The Future of Film is Female (FOFIF), an org providing financial and promotional support for women-made short films, has announced its first round of 2019 funding. According to a press release, FOFIF is financing four women-helmed shorts: Richa Rudola’s “The Seal,” Tiffany Frances’ “Hello from Taiwan,” Jingjing Tian’s “Til Death Do Us Part,” and Annelise Ogaard’s “Our Colleagues.”
Rudola will receive post-production sound services via Heard City for “The Seal,” a psychological thriller following a woman recovering from trauma.
Both Frances and Tian are being presented with pre-production funds for their shorts. Being developed as part of Frances’ tenure at the AFI Directing Workshop for Women, “Hello from Taiwan” sees a Taiwanese American family attempting to connect in spite of cultural obstacles during the late ’80s. “Til Death Do Us Part” centers on a newly widowed 70-year-old woman who continues to think her husband is alive until making an unexpected friend.
Ogaard will be awarded production funds for “Our Colleagues,” which sees a woman living an ordinary life until she discovers a fringe organization that claims to be communicating with aliens.
Caryn Coleman founded FOFIF in 2018. The org has previously awarded funds to filmmakers Alicia Kester, Catherine Fordham, Amber Sealey, Eleanor Wilson, and Kristine Gerolaga.
If you’re interested in applying for FOFIF funding, go to FilmFreeway.
Also the Programming/Special Projects Director at Nitehawk Cinema, Coleman announced that the 2019 Nitehawk Shorts Festival will be accepting early submissions through May 5. Taking place November 11-18, the fest is committed to inclusion and gender parity, and is looking for shorts made from 2017-2019 that are 20 minutes or less. The regular submission period will end in July. Head over to FilmFreeway for more details or to apply.
Synopses for the FOFIF-funded projects are below, courtesy of the org.
RICHA RUDOLA
Receiving post-production sound services courtesy of Heard City.
THE SEAL is a psychological thriller about a woman’s journey of healing from trauma. It’s about the battle between the mind, which will go to any lengths to protect itself, and the body that remembers the abuse. Once abuse has occurred, how does one heal from it? Is recovery even possible?
TIFFANY FRANCES
Receiving pre-production funds for new film, HELLO FROM TAIWAN.
HELLO FROM TAIWAN is a poetic drama about a Taiwanese American family struggling to reunite across cultural and language barriers in the late 1980s. It’s written and directed by Tiffany Frances as part of the prestigious AFI Directing Workshop for Women. Anticipated production is Summer 2019. Anticipated completion is December 2019. You can help out HELLO FROM TAIWAN too – visit the Seed&Spark campaign to see how!
JINGJING TIAN
Receiving pre-production funds for new film, TIL DEATH DO US PART.
TIL DEATH DO US PART is about a 70 year old woman whose husband passes away. As his body decays inside of their apartment, she believes that he’s still alive until an unexpected friendship snaps her back into reality. Anticipated production is May 2019. Anticipated completion is December 2019.
ANNELISE OGAARD
Receiving production funds for new film, OUR COLLEAGUES.
Meg is leading a double life. Despite going through the motions of an ordinary, middle class existence, she is drawn to join a shadowy community which claims to be in contact with alien life. On a quasi-scientific and ludicrously secretive excursion to “make contact,” she begins to realize that her desires might be even stranger than her circumstances in this dark comedy about truly getting away from it all. Anticipated production date is July 2019. Anticipated completion date is October 2019.
