Jeanie Finlay’s Retrospective and Q at Big Sky Documentary Festival
We were extremely proud to see 2023 Chicken & Egg Award recipient Jeanie Finlay’s retrospective at this year’s Big Sky Documentary Festival. She was alongside (Egg)celerator Lab grantee Q, 10 supported filmmakers, and Board member Félix Endara displaying their films. Of those films, five had world premieres, and two won awards. Outstanding work all! The festival occurred from February 16 to 25, 2024, in Missoula, Montana.
Q
dir. & prod. Jude Chehab
Q is a 2021 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee.
Retrospective: Jeanie Finlay
We were proud to watch one of our 2023 Chicken & Egg Award recipients Jeanie Finlay, a prominent documentary filmmaker hailing from Northern England, getting recognized with a retrospective at this year’s Big Sky Film Festival. Jeanie’s films tell intimate stories that resonate with audiences globally, and this retrospective featured 12 selections from her repertoire, including her most recent feature Your Fat Friend. Explore the full program here.
From the AlumNest
- Troll Storm – World Premiere
dir. & prod. Eunice Lau
prods. Brooke Pepion Swaney, Zachary Kerschberg
- American Grail: A Quest for the Ivory-Billed Woodpecker – World Premiere
dir. Andy Sarjahani
prod. Jolene Pinder
- Bring Them Home / Aiskótáhkapiyaaya – World Premiere & Winner of the Big Sky Award
dirs. Ivan MacDonald, Ivy MacDonald, Daniel Glick
prods. Daniel Glick, Ivan MacDonald, Sarah Clarke
- Confessions of a Good Samaritan
dir. Penny Lane
prod. Gabriel Sedgwick
- Dark Money
dir. & prod. Kimberly Reed
prod. Katy Chevigny
- Eat Flowers
dir. River Finlay
prods. Alison Klayman, Cig Harvey, River Finlay, Sashka Rothchild
- Montana Indigenous Voting Rights – World Premiere
dir. Ivan MacDonald
prods. ACLU of Montana, Western Native Vote, Jessica Jane Hart
- Seat 31: Zooey Zephyr – World Premiere & Winner of the Mini-doc Award
dir. & prod. Kimberly Reed
- Unseen
dir. & prod. Set Hernande
prods. Félix Endara, Diane Quon, Day Al-Mohamed
Chicken & Egg Pictures at Getting Real 2024
Chicken & Egg Pictures is proud to be part of the sixth edition of Getting Real, a biennial for documentary practitioners and focused on the business and art of nonfiction storytelling. The event takes place from Monday, April 15 through Friday, April 19 in Los Angeles.
Fourteen supported filmmakers, as well as our Program Director Kiyoko McCrae and Board Members Félix Endara, Marjan Safinia, and Alex Simon, will participate in a four day event designed to provide a space for the field to hold constructive conversations, build lasting relationships, and tackle the ethical, creative, sustainability, production, and distribution challenges facing our growing community. Please take a look at the details below.
Playing with Reality: Staging Documentary
Tuesday, April 16, 2024 10:30 AM PDT
Panelists: Alison O’Daniel, Cecilia Aldorando, Theo Montoya
Moderator: Ela Bittencourt
Surviving the Aftermath: Protecting Creative Expression
Tuesday, April 16, 2024 10:45 AM PDT
Panelists: Assia Boundaoui, Farihah Zaman, Anam Abbas
Moderator: Aizzah Fatima
Open Breakout Session: From Concept to Catalyst (with A-Doc and BGDM)
Tuesday, April 16, 2024 2:00 PM PDT
Panelists: Grace Lee, Farihah Zaman, Leo Chiang, Iyabo Boyd
Moderators: Sonya Childress, Sahar Driver
Risky Business: Accessing Difficult Places
Tuesday, April 16, 2024 3:45 PM PDT
Moderators: Jennifer Petrucelli, Stephanie Jenkins, and Rachel Antell
Respondents: Dawn Porter, Jon-Sesrie Goff, and more to be announced
The Hot Seat
Tuesday, April 16, 2024 3:45 PM PDT
Panelist: Program Director Kiyoko McCrae, Mads K. Mikkelsen, Bryn Mooser, and Luis Ortiz
Moderator: Abby Sun
Delegation: Is There Independence Out There? (BFI Doc Society)
Wednesday, April 17, 2024 10:00 AM PDT
BFI Doc Society, in partnership with FWD-Doc, is hosting a virtual Delegation of six UK filmmakers, producers, and editors who identify as disabled, D/deaf, and/or neurodivergent. In this virtual discussion on the spirit of independence, filmmakers Ella Glendining, Lindsey Dryden, and other filmmakers will elaborate on what voice, audience, and success mean to them as disabled filmmakers, and how reframing “access” beyond accessibility can create and sustain space for radical new voices in the documentary industry.
Disaster Preparation: Building Your Support System
Wednesday, April 17, 2024 10:15 AM PDT
Panelists: Rintu Thomas and Sushmit Ghosh, Emily Mkrtichian, and Gema Allen Juarez
Moderator: Zara Meerza
Open Breakout Session: Trans Filmmaker Meetup
Wednesday, April 17, 2024 11:45 AM PDT
Moderator: Board Member Félix Endara
Panelists: Chelsea Moore, Moi Santos, seyi adebanjo, Cary Cronenwett
Workshop: Brands 101
Wednesday, April 17, 2024 11:45 AM PDT
Moderator: Board Member Alex Simon
Facilitator: Brian Newman
Here’s What Really Happened: Your Fat Friend
Wednesday, April 17, 2024 2:00 PM PDT
Panelists: Jeanie Finlay, Suzanne Alizart
Moderator: Keisha Knight
Worth Our Weight In Gold: Identifying Value in Your Production
Wednesday, April 17, 2024 2:15 PM PDT
Panelists: Tabs Breese, Chris Perez, Lexy Altman, and Asmae El Moudir
Moderator: Zeynep Güzel (Berlinale Talents Doc Station)
We Don’t Need to Reinvent the Wheel: Connecting to Audiences
Wednesday, April 17, 2024 4:00 PM PDT
Panelists: Elizabeth Woodward, Pulkit Datta, Lucas Rosant, Paula Ossandón
Moderator: Winnie Wang
Keynote: Kirsten Johnson
Wednesday, April 17, 2024 5:30 PM PDT
Kirsten Johnson is a 2017 Chicken & Egg Award Recipient
Collective Performance: Our Declaration of Independence
Wednesday, April 17, 2024 7:00 PM PDT
Panelists: Board Member Marjan Safinia, Maxine Franklin, Michelle Plascencia
Game Show: What’s the Deal?
Thursday, April 18, 2024 11:15 AM PDT
Panelists: Daresha Kyi, Keith Wilson, Gary Kam, and Vinay Shukla
Moderator: Chase Whiteside (América)
Meet Our Team
Along with our Program Director Kiyoko McCrae, CEO Jenni Wolfson, COO Sarah Anderson, and Senior Program Manager Elaisha Stokes will be attending Getting Real. They will be attending panels and supporting our filmmakers. If you see them, please don’t hesitate to say hello!
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
31 Oscar-eligible films from our community!
Congratulations to the 14 Chicken & Egg-supported films and 17 from our Alumni community on the list of documentary features and shorts eligible for the 96th Academy Awards®! We encourage you to catch these films in theaters and on streaming platforms. The Oscars® Shortlist will be announced on Thursday, December 21, so stay tuned.
Against the Tide
dir. Sarvnik Kaur
prod. Koval Bhatia, Quentin Laurent
Against the Tide is a 2021 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee.
Find about upcoming screenings here.
Bad Press
dirs. Rebecca Landsberry-Baker, Joe Peeler
prods. Conrad Beilharz, Garrett F. Baker, Tyler Graim
Bad Press is a participant of Project: Hatched 2023.
Find out about upcoming screenings here.
Eat Bitter
dirs. Ningyi Sun, Pascale Appora-Gnekindy
prod. Mathieu Faure
Eat Bitter is a 2022 (Egg)celerator Lab finalist.
Find out about upcoming screenings here.
El eco / The Echo
dir. & prod. Tatiana Huezo
prod. Dalia Reyes
El eco / The Echo was supported through Tatiana Huezo’s 2021 Chicken & Egg Award.
Joonam
dir. Sierra Urich
prod. Keith Wilson
Joonam is a 2022 (Egg)celerator Lab grantee.
Find out about upcoming screenings here.
MnM
dir. Twiggy Pucci Garçon
prods. Colleen Cassingham, Jess Devaney
MnM was supported in partnership with Multitude Films as a part of the QUEER FUTURES (2022) series and is eligible for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Film.
PAY OR DIE
dirs. & prods. Rachael Dyer, Scott Alexander Ruderman
prod. Yael Melamede
PAY OR DIE is a participant of Project: Hatched 2023.
Now streaming on Paramount +.
Plan C
dir. & prod. Tracy Droz Tragos
Plan C is a 2022 Critical Issues Fund grantee.
Find out about upcoming screenings here or watch on demand here.
Razing Liberty Square
dir. Katja Esson
prods. Ann Bennett, Corinna Sager, Ronald Baez
Razing Liberty Square is a 2022 Critical Issues Fund grantee.
The film will open theatrically in Miami on January 26 and the Broadcast Premiere will be on Independent Lens on January 29.
Reality Winner
dir. & prod. Sonia Kennebeck
prod. Ines Hofmann Kanna
Reality Winner was supported through Sonia Kennebeck’s 2023 Chicken & Egg Award.
Songs of Earth
dir. & prod. Margreth Olin
prod. Lena Faye-Lund Sandvik
Songs of Earth was supported through Margreth Olin’s 2022 Chicken & Egg Award.
The Eternal Memory
dir. & prod. Maite Alberdi
prod. Juan de Dios Larraín, Pablo Larraín, Rocío Jadue
The Eternal Memory was supported through Maite Alberdi’s 2020 Chicken & Egg Award.
Now streaming on Paramount +.
Total Trust
dir. Jialing Zhang
prod. Knut Jäger
Total Trust was supported through Jialing Zhang’s 2021 Chicken & Egg Award.
Check out their list of upcoming New York screenings here.
Twice Colonized
dir. Lin Alluna
prods. Emile Hertling Péronard, Alethea Arnaquq-Baril, Stacey Aglok, Bob Moore
Twice Colonized is a participant of Project: Hatched 2023.
Find out about upcoming screenings here.
Alumni filmmakers eligible for Best Documentary Feature
- AKA Mr. Chow
dir. Nick Hooker
prod. Diane Quon
- Anonymous Sister
dir. & prod. Jamie Boyle
prods. Marilyn Ness, Elizabeth Westrate
- Another Body
dirs. & prods. Sophie Compton, Reuben Hamlyn
prod. Elizabeth Woodward
- Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project
dirs. & prods. Michèle Stephenson, Joe Brewster
- King Coal
dir. & prod. Elaine McMillion Sheldon
prods. Shane Boris, Diane Becker, Peggy Drexler
- Mourning In Lod
dir. & prod. Hilla Medalia
- The Lady Bird Diaries
dir. & prod. Dawn Porter
prod. Kim Reynolds
- Victim/Suspect
dir. & prod. Nancy Schwartzman
prods. Julie Goldman, Christopher Clements, Alice Henty, Rachel de Leon, Amanda Pike
- Who I Am Not
dir. Tunde Skovran
prods. Andrei Zinca, Danielle Turkov, Paul Cadieux, Patrick Hamm, Amy Shepherd, Edith Weil, Daniel Szandtner, Janos Kovacs
- Your Fat Friend
dir. & prod. Jeanie Finlay
prod. Suzanne Alizart
- You Were My First Boyfriend
dirs. Cecilia Aldarondo, Sarah Enid Hagey
prod. Ines Hofmann Kanna (prod. of Reality Winner)
Alumni filmmakers eligible for Best Documentary Short Film
- A Mouthful of Petrol
dir. & prod. Jess Kohl
exec. prod. Lindsay Poulton
- Bone Black: Midwives vs the South
dir. Rebecca Richman Cohen
prod. Yoruba Richen
- Heart of an Astronaut
dir. Jennifer Rainsford
prods. Costanza Julia Bani
- How We Get Free
dirs. Geeta Gandbhir, Samantha Knowles
prods. Kathleen Lingo, Sweta Vohra, Jess Devaney
- Rest Stop
dir. Crystal Kayiza
prods. Brit Fryer, Jalena Keane-Lee
- The Recall
dir. Imani Dennison (POV Shorts Co-Production Fund Grantee)
prod. Flor Tejada
- The Feeling of Being Close to You
dir. & prod. Ash Goh Hua
Post written by Communications Intern Tess Caldwell
Two World Premieres at Tribeca Film Festival
We are proud to see three Nest-supported films and four AlumNest films on the lineup for Tribeca Film Festival this year! The festival will take place from Wednesday, June 7 to Sunday, June 18, 2023 in our home base, New York City.
We are thrilled that for the first time, more than half of feature films in competition (68%) are directed by women, while 41% of all feature films are directed by women.
We are also egg-static that two of the three Nest-supported films on the lineup, Breaking the News and Q are having their world premieres! We hope to see you there.
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 New York premiere in the Spotlight+ section.
Get your tickets here.
Breaking the News
dirs. Chelsea Hernandez, Heather Courtney, Princess A. Hairston
prod. Diane Quon
Breaking the News is a 2022 Critical Issues Fund Grantee having its World Premiere in the Documentary Competition.
Get your tickets here.
Q
dir. & prod. Jude Chehab
Q is a 2021 (Egg)celerator Lab Grantee having its World Premiere in the Documentary Competition.
Get your tickets here.
From the AlumNest
- Kim’s Video – New York Premiere
dirs. & prods. David Redmon, Ashley Sabin
prods. Deborah Smith, Dale Smith, Francesco Galavotti, Rebecca Tabasky - Poisoned: The Dirty Truth About Your Food – World Premiere
dir. & prod. Stephanie Soechtig
prods. Ross Girard, Ross Dinerstein, Kristin Lazure, Rebecca Evans - Uncharted – World Premiere
dir. & prod. Beth Aala
prods. Everywoman Studios, Abby Greensfelder - Your Fat Friend – World Premiere
dir. & prod. Jeanie Finlay
prod. Suzanne Alizart
Written by Spring Intern Tess Caldwell