi dramatic comedy with a YA twist directed by Cory Finley will come out as a limited release August 18, 2023. NYWIFT member Nitasha Bhambree helped bring the fantastical story to life as the Stunt Coordinator for the film. Since graduating New York University with a focus in dramatic performance and film studies, Nitasha has been employed in the entertainment industry for over 20 years. She regularly stunt doubles lead actresses in various TV shows and films, and has performed stunts in big budget features such as Joker, The Dark Knight Rises, Spider-Man and A Wrinkle in Time, and has stunt coordinated features and TV series for Netflix, Disney, MGM, A24, NBCU, Hulu, HBO Max and Starz/Lionsgate, and Marvel. Nitasha spoke to us about working in the sci-fi genre, her favorite scenes, and her upcoming projects.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Stephanie Okun
Please join us in welcoming new NYWIFT member Stephanie Okun! Stephanie is a screenwriter/director and recent grad from Wesleyan University. She is currently working on a feature film that she started at Wesleyan called At Sea, as well as throwing herself into Production Assistant and other entry-level jobs. She is excited to be a part of NYWIFT and get more entrenched in the world of film and television. Previously, Stephanie was a NYWIFT intern – and even wrote a few of the pieces in this series! Now, we’ve turned the microphone on her to learn about her writing, her theatrical roots, and her dreams for the future.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Kayla Sun
Let’s give a warm NYWIFT welcome to Kayla Sun! Kayla is a LA-based trilingual Asian filmmaker. She earned her B.A. degree for Studio Art and Economics at Vanderbilt University and subsequently worked in the art world before diving into the film world. She earned her M.F.A. for Film and Television Production at University of Southern California, as a Jeffrey Jones Scholar in writing, and is a recipient of the 2020 Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Production Grant for her film The Code of Family (2022). The film also received a NYWIFT Award for Excellence in Short Narrative Directing at last year’s UrbanWorld Film Festival. Kayla spoke to us about her inspirations, love of learning, and why people of all ages should be encouraged to embrace technology.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Kate Shine
Welcome to NYWIFT, Kate Shine! Kate is a Boston-born actor, writer and comedian currently living in Queens. Kate and her writing partner Molly Kiernan wrote a pilot, Let's Sick Together, based on their experiences living with epilepsy and eating disorders. It's funny, they swear! It was even selected as a finalist at the Big Apple Film Festival, Austin Film Fest, & the Filmmatic Comedy Screenplay Awards! Kate can be seen in commercials for M&M's, Tempur-Pedic, WETV and is a house performer at The Magnet Theater. Kate talked to us about approaching serious topics through humor, her journey as an artist, and her hopes for the future of disability representation in media.
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