Six Supported Films at Hot Docs
The 31st edition of Hot Docs will take place across Toronto this year from Thursday, April 25 to Sunday, May 5. We are thrilled to announce that 2020 Chicken & Egg Award recipient Nishtha Jain’s film, Farming the Revolution, is having its world premiere along with 5 other supported films and 5 films from supported filmmakers are on the lineup this year!
Hot Docs is North America’s largest documentary festival, conference, and market, and embodies a deep commitment to gender parity, with 54% female directors in this year’s official selection, according to their press release. Two of our staff members will be in attendance so be sure to stay in touch via our social media channels for some exclusive content at the festival!
Farming the Revolution
dir. & prod. Nishtha Jain
prod. Valérie Montmartin
Farming the Revolution was supported through Nishtha Jain’s 2020 Chicken & Egg Award and is having its World Premiere in the International Competition
7 Beats Per Minute
dir. Yuqi Kang
prod. Ina Fichman, Anita Lee
7 Beats Per Minute was a 2022 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee having its Canadian Premiere in the Canadian Spectrum Competition.
A Photographic Memory
dir. & prod. Rachel Elizabeth Seed
prods. Sigrid Dyekjær, Beth Levison, Matt Perniciaro, Michael Sherman, Danielle Varga
A Photographic Memory was a 2020 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee having its International Premiere in the Persister section.
Intercepted
dir. Oksana Karpovych
prods. Giacomo Nudi, Rocío Barba Fuentes, Pauline Tran Van Lieu, Lucie Rego, Darya Bassel
Intercepted is a 2022 Critical Issues Fund grantee having its Canadian Premiere in the Festival Favorites section.
Look Into My Eyes
dir. & prod. Lana Wilson
prod. Kyle Martin
Look Into My Eyes was supported through Lana Wilson’s 2019 Chicken & Egg Award and is having its Canadian Premiere in the Special Presentations section.
Wilfred Buck
dir. & prod. Lisa Jackson
prod. Alicia Smith, Lauren Grant
Wilfred Buck was supported through Lisa Jackson’s 2023 Chicken & Egg Award and is having its North American Premiere in the Canadian Spectrum Competition.
Spotlight on Brett Story
2022 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Brett Story will be engaging in an illuminating conversation with author and organizer Astra Taylor. Learn more about Astra Taylor in Conversation with Brett Story here.
From the AlumNest
- Adrianne & the Castle – Canadian Premiere
dir. Shannon Walsh
prod. Ina Fichman
- Power
dir. & prod. Yance Ford
prods. Sweta Vohra, Jess Devaney, Netsanet Negussie
- We Did Not Consent
dir. Dorothy Allen-Pickard
prods. Rosa Harris Edmonds, Lindsay Poulton
- Yintah – Canadian Premiere
dirs. & prods. Jennifer Wickham, Brenda Michell, Michael Toledano
prods. Bob Moore, Katie McKay, Mila Aung-Thwin
Meet Our Team at Hot Docs
We are exhilarated that our Senior Program Manager Elaisha Stokes and Program Assistant Will Tamura will be in attendance at the festival. They will be attending Chicken & Egg Pictures-supported screenings and industry events. Make sure to say hi!
Four Supported Films at Full Frame Documentary Festival
We were proud to see Light of the Setting Sun have its world premiere at Full Frame Documentary Festival. There were also three supported films and three alumni filmmakers in this years’ lineup. This edition marked the festival’s return to in-person activities and took place in Durham, North Carolina from April 3 to 6.
We would like to highlight the world premiere of Julia’s Stepping Stones, directed by our beloved Julia Reichert and her partner and longtime co-director Steven Bognar during the final months of Julia’s life.
Light of the Setting Sun
dir. & prod. Vicky Du
prod. Danielle Varga
Light of the Setting Sun was a 2022 (Egg)celerator Lab Finalist and had its World Premiere.
A Photographic Memory
dir. & prod. Rachel Elizabeth Seed
prods. Sigrid Dyekjær, Beth Levison, Matt Perniciaro, Michael Sherman, Danielle Varga
A Photographic Memory was a 2020 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee.
Look Into My Eyes
dir. & prod. Lana Wilson
prod. Kyle Martin
Look Into My Eyes was supported through Lana Wilson’s 2019 Chicken & Egg Award.
Union
dir. & prods. Brett Story, Stephen Maing
prod. Samantha Curley, Mars Verrone, Martin Dicicco
Still from Union
Union was supported through Brett Story’s 2023 Chicken & Egg Award.
From the AlumNest
- Growing Up Female
dirs. & prods. Julia Reichert, Jim Klein
- Julia’s Stepping Stones
dirs. Julia Reichert, Steve Bognar
prod. Steve Bognar
- Luther: Never Too Much
dir. Dawn Porter
prods. Trish D. Chetty, Ged Doherty, Jamie Foxx, Datari Turner, Leah Smith
- Power
dir. & prod. Yance Ford
prods. Netsanet Negussie, Sweta Vohra, Jess Devaney
Supported Filmmakers at CPH:DOX 2024!
The 21st edition of CPH:DOX took place from Wednesday, March 13 to Sunday, March 24 in Copenhagen, Denmark. We are proud to see that 4 supported films and 13 supported filmmakers were part of the lineup and that many of our supported filmmakers also participated in the CPH:CONFERENCE and CPH: FORUM. Some of our team was also there to participate in person to support our filmmakers. See below for more details.
- 2023 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Lisa Jackson’s Wilfred Buck | World Premiere | Dox:Award & BIPOC sections | dir. & prod. Lisa Jackson | prod. Alicia Smith, Lauren Grant
- 2022 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Brett Story’s Union | International Premiere | F:act Award & Nine to Five sections | dirs. Brett Story, Stephen Maing | prods. Samantha Curley, Mars Verrone
- 2019 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Lana Wilson’s Look Into My Eyes | International Premiere | Special Premieres & Stranger Than Fiction sections | dir. Lana Wilson | prod. Kyle Martin
- 2022 Critical Issues Fund Grantee Intercepted | Urgent Matters & Battlefields sections | dir. Oksana Karpovych | prods. Rocío B. Fuentes, Giacomo Nudi
From the AlumNest
- And So It Begins
dir. & prod. Ramona Diaz - Bottlemen
dir. & prod. Nemanja Vojinovic
prod. Marija Stojnic - La Base | International Premiere
dir. Vadim Dumesh
prod. Quentin Laurent
- Night of Nights | World Premiere
dir. Truman
prod. Violet Feng - Marching in the Dark | World Premiere
dir. Kinshuk Surjan
prods. Evelien De Graef, Hanne Phlypo, Digna Sinke, Arya Rothe - Phantoms of the Sierra Madre | World Premiere
dir. & prod. Håvard Bustnes
prod. Christian Aune Falch, Bird Runningwater - Power | International Premiere
dir. & prod. Yance Ford
prods. Netsanet Negussie, Sweta Vohra, Jess Devaney - Silent Trees | World Premiere
dir. & prod. Agnieszka Zwiefka
prods. Heino Deckert, Sigrid Dyekjaer, Zofia Kujawska - Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story | European Premiere
dirs. Peter Ettedgui & Ian Bonhôte
prods. Lizzie Gillett, Ian Bonhôte, Robert Ford - The Black Garden | World Premiere
dir. Alexis Pazoumian
prod. Clara Vuillermoz - The Bones | World Premiere
dir. Jeremy Xido
prod. Ina Fichman - The Stimming Pool | World Premiere
dirs. The Neurocultures Collective, Benjamin Brown, Georgia Bradburn, Sam Chown-Ahern, Robin Elliott-Knowles, Lucy Walker, Steven Eastwood
prod. Chloe White, Steven Eastwood - Your Fat Friend
dir. & prod. Jeanie Finlay
prod. Suzanne Alizart
CPH: FORUM
At CPH:FORUM, top producers and highly acknowledged directors from all over the world take the stage to pitch 30 carefully selected projects of documentary features and series in the intersection of nonfiction, fiction, visual art, journalism, and science. Seven films from our community of filmmakers were presented.
2023 Research & Development Grant recipient Cinderella Unbound, UK/RO
dir. & prod Ilinca Calugareanu | prod. Anamaria Antoci
Freedom (WT), DK
dir. Camilla Nielsson | prod. Signe Byrge Sørensen
In Praise of Invasive Species, CA
dir. Mila Aung-Thwin | prod. Bob Moore
Powwow People, US
dir. Sky Hopinka (2018 Art of Nonfiction fellow) | prod. John Cardellino
The Dirty Dream, IN
dirs. & prods. Rintu Thomas, Sushmit Ghosh
The Listeners, UK/US/FR
dir. & prod. Lindsey Dryden | prod. Samantha Steele
Victor, US
dir. Stephani Victor | prods. Diane Becker, Melanie Miller, Matt Radecki
CPH: CONFERENCE
A 4-day industry event offering a range of inspiring talks with visionary thinkers, investigating current themes in documentary filmmaking, and creating an interactive and hands-on platform for exchange with other professionals of our documentary community. The theme this year was Re:Building Narratives – Accessibility And Equity In Documentary. Our filmmakers were well represented across the different activities from Tuesday, March 19 to Friday, March 22.
SOCIETY: STORIES OF OUR LIFETIMES
Tuesday, March 19
With Lizzie Gillett and Sigrid Dyekjær, producers of supported film Merkel, as keynote speakers for the Viva Independent Feature Docs section. Clara Vuillermoz, producer of 2020 (Egg)celerator Lab Grantee Polaris was a speaker in the A Conflict of Interest or an Interest in Conflict? section. Lindsey Dryden, supported through the QUEER FUTURES program, also participated in the LGBTQIA panel. Curated by 2023 Development grant recipient Derren Lawford.
FILM:MAKERS IN DIALOGUE
Wednesday, March 20
With 2022 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Brett Story, Stephen Maing, producer of supported film Union, and Yance Ford, director of supported film Strong Island.
SCIENCE: WAYS OF KNOWING AND SEEING
Thursday, March 21
With 2023 Chicken & Egg Award recipient Lisa Jackson as a keynote speaker in the Stars: Indigenous Ways of Knowing section, and Mila Aung-Thwin, producer of 2020 (Egg)celerator Lab participant Midwives, as a speaker in the Action: Legacies of science, cinematic justice section.
2022 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Margreth Olin is also considered an expert at the conference.
Meet our Team at CPH:DOX
Our Senior Program Manager Elaisha Stokes and Program Director Kiyoko McCrae attended and took 1:1 meetings with filmmakers.
We are proud to congratulate a longtime collaborator and advisor in our labs, Carla Gutierrez, for the international premiere of her new documentary, Frida.
Post written by Communications Assistant Tess Caldwell
Six Chicken & Egg Pictures-supported films and filmmakers at True/False Fest!
We were extremely proud to see two (Egg)celerator Lab premieres in the lineup of this years’ True/False festival. The lineup also included two films supported through the Chicken & Egg Award and two shorts by supported filmmakers featuring in the lineup of this years’ True/False festival! The festival took place between February 29 and March 3, in Colombia, Missouri. Congratulations to all of the films featured!
A Photographic Memory
dir. & prod. Rachel Elizabeth Seed
A Photographic Memory was a participant of the 2020 (Egg)celerator Lab and had its World Premiere at True/False Fest.
Look Into My Eyes
dir. & prod. Lana Wilson
prod. Kyle Martin
Look Into My Eyes was supported through Lana Wilson’s 2019 Chicken & Egg Award.
There Was, There Was Not
dir. Emily Mkrtichian
prod. Mara Adina
There Was, There Was Not was a 2022 (Egg)celerator Lab finalist and had its World Premiere at True/False Fest.
Union
dirs. Brett Story, Stephen Maing
prods. Samantha Curley, Mars Verrone
Still from Union
Union was supported through Brett Story’s 2022 Chicken & Egg Award.
From the AlumNest
- Familia
dirs. & prods. Picho García, Gabriela Pena - Four Holes
dir. & prod. Daniela Muñoz Barroso
prod. Boris Prieto
Post written by Communications Assistant Tess Caldwell
Five Supported and AlumNest Films at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival!
We are proud to have two Chicken & Egg-supported films and three films from our filmmaker community at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival. Additionally, we are thrilled to see 2020 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Maite Alberdi being honored with the annual Vanguard Award during the Opening Night Gala at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival. The festival’s US documentary competition slate is made up of 50% women, and the World Competition slate is made up of 67% women. Chicken & Egg Pictures is committed to supporting women and non-binary filmmakers and we’re proud to see so much representation in this years’ competitions. The festival will take place from Thursday, January 18 through Sunday, January 28, 2024, in Park City and Salt Lake City, Utah. We hope to see you there!
Look Into My Eyes
dir. & prod. Lana Wilson
prod. Kyle Martin
Look Into My Eyes was supported through Lana Wilson’s 2019 Chicken & Egg Award.
Get your tickets here.
Union
dirs. Brett Story, Stephen Maing
prods. Samantha Curley, Mars Verrone
Union was supported through Brett Story’s 2022 Chicken & Egg Award and is participating in the U.S. Documentary Competition.
Get your tickets here.
From the AlumNest
- And So It Begins
dir. & prod. Ramona Diaz
- Luther: Never Too Much
dir. Dawn Porter
prods. Trish D. Chetty, Ged Doherty, Jamie Foxx, Datari Turner, Leah Smith
- Power
dir. & prod. Yance Ford
prods. Jess Devaney, Sweta Vohra, Netsanet Negussie
Shoutouts
We are thrilled to see 2020 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient Maite Alberdi being honored with the annual Vanguard Award during the Opening Night Gala. The award annually honors artists whose work highlights the art of storytelling and creative independence. In an interview with Variety about receiving the award, Maite said, “The Eternal Memory is a film that has taught me so much about the infinite ways of telling, looking at and working with real-life stories and I am proud and humbled to be among such an extraordinary group of filmmakers who have been given this recognition.” Congratulations, Maite!
We are also proud to have two longtime collaborators featuring films in the lineup this year. An Eggspert on our team, Joslyn Barnes is executive producing Conbody VS Everybody, and Carla Gutierrez, an advisor in our labs, is directing FRIDA. Congratulations!
Meet Our Staff
We are also excited that our Chief Executive Officer Jenni Wolfson, Program Director Kiyoko McCrae, and Associate Director of Development Rebecca Celli will be in attendance at the festival. They will be attending Chicken & Egg Pictures-supported screenings and industry events. Make sure to say hi!
Post written by Communications Intern Tess Caldwell
Eight Nest-supported World Premieres at 2023 Sundance Film Festival
We are egg-static that eight Nest-supported films will have their World premieres at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival.
The 2023 Sundance slate is made up of 28% first-time filmmakers. Chicken & Egg Pictures is committed to supporting filmmakers through the lifecycle of their films; we’re proud that five of the documentary films premiering at Sundance are grantees of our flagship program (Egg)celerator Lab, designed for first or second-time filmmakers.
See you in Utah!
Against the Tide
dir. & prod. Sarvnik Kaur
prods. Koval Bhatia
2021 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee Against the Tide is having its world premiere in the World Cinema Documentary Competition.
Available in person and online
Premiering on Friday, January 20
Get your tickets
It’s Only Life After All
dir. & prod. Alexandria Bombach
prods. Kathlyn Horan, Jess Devaney, Anya Rous
It’s Only Life After All was supported through Alexandria Bombach’s 2019 Chicken & Egg Award and is having its world premiere in the Premiere section.
Available in person
Premiering on Thursday, January 19
Get your tickets
Is There Anybody Out There?
dir. Ella Glendining
prod. Janine Marmot
2021 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee Is There Anybody Out There? is having its world premiere in the World Cinema Documentary Competition.
Available in person and online
Premiering on Sunday, January 22
Get your tickets
Joonam
dir. Sierra Urich
prod. Keith Wilson
2022 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee Joonam is having its world premiere in the U.S. Documentary Competition.
Available in person and online
Premiering on Saturday, January 21
Get your tickets here
Milisuthando
dir. Milisuthando Bongela
prod. Marion Isaacs
2019 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee Milisuthando is having its world premiere in the World Cinema Documentary Competition.
Available in person and online
Premiering on Saturday, January 21
Get your tickets
Plan C
dir. & prod. Tracy Droz Tragos
Plan C is supported through the Critical Issues Fund and it is having its world premiere in the Premiere section.
Available in person
Premiering on Monday, January 23
Get your tickets
The Eternal Memory
dir. & prod. Maite Alberdi
prods. Juan de Dios Larraín, Pablo Larraín, Rocío Jadue
The Eternal Memory was supported through Maite Alberdi’s 2020 Chicken & Egg Award and is having its world premiere in the World Cinema Documentary Competition.
Available in person and online
Premiering on Saturday, January 21
Get your tickets
The Tuba Thieves
dir. Alison O’Daniel
2021 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee The Tuba Thieves is having its world premiere in the Next section.
Available in person and online
Premiering on Sunday, January 22
Get your tickets
From the AlumNest
- Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project
dirs. & prods. Michele Stephenson, Joe Brewster
U.S. Documentary Competition - Kim’s Video
dirs. & prods. David Redmon, Ashley Sabin
prods. Deborah Smith, Dale Smith, Francesco Galavotti, Rebecca Tabasky
Next section (Opening night) - King Coal
dir. & prod. Elaine McMillion Sheldon
prods. Shane Boris, Diane Becker, Peggy Drexler
Next section - Murder in Big Horn
dirs. Razelle Benally, Matthew Galkin
prods. Razelle Benally, Matthew Galkin, Ivan Macdonald, Ivy Macdonald - Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields
dir. Lana Wilson
prods. Christine O’Malley, Jack Turner
Premiere section - Victim/Suspect
dir. & prod. Nancy Schwartzman
prods. Julie Goldman, Christopher Clements, Alice Henty, Rachel de Leon, Amanda Pike
Update:
Meet our Team at Sundance Film Festival
Our new Program Director Kiyoko McCrae will be in attendance along with Jenni Wolfson, CEO, and Rebecca Celli, Associate Director of Development.
We Stand with Reproductive Rights
The Supreme Court recently heard arguments in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, one of the most significant United States abortion cases in decades. This case has the potential to undo Roe v. Wade and is a threat to the constitutional rights of people who can become pregnant in the United States, where our organization is based. At Chicken & Egg Pictures we are deeply concerned about the possible outcomes of this case— such as preventing access to safe and legal abortions—and stand in support of reproductive rights.
We are living a defining moment for present and future generations, and we fiercely believe in the transformative power of documentary, especially in a call to action moment like this. Over the past sixteen years, Chicken & Egg Pictures has supported filmmakers who skillfully weave deeply humane storytelling to showcase the impact of reproductive restrictions. We encourage you to revisit some of the Nest-supported films that have increased visibility for reproductive rights:
A Quiet Inquisition, dirs. & prods. Alessandra Zeka and Holen Sabrina Kahn
Set in Nicaragua, A Quiet Inquisition portrays the reality of abortion prohibition where doctors have to navigate between the potential of prosecution and medical protocols that save lives.
Rent on Youtube
On The Divide, dirs. Maya Cueva & Leah Galant, prods. Melanie Miller, Diane Becker, Amanda Spain, Elizabeth Woodward
On The Divide is a film about the last abortion clinic on the US-Mexico border, where three Latinx people are connected despite their different views. As threats to the clinic and their personal safety mount, these three are forced to make decisions they never could have imagined.
Watch on POV in 2022
Vessel, dir. & prod. Diana Whitten, prod. Mitchell Block
Vessel is the story of activist Rebecca Gomperts, founder of Women on Waves, a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing reproductive health services to women in countries with restrictive abortion laws. When her ship is faced with governmental, religious, and military blockade, she decides to use new technologies to train women to give themselves abortions using WHO-researched pills. This work builds an underground network of emboldened pro-choice activists who trust women to handle abortion.
Rent on Amazon Prime
The Chosen Life, dir. Dawn Porter, prod. Marilyn Ness
The Chosen Life follows the story of Dr. Yashica Robinson as she offers reproductive options for women in Huntsville, Alabama, where abortion providers face harassment, ostracism, and state-sanctioned obstacles.
Watch via The New York Times
Motherland, dir. & prod. Ramona S. Díaz, prod. Rey Cuerdo
Motherland takes us into the world’s busiest maternity hospital, which is located in one of its poorest countries: the Philippines. There, women face devastating consequences as their country struggles with reproductive health policy and the politics of conservative ideologies.
Watch on Tubi, Vudu & Peacock
Belly of the Beast, dir. Erika Cohn, prods. Nicole Docta, Christen Marquez & Angela Tucker
Belly of the Beast is a shocking story about the ongoing legacy of eugenics and reproductive injustice in the United States. When a courageous young woman and a radical lawyer discover a pattern of illegal sterilizations in California’s women’s prisons—primarily targeting women of color, they wage a near-impossible battle against the Department of Corrections.
Host a screening
After Tiller, dirs. & prods. Martha Shane and Lana Wilson
After Tiller is a compassionate portrait of the remaining four American doctors who openly provide third-trimester abortions and have become the new number-one targets of the anti-abortion movement. They continue to risk their lives every day to do work that many believe is murder, but which they believe is profoundly important for their patients’ lives.
Watch on Tubi & Apple TV
A Full Nest at Sundance at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival
The Sundance Film Festival features line-up was announced today, Wednesday December 4, and we are egg-static for the following women filmmakers, who will be premiering their films at the festival in Park City, Utah from Thursday, January 23 to Sunday, February 2, 2020.
Coded Bias
Directed by Shalini Kantayya (Project: Hatched 2020)
Exploring the fallout of MIT Media Lab researcher Joy Buolamwini’s startling discovery that facial recognition does not see dark-skinned faces accurately, and her journey to push for the first-ever legislation in the US to govern against bias in the algorithms that impact us all.
Once Upon a Time in Venezuela
Directed by Anabel Rodríguez (Project: Hatched 2020)
Once, the village of Congo Mirador was prosperous. Now it is decaying and disintegrating—a prophetic reflection of Venezuela itself.
The Fight
Elyse Steinberg, Josh Kriegman, Eli Despres (Project: Hatched 2020)
Inside the ACLU, a team of scrappy lawyers battle Trump’s historic assault on civil liberties.
A Thousand Cuts
Directed by Ramona Diaz (2018 Chicken & Egg Award recipient)*
Nowhere is the worldwide erosion of democracy, fueled by social media disinformation campaigns, more starkly evident than in the authoritarian regime of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte. Journalist Maria Ressa places the tools of the free press—and her freedom—on the line in defense of truth and democracy.
Dick Johnson Is Dead
Directed by Recipient Kirsten Johnson (2017 Chicken & Egg Award recipient)*
With this inventive portrait, a cameraperson seeks a way to keep her 86-year-old father alive forever. Utilizing moviemaking magic and her family’s dark humor, she celebrates Dr. Dick Johnson’s last years by staging fantasies of death and beyond. Together, dad and daughter confront the great inevitability awaiting us all.
*These films were in development during the filmmaker’s Chicken & Egg Award year.
In addition to these directly supported films, our AlumNest filmmakers (the 300+ talented, diverse women nonfiction directors that we have supported throughout our fifteen years as an organization) are also premiering their films at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival:
Aggie
Directed by Catherine Gund (Born to Fly, Dispatches from Cleveland, and What’s on Your Plate?)
The Last Thing He Wanted
Directed by Dee Rees (Eventual Salvation)
Taylor Swift: Miss Americana
Directed by Lana Wilson (2019 Chicken & Egg Award recipient)
Untitled Kirby Dick/Amy Ziering Film
Directed by Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering (The Invisible War)
The Mole Agent
Directed by Maite Alberdi (2020 Chicken & Egg Award recipient)
Congratulations to these incredible women filmmakers on their Sundance-bound films. We’ll see you in Park City!
Announcing our 2019 Chicken & Egg Award recipients!
Chicken & Egg Pictures is proud to announce the fourth cohort of our Chicken & Egg Award—previously known as Breakthrough Filmmaker Award—which recognizes and elevates five experienced documentary filmmakers poised to reach new heights in their careers and become strong filmmaker advocates for critical and timely issues.
This year’s Chicken & Egg Award recipients are directors of Peabody Award- and Emmy® Award-winning films; the characters in their films—like a Yazidi human rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize winner; a young woman in Gaza making a choice between love, family, and freedom; and a punk rocker-turned-Buddhist monk—have inspired hearts and minds; and their work has been featured at Tribeca, Sundance, Berlinale, and other international festivals.
The award comes with a $50,000 unrestricted grant that gives its recipient more financial freedom in planning her career, and year-long individualized mentorship geared towards working to achieve the professional goals each filmmaker sets for herself.
Julia Bacha
Julia Bacha is a Peabody Award-winning filmmaker, Guggenheim fellow, and Creative Director at Just Vision. Her directing credits include Budrus (2009), My Neighbourhood (2012), and Naila and the Uprising (2017). Her work has played at the Berlin and Tribeca Film Festivals, as well as Palestinian refugee camps and the United States Congress. Julia is a Term Member at the Council on Foreign Relations, a Young Global Leader at the World Economic Forum, and a TED speaker.
Alexandria Bombach
Alexandria Bombach is an award-winning director, cinematographer, and editor from Santa Fe, New Mexico. Her feature-length documentary, On Her Shoulders (2018), won Best Directing in the US Documentary Competition at the Sundance Film Festival, is nominated for two Spirit Awards, and was shortlisted for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. Her first feature-length documentary, Frame by Frame (2015) premiered at SXSW and went on to win over 25 festival awards. Alexandria is the founder of the Santa Fe Editing & Writing Residency and a 2019 Sundance Institute Momentum Fellow.
Stephanie Wang-Breal
A first-generation Chinese American from Youngstown, Ohio, Stephanie Wang-Breal uses film as a tool to subvert the narrative. She’s directed five feature length films: the award-winning Wo Ai Ni Mommy (2010), Tough Love (2014), and Blowin’ Up (2018); and directed commercials and short form content with talents and brands such as Tan Dun, Planned Parenthood, Minwax, ESPN, Tiffany & Co., Goldman Sachs, Verifone, and Apple. Stephanie’s independent work has been supported and recognized by the Sundance Institute, the Ford Foundation, and featured in the Tribeca Film Festival.
Lana Wilson
Lana Wilson is an Emmy® Award-winning and two-time Spirit Award-nominated director. Her most recent film, The Departure (2017), premiered at Tribeca, had a critically acclaimed theatrical release, and was nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Documentary. Her previous film, After Tiller (2013), premiered at Sundance and went on to win an Emmy® Award for Best Documentary. It was also nominated for an Independent Spirit Award, four Cinema Eye Honors, and the Ridenhour Prize.
Malika Zouhali-Worrall
Malika Zouhali-Worrall is an Emmy® Award-winning director and editor. Her directing credits include Call Me Kuchu, which premiered at the 2012 Berlinale and went on to win more than 20 festival awards, and Thank You For Playing (2015), which received an Emmy® for Outstanding Arts & Culture Documentary. Malika’s work has been supported by Sundance, Tribeca, Firelight Media, and the United Nations. She is a San Francisco Film/Catapult Documentary Fellow and a Chaz and Roger Ebert Directing Fellow.
For additional information on Chicken & Egg Pictures and this award, please visit our Programs page.
The Nest in the Inaugural DOC NYC 40 Under 40
The DOC NYC Film Festival recently released their inaugural 40 Under 40 List, sponsored by Topic Studios, honoring documentary talents under the age of 40. Of the 40 artists selected, over half are women. Congratulations to all on this honor!
Assia Boundaoui, director of The Feeling of Being Watched (2016 Accelerator Lab and recipient of The Whickers Chicken & Egg Pictures Award)
Lyric R. Cabral, director of (T)ERROR and The Rashomon Effect (2017 Accelerator Lab)
Nausheen Dadabhoy, director of An Act of Worship (2018 Diversity Fellows Initiative)
Jessica Devaney, co-director of Love the Sinner (2016 Impact and Innovation Initiative), and producer of the Nest-supported films Always in Season, The Feeling of Being Watched, Roll Red Roll, and Speed Sisters.
Sabaah Folayan, director of Whose Streets? (2016 Accelerator Lab). Whose Streets? premiered on PBS on July 30.
Lana Wilson, director of The Departure and After Tiller
Farihah Zaman, co-director of Remote Area Medical
And congratulations to our other Nest friends!
- Erin Casper, editor of Roll Red Roll (dir. Nancy Schwartzman)
- Mariam Dwedar, camera operator for On Her Shoulders (dir. Alexandria Bombach, 2018 SXSW LUNA/Chicken & Egg Pictures Award recipient)
- Danielle Vega, co-producer of Cameraperson (dir. Kirsten Johnson, 2017 Breakthrough Filmmaker Award)
Check out more DOC NYC news from the Nest.