Cracking the Code on Film Fundraising: Insights from NYWIFT’s Winter Film Festival Panel
On a brisk February afternoon, I found the perfect escape from the cold—diving into an eye-opening discussion at the 2025 Winter Film Festival. One of the standout moments? Navigating Film Fundraising with NYWIFT, a must-attend panel for any filmmaker tackling the most daunting part of filmmaking: raising money. Leading the conversation were Easmanie Michel, NYWIFT’s Director of Artists Programs and Finance, and NYWIFT Member Joanna Rudolph, executive producer of Burning Annie and The Co-op: The Kids of Dorie Miller. Their wealth of knowledge made for a powerful session, packed with real-world success stories and actionable strategies. Marchelle Thurman summarized some key takeaways to help you fund your next film.
READ MORENYWIFT Program Recap: “Daughters” at Hamptons Doc Fest
In December 2024, NYWIFT was proud to co-present a screening of the new documentary "Daughters" at Hamptons Doc Fest, followed by a Q&A with filmmakers Angela Patton and Natalie Rae moderated by NYWIFT CEO Cynthia Lopez. In this powerful documentary, four girls prepare to reunite with their fathers through a special dance at a DC jail in this moving documentary about the healing power of love. We offer a recap of the conversation plus a video of the Q&A to watch after you've seen the film, which is now available on Netflix.
READ MORENYWIFT Talks Tribeca 2024: Remember Your Joy
Sometimes it’s necessary to be reminded why you do what you love to do the most. We don’t stop to do this enough, and I realize this is often what happens at a NYWIFT community event. Whether it’s virtual or in-person, NYWIFT Talks have the same impact. On Zoom, roughly 200 viewers gathered to catch board member Okema T. Moore’s chat with three current Tribeca filmmakers this year. The filmmakers were director/producer/screenwriter Geneva Peschka of The Solace of Sisterhood, archival producer Lauren Wimbush of The Debutantes, and production designer Kristi Zea of Daddio. Stephanie Okun offers and insightful recap of their conversation.
READ MOREWitnessing the Excellence of Jennifer Esposito: Fresh Kills
Stephanie Okun offers a recap of the entertaining and inspirational NYWIFT Member Screening of Fresh Kills and talkback with filmmaker Jennifer Esposito, who discussed overcoming hurdles in Hollywood and finding distribution for her passion project.
READ MOREAn Enjoyable Evening at the Wildcat Screening
NYWIFT Member Stephanie Okun recaps her experience at a NYWIFT member advanced screening of Ethan Hawke's Wildcat, the Flannery O'Connor biopic starring his daughter Maya Hawke. Co-star and past NYWIFT Muse Honoree Laura Linney was featured in the Q&A.
READ MOREProgram Recap: NYWIFT Masterclass: Nonfiction Audio Development
NYWIFT Advisory Board President Jamie Zelermyer used the podcast I Was Never There, which she created based on her experience exploring the mysterious disappearance of her friend Marsha Ferber in 1988, as the case study in the first installment of the three-part NYWIFT Masterclass: Nonfiction Audio Development in November 2023. The masterclass was a must-attend as Jamie outlined the steps she took to create and launch the successful eight-episode series. Here are some of her top tips!
READ MOREProgram Recap: NYWIFT Masterclass Series: Writing for TV
Introducing critically-acclaimed writer Amy Fox, who led a three-week consecutive NYWIFT Masterclass on creative practice, storytelling fundamentals, and developing your TV pilot script. If you haven’t ever written a script, or need a refresher course, tips, coaching, or guidance about how to translate an idea to the big screen, information about how to produce your TV show, series, or film, what technology to use, etc., this masterclass was for you.
READ MOREDeeply Moved by CODA
Kristin Reiber Harris shares her heartfelt reaction to CODA - and why she is thrilled it took home Best Picture at the Academy Awards.
READ MOREFOUND: Highlights from an interview with the Director Amanda Lipitz and Producer Anita Gou (Part 2)
Found is a compassionately told story of the girls finding one another, finding their homeland, and finding themselves. Director Amanda Lipitz and Producer Anita Gou spoke with NYWIFT Board Member Christina Kiely about the experience of making the film and the powerful and often unexpected stories that emerged in the process. This is part two of their conversation.
READ MOREFOUND: Highlights from an interview with the Director Amanda Lipitz and Producer Anita Gou (Part 1)
Found is a compassionately told story of the girls finding one another, finding their homeland, and finding themselves. Director Amanda Lipitz and Producer Anita Gou spoke with NYWIFT Board Member Christina Kiely about the experience of making the film and the powerful and often unexpected stories that emerged in the process. This is part one of their conversation.
READ MORERita Moreno: Just A Girl Who Decided to Go For It
NYWIFT member Kristin Reiber Harris reflects on life lessons gleaned from the indomitable Rita Moreno after watching the new documentary Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go for It.
READ MOREThe Dilemma of Desire Empowers Women through a Greater Understanding of Their Sexuality
Maria Finitzo's film "The Dilemma of Desire," a documentary about female sexual desire, was difficult to pitch and sell because, according to Finitzo, “People were afraid of it, they think it's about porn or are worried they're going to see people having sex." Instead, the film delves into the essential, surprising, and often sad truth about most women’s understanding of their own sexual desires and their own bodies.
READ MOREWellness During a Pandemic
We have all spent the last year doing our best to avoid catching the COVID-19 virus. However, masks, social distancing, and the other protocols we have observed do not represent a meaningful overall strategy for our general wellbeing. A recent NYWIFT Talks Wellness During COVID 2.0 moderated by Easmanie Michel, NYWIFT’s Special Projects Associate, addressed this issue with experts in wellness, Laurie Gerber, Head Coach at HG Life, and professional athlete and yoga instructor Zachy Chrisodoulou, owner of the Sommerville PurFlo Yoga franchise.
READ MOREThe Mole Agent: Highlights from the NYWIFT Goes to the Oscars Q&A with Maite Alberdi, Marcela Santibañez, Julie Goldman
The team behind The Mole Agent, Oscar-nominated for Best Documentary, discusses its powerful impact, and how they created a film both so visually stunning and rich with character that The New York Times review believed the film to be partly dramatized. It wasn’t!
READ MORERecap: FGI & NYWIFT Fashion & The First Ladies Panel
In celebration of Women’s History Month, Fashion Group International (FGI) and New York Women in Film & Television (NYWIFT) took a look at Fashion and the First Ladies through a virtual panel on March 12. It was a candid conversation about how our First Ladies are fashion trendsetters, and explored how fashion plays a key role with history, politics and contributes to the making or breaking of public policy.
READ MORERecognizing Our Shared Humanity: Idil Ibrahim on Her Film “Sega”
Women filmmakers throughout history have often been at the forefront of advancing social change, and NYWIFT member Idil Ibrahim is no exception. Ibrahim sat down with us to discuss the making of her award-winning short film "Sega" and how she hopes it might change viewers’ perception of modern immigrant stories.
READ MORENYWIFT Program Recap: Alison Klayman’s Flower Punk
"Flower Punk," Alison Klayman’s film recently released on The New Yorker documentary site, delights visually and aesthetically with the bonus of illuminating Japanese cultural traditions regarding the natural world. We recap our conversation with Alison following the NYWIFT screening of the film.
READ MORERecap: NYWIFT Talks with Julie Taymor and Kimberly Guerrero About “The Glorias” and Getting Out the Vote
NYWIFT blogger Kristin Reiber Harris reflects on our powerful conversation with the team behind The Glorias, including Julie Taymor's creative process, the celebration of Native voices, and how we as women live in constant dialogue with our former selves.
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