The Athena Film Festival (AFF) has announced its 2021 awardees. Dedicated to highlighting films showcasing women’s leadership, the fest is running digitally this year due to COVID-19. AFF 2021 kicked off March 1 and runs through March 31.
“This year, AFF will be awarding a total of $55,000 in grants to women or non-binary filmmakers to further their projects,” a press release announced.
“Unapologetic” director Ashley O’Shay has been named as the recipient of the Athena Breakthrough Award. The Netflix-sponsored award is given to a feature length film — narrative or documentary — directed by a first or second-time woman filmmaker that did not have U.S. distribution as of February 1, 2021. The winner receives a $25,000 grant. The doc follows two young abolitionist leaders committed to the Movement for Black Lives.
“I am absolutely honored to be chosen as this year’s Athena Film Festival’s Breakthrough Award recipient,” said O’Shay. “As a festival steeped in the tradition of uplifting women’s leadership, I can think of no better home than Athena for my debut feature, ‘Unapologetic.’ You’ve created a moment of inspiration for a young Black girl from Indianapolis, who never knew her voice could have an impact such as this.”
This year’s winner of the Annual Alfred P. Sloan Development Grant, which is given to an Athena List-winning script that focuses on a STEM topic, is Cherien Dabis’ “What The Eyes Don’t See.” Dabis will receive a $20,000 grant to advance her project to the next stage of development. There will also be a virtual script reading from “What The Eyes Don’t See” later this spring.
“We are so proud to partner with the Athena Film Festival to present women in STEM programming and to announce the 2nd annual winner of the Alfred P. Sloan Development grant, part of our nationwide program to support films depicting scientific themes or characters and to highlight the contributions of women and underrepresented groups,” said Doron Weber, Vice President & Program Director at the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. “Dabis’ moving and powerful script tells the true life, still-shocking story of Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha, a courageous woman in science who alerted the nation and exposed public officials when her research found dangerous blood lead levels in children from Flint, Michigan after the town’s water source was changed from the Detroit River to the Flint River.”
Dabis added, “I’m thrilled and honored to be the recipient of this year’s development grant. The support and recognition will undoubtedly help us advance in telling the remarkable story of first generation immigrant, scientist, and pediatrician Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha, who helped expose one of the most emblematic environmental disasters of our time. I’m beyond grateful to the Sloan Foundation for their continued support and to the Athena Film Festival for recognizing that this story must be told.”
The inaugural Chinonye Chukwu Emerging Writer Award, named after “Clemency” writer-director Chinonye Chukwu and sponsored by Christine A. Schantz, will be presented to Jane Therese for “Sins of My Father,” the story of a woman in Ireland who brings charges of abuse against her father. The award is conferred to a promising feature-length writer who participated in an Athena Film Festival Writers Lab, and its winner receives a $10,000 grant to assist in script development as well as a year-long intensive writing fellowship with a creative advisor.
“I continue to be impressed with the Athena Film Festival and its targeted work to expand opportunities for women writers,” said Schantz. “I am honored to further it with the creation of this award, named for talented and persevering writer and director Chinonye Chukwu.”
Therese commented, “I am both humbled and honored to be selected as the 2021 recipient of the Chinonye Chukwu Emerging Writer Award for ‘Sins of My Father.’ ‘Sins of My Father’ holds a special place in my heart. Children learn what they live. If we hope for our most precious resources to reflect a bright future and flourish, then as parents and caregivers, we must establish a strong foundation both morally, ethically, and honestly so as not to set them up for failure. Receiving the Chinonye Chukwu Emerging Writer Award brings that message closer to the forefront.”
“Creating a more inclusive entertainment industry starts with uplifting new voices and perspectives. The Athena Film Festival has always been committed to energizing and diversifying the industry by championing projects with women leaders from women filmmakers,” said Melissa Silverstein, AFF Co-Founder and Artistic Director, and Founder and Publisher of Women and Hollywood. “We are thrilled to be able to recognize Jane, Cherien, and Ashley for their dynamic works. They have each created incredibly unique and powerful projects that push the boundaries when it comes to discussion of race and social justice in our world. We look forward to seeing what’s next for these women and how their work will elevate our industry and empower future filmmakers and storytellers.”
All-access passes for AFF are sold out, but tickets are still available. The fest just announced additional programming: “Ammonite” and “Quo Vadis, Aida?” The former is a period romance starring Kate Winslet and Saoirse Ronan and the latter is a portrait of a U.N. translator working in 1995 Bosnia.
Check out bios for O’Shay, Dabis, and Therese below, courtesy of AFF.
Ashley O’Shay is a Chicago-based documentarian who has produced work for a number of national brands including Lifetime, Ford Motor Company, Boost Mobile, KQED, and Dr. Martens. Recently, O’Shay’s work appeared in the critically-acclaimed Lifetime docuseries “Surviving R. Kelly.” “Unapologetic” marks O’Shay’s first foray into the feature world. The film follows Janaé and Bella, two young abolitionist organizers, as they work within the Movement for Black Lives to seek justice for Rekia Boyd and Laquan McDonald, two young Black people killed by Chicago police.
Cherien Dabis is an acclaimed director, writer, actor, and producer who was named one of Variety’s “10 Directors to Watch” in 2009. Her debut film “Amreeka” was nominated for two Independent Spirit Awards and won the Fipresci Prize at the Cannes Film Festival. She has since gone on to direct for numerous acclaimed television programs including “Quantico,” “Empire,” “The Sinner,” “Sweetbitter,” and “Ramy,” among others. “What The Eyes Don’t See” will be her third narrative feature project.
Jane Therese is a 2020 Academy Nicholl Fellow for her script “Sins of My Father,” and a participant in the 2019 Athena IRIS Screenwriting Lab. Her work delves into the origins of social customs and beliefs. During her career, she has traveled to Haiti, documenting and writing on the effects of the Duvalier regime, worked with indigenous people throughout the world, displaced families in America, and shepherded the project Breaking the Silence of Autism. She continues to dedicate her work to those who remain unheard.
