November News

Native American Heritage Month

November is Native American Heritage Month! Please join us in celebrating and supporting the creative works and contributions of Native American and Indigenous storytellers with the American Indian Film Festival, San Francisco Heritage, and the Red Nation International Film Festival…all happening this month!


Also, today is Nov. 8th Election Day so don't forget to vote! Be heard and speak up for women's rights.


San Francisco Heritage: Empowering and Honoring Native American History in San Francisco 

Wednesday, NOVEMBER 16th   4pm-7pm (PT) 

2007 Franklin Street, San Francisco

To celebrate Native American Heritage Month, the American Indian Cultural District (AICD) will partner with SF Heritage to host a cross-generational panel of American Indian leaders and activists who will discuss continuing efforts to establish a cultural center on Alcatraz, the next steps for the Ramaytush Ohlone as the original peoples of San Francisco, and — now in its 47th year — the legacy of the American Indian Film Festival. Join in recognizing, honoring, and celebrating the American Indian legacy, culture, people, and contributions in San Francisco.


Cost: $25  -- All proceeds from this program will benefit San Francisco Heritage partner organizations and their American Indian cultural preservation work in San Francisco


MORE INFO and TICKETS: SF Heritage Conversations: Empowering and Honoring Native American History in San Francisco

Conversations & Connections: 

Post Production Wrap up

Thanks to all who joined us on 10/19/22 for the Conversations & Connections Fall Virtual Panel: The State of Post-Production: How we work, where we work, and how we talk shop!


Thank you to the amazing panelists Diana J. Brodie, Julie Hwang, Michelle McGaraghan, Anna-Lena Isaksson, and Susannah Smith, and to our moderator Kristin Tieche who assembled the panel! It was great to hear about the ways that editors have come together to advocate for pay and scheduling and equitable inclusion. Below are some good links for editors but also for producers who are in the position to hire editors!


ADE Edit Schedules

ADE @ Festivals

BIPOC EDITORS

Surveys & Studies


Youtube link for recorded Zoom event: 

Conversations & Connections: Post Production

WIFSFBA Meetup at Cinequest Film Festival  

 Thanks for joining us! 


Thanks to all our WIFSBA members who joined the meet up at the Cinequest Film Festival on 8/21, followed by the world premiere screening of Aimee Graham’s feature film The Allnighter in the beautiful art-deco California Theatre. A big shout out to Tasha Nesbitt, WIFSFBA President, for moderating a lively onstage post screening Q&A with Aimee and members of her creative team.


Aimee Graham and Tasha Nesbitt at Cinequest

Raffle winner member Nan Su! 

WIFSFBA members at our meet up!

New Board Chair and Board Vice Chair of WIFSFBA

The WIFSFBA board met on 11/1/22 for a special meeting on leadership positions. There were two new proposed positions: Board Chair and Board Vice Chair. These positions are needed to help expand our leadership and to support our growing membership. Ami Zins and Diane Walsh, current Board members, were nominated for the roles and accepted, respectively. Congratulations to Ami and Diane!

Keep an eye out for future announcements about leadership opportunities at WIFSFBA! 


Upcoming Events

Plan Like a Boss

WIFSFBA presents

PLAN LIKE A BOSS

FINANCIAL EMPOWERMENT!

LEARN STRATEGIES TO HELP YOU REACH YOUR GOALS

Wednesday, NOVEMBER 16th •  6pm-7pm (PT)  • FREE

Bring all your questions for Amanda Secen & Meghan Kahler, financial planners representing Northwestern Mutual - a financial services company founded in 1857 that is regarded as a trusted advisor in the financial services industry.


Topics will include:


A Zoom link will be provided the day before the event! 


What's Happening in the Bay Area

47th American Indian Film Festival

American Indian Film Festival

November 4-12th 

Various locations in San Francisco


The mission of the American Indian Film Institute is to foster understanding and appreciation of the culture, traditions, and issues of contemporary Native Americans.  AIFI encourages filmmakers whose work expresses the native voices, viewpoints, and stories historically excluded from mainstream media, develops audiences for their works, and advocates for authentic representations of Indians in the media. 


SCHEDULE and TICKETS:  American Indian Film Festival Schedule


BASH - Bay Area & Sacramento Short Film Festival 2022 - Part 2

Saturday, November 5th - 11AM-4.30PM

Stage Werx Theatre, 446 Valencia St

San Francisco, CA


BASH is a Semi-Annual Film Festival showcasing a diverse sampling of Bay Area and Sacramento made shorts and mini features, award-winning directors along with amateurs breaking in the industry and blowing everyone away. From epic comedies, horror, to serious dramas, and documentaries, the selections are eclectic and all across the board!!!! Audience choice winners will win trophy and exposure.


SCHEDULE and TICKETS: BASH- Bay Area & Sacramento Short Film Festival Part 2- PLUS

San Francisco Transgender Film Festival

November 10-20, 2022

In person: Roxie Theater • San Francisco, CA

Online via Eventive


For 25 years, SFTFF has screened films that promote the visibility of transgender and gender variant people and challenge the mainstream media’s negative stereotypes of our communities. The festival provides opportunities for transgender and gender variant media artists, builds community through film and performance events, and engages audiences in cross-community dialogue.

This year, the festival includes 7 brilliant programs featuring over 40 films, both in-person and online! All films are closed captioned.                                                                                

SCHEDULE and TICKETS:  2022 SFTFF Festival Schedule 

7th Golden Gate International Film Festival

November 4-6, 2022

Various locations


Golden Gate International Film Festival (GGIFF) is supported by AMC Independent and NBC Bay area. GGIFF, powered by Net Effect Media Inc., is dedicated to all talented content creators world-wide who have an excellent opportunity to showcase their talent.

Nov 4-6, 2022 - Screenings of the nominated films will be streamed on a fixed schedule online during the first 3 days of the festival. These would include Q&A sessions after each slot and an Award Ceremony at 7:30pm on Nov 6, 2022.

Nov 7-13, 2022 - Screenings of the nominated films will continue to be streamed online for the rest of the festival dates. The online screenings would be a video-on-demand feature.

 

SCHEDULE and TICKETS:  Golden Gate International Film Festival

Red Nation International Film Festival

November 1-30, 2022

Los Angeles, CA

Online streaming - November 21-30, 2022


The 27th Red Nation International Film Festival, featuring new films from the world’s leading Native and Indigenous filmmakers, is the largest Native film festival in the country and was the first Native film festival in Los Angeles. This year’s festival will include hybrid in-person and virtual events dedicated to increasing the visibility of American Indian and Indigenous storytellers and artists in the entertainment landscape.

SCHEDULE and TICKETS: Red Nation International Film Festival

Open For Submissions

Screencraft Cinematic Short Story Writing Competition

Deadline: November 30, 2022


Does your short story have cinematic appeal? Hollywood has adapted countless movies and TV pilots from great short stories. Our judges are looking for stories with potential to be adapted for the screen. Past winners have signed with top agents and had their worked optioned.

 

ScreenCraft is thrilled to include a one-of-a-kind mentorship opportunity with novelist/writer Julia Seales as a part of this year's Grand Prize. Julia is the author of A MOST AGREEABLE MURDER, which will be published by Random House in 2023 and was optioned by TriStar Pictures for film with 3 Arts producing and Julia adapting. This will be an invaluable learning experience for any writer.


MORE INFO: Cinematic Short Story Writing Competition - ScreenCraft

Cinequest Screenwriting Competition

Deadline: November 30, 2022


The Bay Area’s 18th Cinequest Screenwriting Competition welcomes screenplays and teleplays of all genres and lengths. It gives screenwriters prestigious recognition, engagement with industry leaders, connection to an empowering community, plus the chance to win extraordinary acclaim and prizes.


MORE INFO: Cinequest Screenwriting Competition - FilmFreeway

Atlanta Film Festival Screenplay Competition

Extended Deadline: November 17, 2022


The 2023 Atlanta Film Festival Screenplay Competition is devoted to finding the best screenplays from around the world and offering their authors the opportunity to take part in a once in a lifetime writing workshop and mentorship program with professionals in the industry. 

Three feature film screenplays, one pilot screenplay, and one short film screenplay are chosen from submissions to take part in one-on-one mentorship meetings. Not only do they get notes on their winning screenplay, but the winners also get to build meaningful relationships with their mentors and network with the diverse and experienced crowd of filmmakers and industry insiders that attend the Atlanta Film Festival every year.

MORE INFO: Atlanta Film Festival Screenplay Competition - FilmFreeway

The Brklyn Film Festival

Submission Period: November 30, 2022 - March 13, 2023


BFF is a festival for and by independent filmmakers. The organizers bring to this annual event 25 years of festival experience. BFF accepts submissions in six categories: Narrative Feature, Documentary Feature, Short Narrative, Short Documentary, Experimental, and Animation.


MORE INFO: Brooklyn Film Festival - FilmFreeway

 Grants Corner

Film Independent Sloan Distribution Grant

The Sloan Distribution Grant is a $50,000 grant awarded by Film Independent to a film that is entering its distribution phase. Eligible films must depict themes, stories and characters grounded in real science, technology or economics.


Rolling Submissions

MORE INFO: Sloan Distribution Grant Information

The NRDC Climate Storytelling Fellowship

The Black List is thrilled to announce that it has once again partnered with NRDC’s (Natural Resources Defense Council) Rewrite the Future program, The Redford Center, and The CAA Foundation to launch a second iteration of the NRDC Climate Storytelling Fellowship.   


The Fellowship will grant $20,000 each to three writers to support revision of a feature screenplay or pilot that engages with climate change in a meaningful way through events, actions, character, emotions, plot, and/or setting.  In addition, NRDC will connect each fellowship recipient with industry professional feedback and guidance on their scripts


MORE INFO: 2022 NRDC Climate Storytelling Fellowship | The Black List

Sundance Institute Indigenous Program

This program champions and provides deep support of Indigenous-created stories on a global scale. From labs and fellowships to screenings and gatherings around the world, the program’s offerings are designed in response to the specific needs of Native and Indigenous storytellers, and focuses on the specific development of storytellers from Native and Indigenous backgrounds, encompassing feature film and episodic work. Fellows will receive hands-on support from the Institute and advisors, including one-on-one feedback sessions and roundtable discussions. 


MORE INFO: Sundance Institute Indigenous Program    

Frameline Completion Fund

The Frameline Completion Fund is granting up to $25,000 to emerging and established filmmakers to push LGBTQ+ film projects over the finish line. Individual grants of up to $5,000 will be rewarded after jury deliberation. 

Deadline for Applications Extended to November 15!

MORE INFO: Completion Fund - Frameline

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