Sundance Filmmakers Panel, Presented by Skywalker Sound
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (Park City, UT – January 20, 2013) This morning, Women In Film, Los Angeles (WIF), the leading non-profit organization dedicated to women in the global entertainment industry, awarded $30,000 in cash and in-kind grants at its seventh annual Sundance Filmmakers Panel discussion and brunch event, presented by Skywalker Sound and contributing sponsors Max Mara and LUNA®. Jordana Spiro, filmmaker of Skin received the Women In Film / CalmDown Productions Grant and Martha Shane & Lana Wilson, filmmakers of After Tiller was awarded the Women In Film Documentary Grant.
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“For a decade, Women In Film has maintained a strong presence at the Sundance Film Festival. Last year, WIF aligned with the Sundance Institute for an ongoing research and programming initiative supporting women in independent film," said Women In Film President Cathy Schulman. “This year's panel celebrates female filmmakers who have taken on daring subject matter, and I congratulate Jordana, Martha and Lana who are the much deserving and inspired recipients of our grant."
Women In Film joins Los Angeles-based film, television and theater production company CalmDown Productions, Inc. for the third year to present the Women In Film / CalmDown Productions Grant to a female director in the Sundance Film Festival Shorts Program. A jury of WIF educators, filmmakers and artists chose filmmaker Jordana Spiro as the 2013 recipient for her work on Skin. With this grant, Jordana takes home $5,000 from Women In Film and CalmDown Productions, Inc., 5,000 feet of motion picture film stock from Eastman Kodak, $1,000 worth of scheduling and budgeting software from Entertainment Partners, and $5,000 in post-production services from Technicolor.
“We are thrilled to be part of backing a new generation of deserving female filmmakers,” said Lucy Webb, President of CalmDown Productions and Chair of the Women In Film in Park City Program. “Their talent should be celebrated and supported by all of us.”
Women In Film Documentary Grant has been established to recognize and award a deserving female documentarian in the Sundance Film Festival Program. Women In Film is pleased to award Martha Shane and Lana Wilson as the 2013 recipients. Martha and Lana will receive $5,000 from Women In Film for their work on After Tiller as well as $1,000 worth of scheduling and budgeting software from Entertainment Partners. Women In Film and Entertainment Partners will also donate the remaining $8,000 grant in budgeting software to the Sundance Institute Narrative Program.
Additionally, Women In Film and the Sundance Institute will host a brunch tomorrow with Sundance Institute Trustees Jacki Zehner and Pat Mitchell, Executive Director Keri Putnam and Women In Film President Cathy Schulman. Schulman said, "This event follows last year’s launch of our collaborative initiative supporting career longevity for independent female filmmakers working in both narrative and documentary feature film." New landmark research will be presented by USC’s Annenberg School Professor Stacy L. Smith from her study on women in independent filmmaking. WIF returns as an Institute Associate of the 2013 Sundance Film Festival for the seventh year.
Today’s 2013 Sundance Filmmakers Panel, “Female Voices: Women Who Dare,” features select female filmmakers with both narrative and documentary films at the festival, including:
Francesca Gregorini - Director/Screenwriter/Producer, Emanuel and the Truth About Fishes
Tia Lessin - Former WIF/L’Oreal Grant Winner, Co-Director/Screenwriter/Producer, Citizen Koch
Kalyanee Mam - Director/Producer/Cinematographer, A River Changes Course
Freida Mock - Director/Producer, ANITA
Jehane Noujaim - Director, The Square (Al Midan)
Michèle Stephenson - Co-Director/Producer, American Promise
Lucy Webb - Moderator/Producer for Women In Film Los Angeles
This event is presented by Skywalker Sound and contributing sponsors include Max Mara and LUNA®.
ABOUT THE WINNERS:
Jordana Spiro is the director, co-writer and co-producer of Skin. She is currently pursuing her MFA for Directing/Screenwriting at Columbia University under their Merit Scholarship. Jordana was selected to participate in the 5th Annual Berlinale Talent Campus, and her first short film was screened in Poland’s International CamerImage Film Festival (2011). As an actress, Jordana has starred in several films and television shows, including Fox’s drama "The Mob Doctor", TBS’ comedy "My Boys", for which she received the Gracie Allen Award for Outstanding Female Lead in a Comedy Series, Joel Schumacher’s Trespass, the Will Ferrell-produced The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard, The Year of Getting to Know Us (2008 Sundance Film Festival), Alone with Her (2006 Tribeca Film Festival) and Must Love Dogs. She studied at the Circle in the Square Theatre School in New York and the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London.
Martha Shane, co-director/co-producer of After Tiller, is a Brooklyn-based filmmaker. From 2006 to 2008, she co-directed, produced and co-edited the feature documentary Bi the Way, which had its premiere at the 2008 SXSW Film Festival and debuted on MTV’s LOGO channel in summer 2009. Subsequently, Martha worked as a freelance editor, producer and cinematographer for projects ranging from a short documentary about a community health center in post-Katrina New Orleans to an experimental film about the Japanese writer Osamu Dazai. After Tiller is her second feature documentary. Martha is currently finishing Make the People Happy, a short documentary that follows the Xylopholks, New York’s only animal-costumed, xylophone-playing, subway-busking ragtime band on a whirlwind tour of India. She is also in production on The Mystery of Marie Jocelyne, a suspense-filled feature documentary that unravels the many mysteries surrounding alleged con-artist and former film festival director Marie Castaldo. Martha graduated from Wesleyan University in 2005 with a BA in Film Studies.
Lana Wilson, co-director/co-producer of After Tiller, is a Brooklyn-based filmmaker and this is her feature documentary debut. Lana was previously the Film and Dance Curator for Performa, the New York biennial of new visual art performance, where she has curated and produced performances including Canadian filmmaker Guy Maddin’s Tales from the Gimli Hospital: Reframed, and French choreographer Boris Charmatz’s Musée de la dance: expo zero. She has also organized several film retrospectives, including Not Funny: Stand-Up Comedy and Visual Art, The Polyexpressive Symphony: Futurism on Film and Dance After Choreography. Lana’s film programs have been presented by the Jerusalem International Film Festival, Anthology Film Archives, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and Tanzquartier Wien (Vienna), among other venues. She recently edited the book Performa 09: Back to Futurism (2011), and is currently developing several other documentary projects. Lana holds a BA in Film Studies and Dance from Wesleyan University.
About Women In Film:
Women In Film, Los Angeles (WIF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to helping women achieve their highest potential within the global entertainment, communication and media industries and to preserving the legacy of women within those industries. Founded in 1973, WIF and its Women In Film Foundation provide for members an extensive network of contacts, educational programs, scholarships, film finishing funds and grants, access to employment opportunities, mentorships and numerous practical services in support of this mission. In the independent film world, the organization focuses on assisting female independent filmmakers who have exhibited advanced and innovative skills, specifically through its Film Finishing Fund and award-winning PSA program.
About Skywalker Sound:
Skywalker Sound was built by a filmmaker for filmmakers keen to use sound to help tell amazing stories. At the heart of the organization is an exceptional team of sound designers, re-recording mixers, and editors who worked on 12 films at this year's Sundance Film Festival.
About Max Mara:
Max Mara, the premiere collection of the Max Mara Fashion Group, is the epitome of Italian style and luxury; a confident and contemporary collection of tailored silhouettes, sumptuous fabrications and couture details applied to ready-to-wear. Known for stylish coats, form-skimming separates, sharp suits and elegant accessories, Max Mara, was founded by the late visionary Achille Maramotti in 1951. The collection is now available in 2,334 locations in more than 100 countries and was the first of 19 collections under the Max Mara umbrella. The company remains privately held and managed by the Maramotti family.
About LUNA®:
LUNA® nourishes women with delicious snacks made with organic ingredients and the essential vitamins women need. LUNA connects, supports and celebrates women with programs such as LUNAFEST®, a national traveling fundraising festival of short films by, for and about women, and Team LUNA Chix, an all-women’s sport group inspiring women to learn new sports and be active. LUNA proudly donates one percent of its sales to a variety of women’s nonprofits and the Breast Cancer Fund through the Clif Bar Family Foundation. (www.lunabar.com)
About Eastman Kodak Company:
Kodak’s Entertainment Imaging Division is the world-class leader in providing film, digital and hybrid motion imaging products, services, and technology for the professional motion picture and exhibition industries. For more information, visit www.kodak.com/go/motion. Follow Kodak on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/KodakMotionPictureFilm, or on Twitter at @Kodak_ShootFilm.
About Technicolor:
Technicolor, a worldwide technology leader in the media and entertainment sector, is at the forefront of digital innovation. Our world class research and innovation laboratories enable us to lead the market in delivering advanced video services to content creators and distributors. We also benefit from an extensive intellectual property portfolio focused on imaging and sound technologies, based on a thriving licensing business. Our commitment: supporting the delivery of exciting new experiences for consumers in theaters, homes and on-the-go. www.technicolor.com
About CalmDown Productions:
Calm Down Productions, Inc. (CDP) is a Los Angeles-based production company founded in 1991 by actress/producer Lucy Webb. The company produces television, film and theater. CDP has also produced and developed projects for HBO, Warner Bros., CBS, NBC, Lifetime and FX. Webb has been an avid supporter of Women In Film, Los Angeles, and has produced many of their past Crystal+Lucy Awards galas and events. Past recipients of the Women In Film / CalmDown Productions Grant are Anna Musso for L Train (2012) and Deb Shoval for AWOL (2011).
About Entertainment Partners:
Entertainment Partners is the global leader in entertainment payroll, residuals, tax incentives, finance and other integrated production management solutions with 12 offices in the U.S. and Canada. Combining its comprehensive capabilities, extensive resources, and unparalleled industry experience, EP collaborates with clients to help them produce the most cost-effective and efficient film, television, digital and commercial projects. Its proprietary VISTA accounting systems and Movie Magic Budgeting and Scheduling programs are the industry standards. The company also provides casting and payroll for background actors through its legendary Central Casting division, a Hollywood icon since 1925. Established more than 30 years ago, EP is a 100% employee-owned company where each employee has a vested interest in upholding the company’s highest standards of service, integrity, transparency and accountability.
CONTACT:
For additional information or to request photographs from this event, please contact Catherine Olim or Elise Freimuth of PMK·BNC at (310) 854-4800 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
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