Independent Filmmakers are Like Farmers and Bakers
What can independent producers learn from farmers and bakers? A lot more than you might think, according to NYWIFT member Jane Applegate.
READ MORENYWIFT Member Spotlight: ‘Love & Vodka’ at the Cannes Film Market
NYWIFT Member Heidi Philipsen and a team of University of Michigan alums are heading to Cannes in their efforts to obtain funding for Love & Vodka – a fish-out-of-water romantic comedy set in Ukraine. Personae Entertainment’s producer/director Heidi Philipsen (Darcy) has teamed up with screenwriter/co-producer R.J. Fox to bring his story to the big screen, along with co-producers Niko Meissner (Darcy), Kathryn McDermott (First Knight), and associate producer Jon Wilson.
READ MOREFive Takeaways: Finding the Right Documentary Lab for Your Film
Participating in a documentary film lab can be a great way to refine your story, develop your creative vision and build partnerships. But which one should you pick? NYWIFT member Janine McGoldrick has the scoop.
READ MORECynthia’s Picks: Latinx Stars, Expanded Opportunities, Listen In
Latinx Stars: The Hollywood Reporter wisely points out…amid the call for diversity in entertainment, particularly inclusive casting, why don’t we have more Latinx movie stars? Part of it, of course, comes down to unconscious bias – which we all need to work on identifying and correcting. Expanded Opportunities: The Academy has voted to expand the...
READ MOREHow I Built a Distribution Plan at Film Festivals
NYWIFT member Lara Stolman reflects on her unique path to success with her documentary "Swim Team" - using film festivals to expand her audience and find unique opportunities, even after the film's television debut.
READ MOREBelow the Line: A Cut Above – Jessie Maple
Jessie Maple is the first black woman to join the union of International Photographers of Motion Picture & Television (IATSE) in New York. Her book, How to Become a Union Camerawoman , is an instructional guide illustrating the obstacles that she endured to get into the union. It details the court case she initiated to fight discrimination after she became a member.
READ MOREBelow the Line: A Cut Above – Director of Photography Rachel Morrison
Cinematographer Rachel Morrison's arresting and haunting imagery has graced the screen in indies like Fruitvale Station, Dope and Mudbound. Most recently, she lensed the big budget feature Black Panther.
READ MOREBelow the Line: A Cut Above – Costume Designer Ruth E. Carter
Ruth E. Carter is an American costume designer (and NYWFT Designing Women honoree!) with an unparalleled ability to develop an authentic story through costume and character. And this year she became the first African American woman to win an Academy Award for costume design for her work in Black Panther.
READ MOREBelow the Line: A Cut Above – Production Designer Hannah Beachler
Production Designer Hannah Beachler created the iconic looks of "Creed," "Moonlight," and Beyonce's "Lemonade" before taking on the fictional world of Wakanda in "Black Panther," which won her a 2019 Academy Award. She is the first-ever African American - male or female - to take home that honor.
READ MOREBelow the Line: A Cut Above – Film Editor Joi McMillon
Joi McMillon made Oscar history in 2018 when she became the first African American woman nominated for Best Achievement in Film Editing for Moonlight. But the road to the Oscars wasn’t straight or smooth.
READ MORECynthia’s Picks: NY Women, Gender Parity, Captain Marvel
NY Women: Congratulations to the NYWIFT members selected to receive some of the first round of grants in the Mayor’s Office of Entertainment and Media’s “Made in NY” Women’s Film, TV & Theatre Fund. Gender Parity: Kudos to the Tribeca Film Festival, whose 2019 lineup for competition films achieved gender parity for the first time....
READ MOREBelow the Line: A Cut Above – Audio Engineer Ai-Ling Lee
This Women's History Month we celebrate women working below the line! Originally from Singapore, Ai-Ling Lee is the first Asian woman to be nominated for an Academy Award for sound editing. In 2016 she was nominated for sound editing and sound mixing for the modern musical La La Land.
READ MOREBelow the Line: A Cut Above – Costume Designer Edith Head
This Women’s History Month, we’re highlighting the oft unsung yet always vital contributions of those working below the line. Join NYWIFT blog contributors Kathryn O’Kane and Mellini Kantayya as they celebrate a few of the many women in history and making history—“Below the Line: A Cut Above.” We start with costume legend Edith Head.
READ MORECynthia’s Picks: Diversity Wins, Seen vs. Heard, Emma Speaks, Networking Tips
Diversity Wins: The Oscars this weekend proved historic on several fronts: Black Panther costume designer Ruth E. Carter (one of our first Designing Women honorees) and production designer Hannah Beachler became the first African-American women to win in their respective fields; Spike Lee and Alfonso Cuaron took home prizes for writing and directing respectively; women...
READ MORECynthia’s Picks: Thelma Schoonmaker, Unequal Representation, Inclusion Commitment, Record Breaker
Thelma Schoonmaker: Congratulations to 1995 NYWIFT Muse honoree Thelma Schoonmaker, who was honored this weekend with a BAFTA fellowship for her incredible 50-year editing career. Unequal Representation: The Women’s Media Center’s “Investigation 2019: Gender and Non-Acting Oscar Nominations” found that women are once again missing from the picture. No women were nominated in Directing, Cinematography,...
READ MORECynthia’s Picks: Sundance Fest, It’s Time, Fair Credits
Sundance Fest: Congratulations to all the NYWIFT members with films screening at Sundance! The festival opens on Thursday and runs through February 3rd. It’s time: Variety noted the uptick in feminist stories featured in Oscar contenders this year. Of course, this female focus didn’t extend to the directing nominations – women were shut out of...
READ MOREFive Film Festival Takeaways
In 2018, from mid-October to mid-December, NYWIFT member Lauren Anders Brown embarked on a film festival season filled with five very different festivals. These are the valuable lessons she learned from each one.
READ MORETerry’s Picks: Life Lessons, Dream Team, Zero Weeks
Life Lessons: Be sure to read Manohla Dargis’ brilliant piece in The New York Times about what movies teach us about being a woman. She says: “Movies get into our bodies, making us howl and weep, while their narrative and visual patterns, their ideas and ideologies leave their imprint.” Representation matters. Dream Team: Thanks to...
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