Apply Now: For Us, By Us Filmmaker Incubator (Due Feb 22, 2023)

Posted on February 1, 2023March 22, 2023 by representmedia

Filmmakers Collaborative SF and Re-Present Media are collaborating to present the For Us, By Us Filmmaker Incubator, a six month intensive to support a diverse cohort of six local documentary filmmakers who are telling personal stories from underrepresented communities in the Bay Area.

APPLICATION DEADLINE: FEBRUARY 22, 2023 @ 11:59PM PST

ABOUT THE PROGRAM

For Us, By Us will support a diverse cohort of six local documentary filmmakers who are telling personal stories from underrepresented communities in the Bay Area. The filmmakers will participate in workshops, receive mentoring, and be given stipends to strategically use for their films. The mentoring will be focused on a group setting, with additional individual mentoring with program directors as needed. The six month program will run from March-August 2023.

Our goal is to nurture stories that expand our understanding of those who live in our Bay Area communities, especially those who are marginalized that will benefit from seeing their perspectives realistically represented, validating their lived experiences and providing insight into how we can better understand each other and ourselves.

Filmmakers Collaborative SF is a nonprofit media organization with a mission to catalyze positive change through the power of filmmaking. Re-Present Media is an organization dedicated to advocating for personal storytelling from underrepresented communities in documentary film and nonfiction media. The launch of the For Us, By Us Filmmaker Incubator marks an exciting next step in our work to support diverse storytellers and strengthen the Bay Area’s filmmaker ecosystem.

PROGRAM STRUCTURE

The six month program includes:

$1,750 stipend to be used in accordance with the filmmaker’s development plan that is created in the program.
Three months of workshops (twice a month) led by a diverse group of working filmmakers and industry professionals covering story development, creative approach, fundraising, distribution, and other elements of the filmmaking journey.
Three months of group mentoring sessions (twice a month) focused on the needs of the participants’ films, with additional individual mentoring with program directors as needed.
Work in progress screening at the end of the program.

ELIGIBILITY

To be eligible, applicants must:

Be an emerging to mid-career documentary filmmaker
Live or work in the Bay Area (Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Solano, and Sonoma Counties)
Be working on a documentary project that centers a personal story within an underrepresented Bay Area community. The film can be a short or feature length documentary in pre-production with secured participants, production, or post-production.
Be available to participate in the program’s activities. See tentative schedule.

APPLICATION

Application deadline: February 22, 2023 at 11:59pm PST

For more information and to apply: filmmakerscollaborative.org/for-us-by-us

Jennifer Huang selected for DOC NYC x VC Storytelling Incubator

Posted on November 1, 2022March 5, 2024 by representmedia

Congratulations to Re-Take Oakland filmmaker, Jennifer Huang, who was selected for the DOC NYC x Video Consortium Storytelling Incubator for her film, The Long Rescue. This initiative provides first-time feature documentary filmmakers with hands-on creative consultation and professional guidance from established industry voices.

The Long Rescue follows Filipina teen sex trafficking survivors for six years where we learn of their dark pasts through brief flashbacks that reveal the cyclical nature of exploitation that haunts women and their children for generations.

The Long Rescue joins Film Independent CNN Docuseries Intensive

Posted on October 4, 2022October 6, 2022 by representmedia

The Long Rescue, directed by Re-Take Oakland filmmaker Jennifer Huang, was accepted into the Film Independent CNN Docuseries Intensive. Supported by Founding Sponsor CNN Original Series, the Intensive helps Fellows walk away with a deeper understanding of the industry through executive and peer mentorships, creative workshopping and industry networking.

The Long Rescue follows Filipina teen sex trafficking survivors for six years in an intimate journey of recovery.

Grandma Lai receives the LIMCA-Hidden Gems III Award

Posted on October 4, 2022October 6, 2022 by representmedia

Grandma Lai is a recipient of the LIMCA-Hidden Gems III Award. The purpose of the awards program is to recognize individuals for their story, creative work, and contributions to the LIMCA Iu Mien community.

Grandma Lai is the subject of My Name is Lai, directed by Re-Take Oakland filmmaker, Lucy Saephan.

In My Name is Lai, a first generation Mien American elder, shares the events leading up to her arrival to the U.S. as a refugee survivor of war. Lai retraces moments of her life from memories as a young child, to being a newly arrived refugee finding her way in the U.S. Through these memories, Lai reflects on her life, passing on cultural traditions, fears of losing her independence, and hopes for the future.

This Adventure Called California screening at UNAFF 2022

Posted on October 4, 2022July 2, 2024 by representmedia

This Adventure Called California, directed by Re-Take Oakland filmmaker Jennifer Huang, will screen at the 2022 United Nations Association Film Festival on Sunday, October 23 at 1pm in Palo Alto.

This Adventure Called California is a short documentary film about recently divorced Arnoldo, who comes to the United States from Mexico to win back his family but meets only brutality and despair, until a chance encounter at a racquetball court changes the course of his life.

For more information, visit this page.

Coach Emily screening at the Roxie

Posted on October 4, 2022July 2, 2024 by representmedia

Coach Emily, directed by Re-Take Oakland filmmaker Pallavi Somusetty, is having its first in-person screenings! The film will screen:

October 22 at 4:00pm with BAMMS at the Roxie
For more information and tickets, visit this page.

October 23 at 12:30pm with Kearny Street Workshop at the Roxie
Pallavi Somusetty is a featured artist for this showcase.
For more information and tickets, visit this page.

Coach Emily follows Emily Taylor, a Black woman rock climbing coach determined to close the adventure gap for her team of young girls of color in Oakland.

When the Garden Comes screening at Femininity Framed

Posted on October 3, 2022July 2, 2024 by representmedia

When the Garden Comes, directed by Re-Take Oakland filmmaker Jay Gash, is screening at Femininity Framed on Friday, October 7th at 5pm at Rose Mary Jane in Oakland.

When the Garden Comes follows how the legacy of homeownership and gardening pumps through the veins of a Black family in North Oakland.

Femininity Framed features female filmmakers of color exploring their femininity within short films.

For more information and tickets, visit this page.

For Love and Legacy screening at Mill Valley Film Festival

Posted on October 3, 2022July 2, 2024 by representmedia

For Love and Legacy, directed by Re-Take Oakland filmmaker A.K. Sandhu, is making its way back to the Bay Area at Mill Valley Film Festival. The film is screening in the Shorts Program: Painting Pictures, October 12 at 3:45pm at Rafael 3.

For Love and Legacy tells the personal stories of sculptor Dana King and activist Fredrika Newton who come together to build a new monument that honors the Black Panther Party’s vital place in American history.

For more information and tickets, visit this page.

A.K. Sandhu will also be leading an archival workshop, Reel Life: History on Film, with Bay Area archivist, Alex Cherian, on October 15 at 11:30am. Exploring themes of history and memory, A.K. will talk about the curated archival footage she considered and utilized for the film, and participants will be able to study and learn how archives expand historical significance.

For more information and tickets, visit this page.

For Love and Legacy will also be screening at these upcoming festivals: DocNYC, HotSprings, Montreal Black FF, New Haven Docs, Montclair, and Urbanworld FF.

Resource List for Practical and Ethical Considerations for Working with Film Participants

Posted on September 21, 2022January 17, 2023 by representmedia

This is a list of tools and resources to help filmmakers, funders, and participants address ethical challenges that arise during the filmmaking process. These resources cover a range of topics, including: financial impacts and benefits, ownership, content review rights, and the film’s impact on participants. This list was prepared for a workshop presented by Filmmakers Collaborative SF and Re-Present Media.

What is Ethics?
Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, Santa Clara University
An explanation of what ethics is.

Making an Ethical Decision (PDF)
Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, Santa Clara University
Questions to help you make an ethical decision.

Inside the Documentary Cash Grab (Sep 16, 2022)
The Hollywood Reporter
As streaming transforms the once-sleepy nonfiction space into a money-making juggernaut of hit series, cool parties and $30 million single-title sales, THR talks to Alex Gibney, Ken Burns and other filmmakers about rising costs, ethical lapses and the very soul of their profession.

The State of Journalism on the Documentary Filmmaking Scene (2021)
CMSI (Center for Media and Social Impact)
CMSI surveyed 66 professionals across the field of documentary-focused journalism about ethical standards, journalism vs. documentary, and ways to create change.

HONEST TRUTHS: Documentary Filmmakers on Ethical Challenges in Their Work (2009)
CMSI (Center for Media and Social Impact)
This study summarizes the findings from 45 interviews with documentary filmmakers about ethical challenges.

The Unraveling of an Award-Winning Documentary (July 18, 2022)
New York Times
A look at the ethical, storytelling, and human rights concerns around the production of the film, Sabaya.

Editorial Standards
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The editorial guidelines and standards of Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

Dealing with trauma and survivors of trauma (June 4, 2020)
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation provided this guidance to assist staff involved in the reporting, discussion or depiction of trauma. It includes advice on dealing with victims, survivors, relatives of victims, and witnesses of crime, accidents, and natural disasters.

From Reflection to Release: A Framework for Values, Ethics, and Accountability in Nonfiction Filmmaking (2022)
Documentary Accountability Working Group
A value-based framework focused on guiding principles and values. It includes questions to ask yourself during each stage of filmmaking – from pre-production to distribution – heavily focused on participant well-being for films with marginalized communities.

Putting the Human into Human Trafficking Reporting: Tips for Interviewing Survivors
Minh Dang, Irina Project
Step-by-step guiding principles and tips for interviewing survivors.

The Prenups: What Filmmakers and Funders Should Talk About Before Tying the Knot (2009)
Active Voice Lab
A framework for building filmmaker-funder relationships and what to consider when forming these partnerships.

Money Changes Everything–or Does It?: Considering Whether Documentaries Should Pay for Play (Jan 31, 2004)
IDA
An exploration of whether documentary filmmakers should pay their subjects.

Making Media with Communities: Guidance for Researchers
Ann Light of Northumbria University and Tamar Millen of the Community Media Association
These guidelines set out a framework of ethical and practical considerations for creating media with communities to think about the process, the approach, and the legacy of the project.

The Ethics of Archival Use: A Roundtable Discussion (Sep 15, 2008)
IDA
In this roundtable discussion, experts covered the ethics of archival filmmaking.

REIMAGINE: A Legal Framework for Community-Accountable Mediamaking (2022)
Detroit Narrative Agency
A collective decision-making process using existing legal frameworks to create agreements grounded in social justice principles and values.

A.K. Sandhu wins SeriesFest Spotlight Your Town

Posted on September 13, 2022October 6, 2022 by representmedia

Congratulations to Re-Take Oakland filmmaker, A.K. Sandhu, who is the winner of Spotlight Your Town for her docuseries, We Beg Your Pardon, America. Spotlight Your Town is presented by SeriesFest and National Geographic Documentary Films.

We Beg Your Pardon, America tackles America’s version of history about the Black Panther Party through poetic interrogation by womxn Panthers.

A.K. Sandhu will receive a $20,000 grant to be applied to her production, an opportunity to pitch to National Geographic Documentary Films, and unscripted teams in one-on-one curated meetings, as well as receive a six-month mentorship with Academy Award-nominated filmmaker, Steve James (Hoop Dreams, Abacus: Small Enough to Jail, City So Real).